• Child’s Pose (Balasana): This pose is a calming and restorative posture that helps to release tension in the back, hips, and shoulders. To practice, start on your hands and knees, then bring your hips back towards your heels and stretch your arms forward.

• Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana): This pose helps to relieve tension in the back and shoulders, and also helps to calm the mind. Begin on your hands and knees, then lift your hips up and back, pressing your palms and feet into the ground.

• Legs Up the Wall (Viparita Karani): This pose helps to reduce stress and anxiety, while also promoting relaxation and better sleep. Lie on your back with your legs extended up the wall, and place a pillow or folded blanket under your hips for support.

• Cat-Cow Stretch (Marjaryasana/Bitilasana): This gentle flowing sequence helps to stretch the spine and release tension in the neck and shoulders. Start on your hands and knees, then inhale as you arch your back and lift your head and tailbone, and exhale as you round your spine and bring your chin to your chest.

• Corpse Pose (Savasana): This final resting pose allows the body to fully relax and let go of any tension or stress. Lie on your back with your arms at your sides, palms facing up, and close your eyes. Focus on your breath and let go of any thoughts or worries.

Tiring work hours, weekends filled with social commitments, unhealthy eating habits, and stress is bound to take a toll on one’s mind and body. The increasing number of mental and physical issues among the millennials and Gen-Zs is an indication that we need something that heals us without disrupting our busy schedules. One such holistic physical activity that one can indulge in is Yoga. Whether they want to stay fit, get glowing skin, improve their gut health or increase their concentration level, Yoga, like a magical potion, helps in almost everything.

International Yoga Day is around the corner. If you have been thinking about achieving any of these goals, Moj Yogis share five reasons that will motivate and propel you forward to this soulful practice of ‘Yoga.’

● Moj creator Sandeep Gupta, who has been practicing yoga for 16 years, vouches that Yoga improves flexibility and strength. He adds, “Do not make the mistake of thinking that yoga is a passive exercise. Each asana targets a specific group of muscles; even the most basic asanas help with flexibility and muscle toning. Asanas like mountain pose and
palm tree pose, which are held for several rounds of breath create a deep connection with the muscular tissue, encouraging it to relax and stretch.”

● Studies have shown that Yoga can reduce cortisol secretion, the primary stress-inducing hormone while lowering anxiety, fatigue, and depression levels. Meeta, a Yogini shares, “Yoga asanas such as Child pose, heart openers, cow pose and pranayamas like Anulom vilom and Brahmari, adopt a scientific approach of exercising and relaxing to
ease the stress of modern-day living. I believe that stress has become the root cause of several lifestyle diseases and, if not cured timely, can have major repercussions. Over the years, I have been exposed to different kinds of workouts. However, practicing yoga has calmed me, and I am grateful for the positive change and healing energy it brought into my life.”

● GenZ’s, GenY’s, or GenX’s, one will always find people around them complaining about sleeping issues. Yoga is proven to help improve sleep quality while improving social function and calming one’s mindset. Anuska Chatterjee, the famous Moj creator, adds, “Yoga asana like Brikha asana, Gamukha asana, and Sukha asana combines physical exertion and relaxing meditation. This phenomenon makes it a great source of workout to improve the quality of your sleep and improves the duration of your sleeping hours by helping you to fall asleep faster.”

● While all organs have an essential part to play, the health of our heart plays a vital role in our overall well-being. Vaishnavi, a Guinness World Record Holder in Yoga and famous creator, emphasizes how Yoga improves heart health by increasing circulation and blood flow. She adds, “Beyond relieving stress, yoga asanas such as Ganesha Mudra, Linga Mudra, and Hridaya Mudra help lower blood pressure, blood cholesterol, blood glucose levels, and heart rate, making it a useful lifestyle intervention.”

● Yoga is known for assimilating and using energy more effectively while keeping the body physically and mentally active. Mayuri Salian, The Yoga Girl highlights that practicing yoga asanas such as Bhujangasana, Ustrasana, and Ardha Matsyendrasana regularly can help boost energy levels in the body as it keeps one active throughout the day. She adds, “With better energy levels, you can complete your work before deadlines and still have time to pursue your hobby or spend more time with family and friends.”

Simply put, there is not a thing yoga cannot improve! All you need is a yoga mat, knowledge of yoga asanas, and correct postures to get your body moving.

Here are the insights from it:

1. A good partner can escort you to a healthy mental life– 

A compatible partner not only makes you understand yourself better, but they also enrich your life by adding to it their wisdom and kindness. When you get along well with someone, you are often able to communicate and convey words without speaking. However, an incompatible partner or someone you lack communication with can also equally deteriorate your peace of mind. Not knowing where you stand in your relationship or having silly fights can put you at unease mentally. To know whether you are compatible with your partner or not, ask yourself if you feel at peace with them mentally, emotionally, and even physically. Almost 40% of male QuackQuack users in the age group of 28-38 in tier-2 cities said that they are happy with their current partner. As for female users in the same age group, the number stood at 47%. 

2.   Women and the impact of dating apps on their personal life- 

When it comes to dating, let’s accept that women do not have it easy. Societal pressure, fear of judgment, and peer pressure, all together make it difficult for women to date and go out with whoever they want to. For female QuackQuack users who felt better once they started using the app, the number stood at a good 53% in the age group of 18-30 both in the tier-2 and tier-3 cities. They felt that approaching guys is not easy in Indian society and hence, QuackQuack provided relief and proved to be a great intermediate. Once they could chat and talk to men, it was less challenging for them to go forward with their dating life. Moreover, a happy dating life translated as a happy emotional life with peace of mind. For women in metropolitan cities in the age group of 18-30, dating apps did not make much of a difference while in tier-3 cities, the percentage rose to 56%. 

3.   Men on dating apps have it tougher? –

For men, the competition is tough on dating apps. Not only are there more men with an imbalanced male to female ratio but they are less likely to get likes and matches than women. A huge number, 31% of men in the age group of 25-40 from tier-2 and tier-3 cities said that they felt disheartened after using dating apps for reasons like not getting likes or matches, not receiving replies to their messages, and also lack of compatibility.  For men in metropolitan cities, the world of dating is less harsh which means 19% of men in the same age group were despairing about not getting matches and also felt less ignored when it came to replies. They admitted that women did not feel restrictions while dating them and that the dating scene was completely different in small towns and cities. 

Overall, the participants and respondents of this survey nodded in the affirmative that their dating life was not separate from their mental health and that it had a crucial role to play in their emotional and mental well-being. A partner you get along with and who understands you brings tranquillity of mind whereas an incompatible partner can drain you. What is more, women had a positive view of their personal life after using dating apps as they had an outlet to approach and talk to men. For men, on the other hand, the world of dating proves to be a bit hard on them and they find it difficult to gather likes and matches compared to women.