Strike a Yoga Pose

Appetizer

Do more yoga. While this ancient practice is best known for its stress-relieving and flexibility benefits, some studies have found that yoga can also help reduce chronic pain.

Main Course

It's hard to think about exercise when just making it through the day causes you to wince, but yoga may help reduce that physical pain while keeping you mentally centered.

Several years ago, researchers at UCLA Medical Center conducted a study, and they found that just four weeks of regular yoga sessions significantly reduced the frequency and severity of chronic pain.

The study participants attended 90-minute Iyengar yoga sessions, three times per week for one month. Iyengar yoga combines various yoga poses with meditative breathing exercises.

Dessert

My Type-A personality makes it difficult for me to just...be. Yoga is an active way to quiet my mind while gently pushing my body to reach new heights. I don't know that I'll ever crave it the way I do a sweaty spin class or a hard-core lower body workout, but it's nice to know that there are even more benefits to yoga than what meets the eye.