By Jesica Alvarez
Borderzine
EL PASO — Yoga –the fastest growing form of exercise in America– is connecting the body, the mind and spirit of El Pasoans in greater numbers than ever.
Currently over 20 million Americans practice yoga on a regular basis and five new yoga studios emerged here in the past year, drawing as many new practitioners to bend and stretch as there are different reasons to join.
“Yoga is an ancient Indian body of knowledge that dates back more than 5,000 years. The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit word yuj, which means ‘to unite or integrate,” according to the website the a-b-c of yoga. Yoga then, is about uniting a person’s consciousness with the universal consciousness.
According to the American Health Journal many people are turning to yoga “because Western medicine has slowly begun to understand that there is a connection between mind and body and that by healing both as one unit, you can get great results.”
For Rose Garza, who has been practicing for three years and recently began to teach it at EP Fitness, yoga is not only good for mind and body, however, but also for the soul.
“Our bodies are only temporary. We also have to nurture the soul. That’s very important. Yoga helps you be okay with yourself and to learn to love yourself,” she said.
The three main structures of yoga are exercise, breathing and meditation, which are used to connect the body, the mind and the spirit. Ancient yogis believed that in order for man to be in harmony with himself and his environment, emotion, action and intelligence must be in balance.
There are six branches of yoga and over 70 proven health benefits that come with regular practice. Some of the benefits include improved flexibility, balance, circulation, core strength, stress reduction and disease prevention.
Dr. Loren Fishman, writing in the New York Times, said that as a lifelong devotee of yoga who studied it for three years in India before going to medical school, he uses various yoga positions to “halt and often reverse conditions like shoulder injuries, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, and scoliosis.”
“Yoga is good in all aspects. It’s good even for your digestive system, for your heart, for your lungs, your back, etc.” said Garza. “I love it because it’s a way for you to relax and be good with yourself, to meditate; it helps relax the tension in your muscles and tones your muscles and your body.”
Garza said that yoga also appeals to those who are not particularly fond of regular exercise. “Yoga promotes well-being and allows you to exercise without feeling like you are. Most people don’t like to exercise, so Yoga is a method for those that don’t like it,” Garza said.
Besides of its physical and mental benefits, those who practice it regularly say that yoga provides an opportunity to get what they call a full meditation. “Yoga allows you to target the chakras. It’s all connected internally so if you are able to align your body, it also allows for a full meditation,” explained Garza.
One of the studios that recently opened in El Paso is Casa de Yoga, at 2025 N. Stanton. It is a locally owned and operated yoga studio and boutique. The studio strives to provide a personalized and authentic experience for its clientele.
Casa de Yoga owner, Ryan Prieto, was born and raised in El Paso and went away to college at the age of 18. In her visits back home, she noticed a lack of yoga studios in the city and decided to come back to her hometown and help grow the local yoga community.
“There was a big opportunity here because Yoga just really didn’t exist,” Prieto said. “I also felt a huge pull that I needed to come back and I needed to be teaching here, intervening and sharing and really helping grow a true yoga community in El Paso…”
Finish reading Yoga practice stretches to new heights in El Paso
