Muscle tone and Yoga.

Muscle tone and Yoga.

Even at rest, our muscles are not completely relaxed. The muscle will still be partially in a position of contraction or tension. This is called muscle tone. This helps us prepare for the next possible actions. Muscle tone also helps ensure body posture. For example, the head maintains an upright position due to the presence of muscle tone in the neck.

Why is muscle tone important to understand from the field of yoga?

Various states of emotions directly affect our muscle tone. This changes the strength and flexibility of a specific muscle group.

Emotions such as depression, despair, failure, shame reduce muscle tone. This is why we see a flaccid organ during such conditions. The muscles will get too weak and go through a lot of bending. This results in the body releasing all the power during practice.

Emotions such as extreme anger, jealousy, envy, hatred, greed make us hyperactive, which increases our muscle tone. This results in resistance to passive stretching during practice.

When combining pranayama, meditation and asana practice, coordination between the nervous system and the muscular system is enhanced, emotions are balanced and muscle tone is corrected. As a result, the body regains strength and flexibility.