Top 5 Reasons Yoga Helps During Relocation

Did you know?

• More than 20 million people practice yoga in the U.S. (according to Yoga Journal)

• 35.9 million U.S. residents – that 11.7 percent of all Americans – relocated between 2012 and 2013 (according to U.S. Census Bureau reports)

I wonder how many of those 35.9 million overlap with the 20 million? Those who do practice yoga during a relocation – or any big life transition – can count on these five major benefits:

1) Increased immune health. It’s no surprise that during a major move, it’s easy to end up with some kind of illness. Many studies have shown that those practicing yoga were healthier than a control group. Yoga poses stimulate the circulatory, digestive, nervous and endocrine systems, and all of these keep the immune system healthy.

2) Sounder sleep. When you have a million things on your do-list, from packing to finding new schools for the kids, it’s challenging to shut your mind off and fall asleep. Yoga poses, especially spinal twists, calm the nervous system, while meditation and breath work help mitigate stress. All of these help you to experience a good night’s sleep.

3) Better balance. Moving means a lot of lifting, often juggling (literally and figuratively) many things at one time. Practicing balancing poses on the mat help you to negotiate that stray box you didn’t see in your path and land on your feet, not your bottom.

4) Mindful eating. Pizza and other fast food choices often top the list during the hectic times of relocation. Regular yoga enhances the mind-body connection so that you become more aware of which foods nourish you versus harm you. Eating well throughout your move will help you arrive in your new location feeling energized not depleted.

5) Calm communication. Let’s face it, when you are managing many people at once in the old and new locations, things can get hectic and effective communication often goes out the window. Performing yoga quiets the mind, and this leads to clearer communication.

So many things can be out of your control during times of relocation. One thing you can control is the home that you carries you around 24/7 – your body, nervous system and mind.

Even if you don’t have a serious yoga practice or have never tried yoga before, you can reach out to a local studio or hire an instructor to teach you some simple poses to help you through.

You deserve to feel at home all the time, no matter what phase of the move you are in. Stopping to breathe mindfully and drop into a few gentle yoga poses is as important as packing that next box.