Should I combine Yoga & Meditation?
Yoga and meditation go hand in hand.
According to the Yogas Sutras of Patanjali, yoga consists of 8 limbs; and meditation (Dhyana in Sanskrit), is one of the 8 pillars.
Meditation is therefore the logical continuation of yoga. The postures are a natural gateway to meditation.
Even though they are two disciplines in their own right and can be practiced independently, practicing both yoga AND meditation together offers an explosive cocktail of health benefits.
Incorporating meditation into your yoga practice helps you improve your mental well-being and be more present, which directly influences how you perceive, see and interpret things. It will also increase your body awareness which can help you improve your posture and improve your coordination, among other things.
Research shows that combining yoga and meditation practices has positive effects on mind-body health and improves stress resilience.
Numerous scientific studies prove that yoga and meditation are disciplines that not only relax us but also have a profound impact on our bodies.
In this article, I share with you what some interesting findings and a guide to combine these two practices.
Let’s start.
A very relevant study of an intensive 3-month yoga and meditation retreat
A study of the participants of an intensive three-month yoga and meditation retreat showed some amazing insights as to what these two practices combined can do to our body-mind processes.
The practice consisted of a series of asanas, controlled breathing practices, and seated meditations during which the participants focused on mantra repetition, breath, emptying the mind, and bodily sensation.
The research team observed increases in the plasma levels of BDNF, a neuromodulator that plays an important role in learning, memory, and the regulation of complex processes such as inflammation, immunity, mood regulation, stress response, and metabolism.
1. Improves your subjective wellbeing
Participants of the retreat mentioned above showed an improved mood and improved subjective well-being after being interviewed by the research team.
2. Helps you be more present
The habit of training your focus and anchoring yourself to the present moment builds up momentum.
After some time of practice, you will see yourself going back to it every time your mind drifts to the past or future.
3. Increases your body awareness
Consciously moving and listening to your body creates a space of awareness where you become present within your body and your movement.
4. Reduces stress and inflammation
Going to the more scientific side of the equation…
In the study we were mentioning, they observed increases in the magnitude of the cortisol awakening response (CAR) which is part of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis (HPA), suggesting improved stress resilience.
Moreover, there was a decrease in inflammatory processes caused by an increase of the anti-inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-10 and a reduction of the pro-inflammatory cytokine Interleukin-12 after the retreat.
5. Reduces your anxiety and depression
The data also showed that participation in the retreat was associated with decreases in both self-reported anxiety and depression as well as increases in MINDFULNESS.
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Meditation, a real brain training
Meditation is open to all and can be practiced at any age (young and old).
Meditation consists of focusing your attention on something, perhaps your breathing, the sounds you hear (the ticking of a clock or the chirping of birds), a picture, a candle, a mantra, a stick of incense…
Tip: I advise beginners in meditation to start by focusing on their breath and pay special attention to the air coming in and out of their nostrils.
Meditation is like a sport, except that it is a brain sport.
When you meditate, you train your mind to focus on something specific.
Of course, at first, it may seem a little complicated.
But over time, you’ll find that it gets simpler and simpler.
And you will surely become like me: addicted to meditation.
When I tell people I come across that I meditate, many of them think: either I want to stop thinking, or I’ve joined a cult, or I’m completely out of my mind…
This is not the case.
Because first of all, you can’t stop thinking; secondly, you don’t have to belong to any religious group to meditate; and thirdly, I don’t think I’m unblocking (well, not yet…).
“Meditation is to be aware of every thought and every feeling, never to say it is right or wrong, but just to watch it and to move with it.” Krishnamurti
So, can anyone start meditating? Well, yes! Meditation is accessible to everyone.
Moreover, there is no age to learn how to meditate. So, what are you waiting for?
“Through meditation, and by giving full attention to one thing at a time, we can learn to direct attention where we choose.” Eknath Easwaran
If you’re still not convinced, keep reading. I’ll tell you more about the benefits of meditation and yoga.
The benefits of meditation in yoga
Combining meditation and yoga brings many benefits:
- We become calmer and more serene (goodbye stress and anxiety).
- Our body and mind are in symbiosis.
- We are more present in the here and now, we don’t worry about the past and the future, we are in the present moment.
- We develop a certain ability to make the mental void.
And what do scientists say about yoga and meditation?
Scientists are doing more and more studies about meditation and yoga
An edifying study was published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
It shows that the practice of meditation and yoga, during the 3-month retreat we were previously mentioning, can even triple the growth factors of the brain (crazy, isn’t it?!).
“I wanted to find out if intensive yoga and meditation practice could affect signaling pathways related to the brain and body health in a significant way,” explains Baruch Rael Cahn, a researcher at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles (USA).
“In particular, we wanted to see if the neurotrophic factor (plasma BDNF) from the brain (known to increase the brain’s abilities (memory, learning)), neuronal plasticity and the development of new synapses (connections), would be increased with this type of practice”.
For the study, 38 participants with an average age of 34 years old entered a yoga center for 3 months.
The program included 2 hours of meditation and 2 hours of yoga per day, as well as a vegetarian diet.
The participants were subjected to various questionnaires and analyses during the internship.
So combining yoga and meditation is really the winning combo for healthy living?
As you can imagine, doing such a retreat with such an intense program and a healthy diet couldn’t produce bad results.
Indeed, the results are quite edifying.
The participants answered several questionnaires and it appeared that the signs of depression, anxiety, and chronic pain were significantly reduced.
But what is most remarkable in this study are the bio-balance sheets.
The analyses done on the neurotrophic factor (plasma NFD) exceeded all expectations, the rate was multiplied by three at the end of the study.
Since the level of NFD is inversely correlated with the level of anxiety, it could be a marker of psychological well-being.
Another data also caught the attention of the researchers, the cortisol peak (it occurs in the morning and allows our organism to start up), it turns out that after this retirement, this peak on waking is significantly higher among the participants.
“The body needs to mobilize resources to engage in daily activities,” comments the researcher.
When it does so in a more robust way, it is a marker of well-being”.
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In conclusion
Linking yoga and meditation can have many scientifically proven benefits to one’s body processes.
Practicing them habitually can be not just fantastic for your overall wellbeing but also extremely rewarding.
If you are already meditating and would like to add yoga to your practice, check out this article where we explain the different types of yoga, so you can choose the one that better matches your style.