These days the workplace has become really stressful. The fierce and cut throat competitive environment along with the pressure to meet deadlines keeps people super busy. On top of that, with the help of modern technology, people are working round the clock, they even carry work to home or while travelling. This build up of stress at workplace directly affects the productivity of individuals and as a result affects the ROI of the organization.
Also, nowadays, employees rarely get time away from work. They work hard and for longer hours. This extra work pressure coupled with faulty lifestyles contributes in becoming anxiety prone, which affects their decision-making ability, both at home and at work.
Therefore, developing a positive environment at workplace is essential; and this can be achieved by introducing exercise or yoga in your lifestyle without having to make big routine alterations.
Exercise and Meditation are different practices in their own ways, but both of them are grounded in spirituality and benefit the mind and body.
Exercise combines the physical postures with conscious breathing. On the other hand, meditation helps to keep the mind sharp and clear, relieves stress and improves overall sense of well-being.
The most common practice in the workplace is Mindfulness Meditation. It is a practice that brings the mind’s focus to the body and the breathing in order to help improve concentration and promotes awareness of thoughts and feelings.
Apart from reduction of stress and improved productivity, regular meditation helps to open creative doorways in the brain. With increased focus, problem-solving skills get more creative and new ideas enter the mind more freely. The research on mindfulness shows that meditation sharpens skills like memory, attention, and emotional intelligence.
Benefits of Exercise and Meditation
It’s great to practice an exercise routine before or after work, but you could also add in some stretches during the rest of the day. Stretch breaks are important for people whose jobs require them to sit at a desk in front of a computer for long hours. It can result in neck pain and back pain. Just taking out a few minutes to do stretches at your desk can relieve stress, increase productivity, and most importantly, make you feel better.
- Exercise and meditation:
Lowers blood pressure and heart rate that improves cardiovascular health. Meditating one time a day for ten minutes can help you reduce stress hormones, relax, lower your blood pressure, and allow for better blood flow.
- Treats Back Pain:
Practicing a few yoga poses can help with chronic back pain. It has been proved that stretching exercises improve spinal flexibility and help in lowering back pain problems in people within one week of practicing early morning exercises.
- Stress Buster:
Stress greatly affects our minds and bodies in more ways than we can imagine. A few minutes of daily exercise can help you release stress and be much more productive.
- Improves Digestion:
There are many yoga poses that help food move along in your digestive system. Yoga also stimulates the lymphatic system that help flush out toxins, making your body clean. Meditation can also help address symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD) by reducing the frequency of stress-related flare-ups.
- Sleep Better
To live a healthy, balanced lifestyle you must get enough rest so that you can function the next day. Meditation and breathing techniques help clear your mind so you can relax and slow down your thoughts, allowing you to enjoy a peaceful night’s sleep.
- Helps with Asthma:
If you are suffering from asthma, then you must practice exercise and yoga. Pranayama is a type of yoga that focuses on breathing techniques that are effective against asthma.
- Migraines:
One of the recommended moves that alleviate migraines is the “bridge pose.” You lie on your back with your knees bent with your feet apart at hip-width on the floor. With your hands on the floor, press down into your legs and draw your hips up. The trick is to relax the tension in your muscles from your neck and shoulders, which can be misaligned or stressed from hunching over a computer or phone all day long.
- Mental Clarity:
A healthy dose of exercise and meditation keeps your brain sharp and clear. Simple yoga practices and breathing techniques allow you to free your mind from the “mess” that trickles down to your physical well-being. Slow breathing and yoga poses will help your memory and keep your thoughts organized, once you get rid of stress, anxiety, and negative thinking.
- Increases Focus:
This will help you to focus on the task at hand. By being present “in the moment” you will learn to control your mind. This skill is needed to carry out your daily activities efficiently.
- Mood Booster:
Exercise and meditation have been linked with emotional health boosts. Studies have shown that exercise and meditation help improve cognitive-behavioral performance as well as aid with mood swings, depression, and anxiety. Practicing yoga or physical exercises in a group setting also stimulates the production of oxytocin, which is the love hormone, and it also produces higher serotonin levels, which is the happy hormone.
- Boosts Immunity:
Physical exercises activates your immune system, gets your blood flowing and stimulates your lymphatic system. This also supports healthy bones through weight-bearing exercises. That’s a lot of health benefits that lead to less sick days and higher performance.
- Increases Energy:
Exercise has proven to increase your energy. The less active you are, the quicker you fatigue, tire out and the lesser energy you will have to tackle everything. Take time to focus on yourself, even if it is for a short period is just the boost you need to tackle the rest of your day with vigor.
- Improves Posture:
Sitting all day wreaks havoc on your posture and the natural curves of the spine slowly start to reverse as you hunch over your computer. A huge benefit of exercise is finding the natural curves of the spine by lying on the sides of the waist, tilting the pelvis and broadening the back body. This stretches major muscles groups and increases joint mobility to prevent joint aches and stiffness.
Lastly, regular practice of physical exercises and meditation result in happier and focused well being.
