Our Brain On Yoga

By Liz Nierzwicki

The documented benefits of yoga are growing. People come to yoga for many different reasons: stress, fibromyalgia, arthritis, body aches and pain, for example. Doctors even recommend it for reducing back pain, depression or fatigue. Perhaps the most immediate benefit of yoga is its ability to reduce anxiety and stress and to calm the central nervous system through a chemical called GABA.

Through a 12-week study on a yoga group and a walking group, psychologists and neurologists at Boston University's School of Medicine found that compared to the age-old stress reliever of walking, yoga appears to have a greater impact in relieving stress and anxiety through a chemical in the brain called Gamma-Amino Butyric Acid (GABA). 

Gamma Amino Butyric Acid (GABA) is an amino acid which acts as a neurotransmitter. It inhibits nerve transmission in the brain, calming nervous activity. GABA has a quieting influence in the central nervous system and the rest of the body. Without GABA, nerve cells fire too often and too easily. Anxiety disorders such as panic attacks, seizure disorders, and numerous other conditions including addiction, headaches, Parkinson's syndrome, and cognitive impairment are all related to low GABA activity.

Scientists are still studying the different ways GABA is released in the body, but it is known that it is released through exercise and deep breathing.   Some yoga classes are gentle and some are more powerful, but all classes have breathing in common. A yoga instructor will help you settle in at the beginning of class and tune in to your breathing. Is it fast and shallow? Is it slow and deep? The state of your breathing is a good indicator of your state of mind and stress level. Throughout an entire class, you will focus on your breathing, paying special attention to slowing down and elongating the breath and therefore calming the body. 

As the nation suffers through bad economic times touching nearly every single person - whether through unemployment, foreclosures, or worry about money - many of those people are looking for an antidote to rising stress levels. Many have turned to yoga. People are traveling less, eating out less, and many are even trying to find ways to stay healthy so they do not need to spend money on doctor visits. One of my students has an extremely stressful job and recently she told me that she absolutely "needs" yoga, she can feel a difference in her body and mind when she can't make it in to a class.  The studio has become her place for rejuvenation.  

Many people simply don't know how to handle stress or anxiety, it's not something that is taught to us, and many people usually handle it the wrong way. Yoga can help people tune in to their body in a deeper way and notice imbalances in mind, breathing, and body aches which will in turn help them to stay balanced and better equipped to handle stress when it arises. 

Thanks for reading everybody. We'd love to hear how yoga helps you, please let us know in the comments below. 

Liz Nierzwicki, BS, ACSM-CPT, E-RYT elevates personal growth as a lifestyle, as an entrepreneur and life coach. She is the founder of Solace Yoga Studio and creator of the online lifestyle program called figureFIT! (figurefitlife.com). Liz is the personal trainer, yoga teacher, and lifestyle coach to many clients all over the globe via her online figureFIT! program. She spends most of her time in Mishawaka, Indiana either running the business and teaching at Solace Yoga Studio or creating content for her online community. As a passionate advocate for mind, body, and spiritual health, she is writing her first book, "figureFIT! The Keys to Health and Happiness" detailing the figureFIT! program and how to balance our lives to be truly happy and healthy.

She is a frequent contributor to Paleo Magazine, Sassy Magazine, and Family Magazine. You’ll find many of her articles on the following blogs; GoFITTY, Mind Body Green and The Huffington Post. Liz leads annual yoga and fitness retreats around the globe and also runs Solace Yoga School programs twice per year.


For more from Solace, please sign up for our newsletter at solaceyogastudio.com. For more from Liz, check out her figureFIT! lifestyle program to become your best self; or sign up for her newsletter at: www.figurefitlife.com. It’s only via her newsletter where you will receive exclusive video blogs, podcasts, workouts, yoga videos, and meditation audios.