The secrets of Yoga effectiveness
What is the main purpose of Yoga?
The goals of Yoga have a lot in common with some of the Kung Fu’s ones:
- Body harmony – Flexibility, health, wellness, etc.
- Mental harmony – Centeredness, detachment, etc.
Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).
These 2 directions are naturally connected but:
- The first is pursued through the practice of stretching exercises (combined with the right breathing, read How to correctly perform stretching)
- The second is pursued through meditation (self-knowledge, etc., read A meditation mini-guide: how to start)
In this article, we want to talk about the secrets that make Yoga so incredibly effective in order to transfer them into our martial practice (no matter if we are more focused on combat or on wellness).
A note by Master Kongling – It is not a coincidence that we talk about this discipline: at the dawn of the Shaolin Temple, Bodhidharma came to China (from India) to spread his knowledge and with his help, the development path of Kung Fu has started (read The origins of Kung Fu).
Why is Yoga so effective?
These are the winning keys of the Yoga practice.
Physical body stretching:
- Never force the body to flexibility – In relation to other methods the stretching tension is less intense but the results are the highest possible; even if for martial arts things change a bit (read Body flexibility and martial arts), at an advanced level we talk about contortionism
- Use of breathing as a stretching tool – In terms of elongation, the goal is obtained not through pure external tension but also through a perfectly calibrated extension and compression of our lungs; this allows us to work more deeply and widely on our flexibility
- Detailed self-knowledge – Yoga gradually teaches us to listen to ourselves; noticing how we are before and after each specific practice, we become more and more precisely aware of our internal and external conditions (with time, we understand always better till where we can go and how)
Mental relaxation:
- Mental detachment through concentration on breathing – To truly be able to empty the mind is a too high level of result (a goal of few), that can instead be “simulated” focusing on a perfect breathing; substantially the mind focuses on a specific task that occupies it and automatically all distractions vanish
- Use of the power of visualization – Often (but not necessarily) the practice of Yoga is accompanied by relaxing music and / or guides that allow us to exploit the mental anchors (read Fighting and mind control: the anchors) that are already in our mind (positive moments, reassuring places, etc.)
- A slow, positive pace – All the compositive elements of our body are connected and if we slow down our mind, we consequently work on our heart, blood pressure, muscle tension, etc.
Final notes
A few conclusive thoughts:
- Naturally, Yoga is not only this but especially at the beginning, these aspects make all the difference (in terms of relaxation capability and flexibility) if compared to other types of approaches
- Yoga is so successful because it works right away, you don’t need to be an expert to get great benefits from it
- If we include in our Kung Fu sessions these principles (not only in terms of flexibility but also in relation to focus, etc.), the quality of our practice will rapidly increase
- Many people consider Yoga too far from martial arts, nothing could be more wrong
- In conclusion, it must be said that not all types of Yoga approaches are equal (as it happens in martial arts); for example, we are not interested in those where the “religious” aspects become more preponderant
- …
In-depth video courses
- Breathing methods and exercises – How breathing can deeply improve our performance
- Combat flexibility: tendons transformation for martial arts – A video course about how to develop the right level of flexibility for combat
- Meditation: how to start – A step-by-step journey toward deep relaxation and focus
- Full body stretching exercises – All the exercises you need to stretch your entire body
- Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu exercises – The 5 core practices to build real martial skills
- Basic Kung Fu stances: how to – A path with practical goal that can be exploited as a form of mediation
- Mind self-control hacks – How to improve the functionality of our brain and reach our goals
In-depth articles
- Physical conditioning: how it works – The higher the purpose the higher the result
- The easiest method to do the side split – How to rapidly obtain a full side split
Questions
Reply in the comments and share your experience:
- Have you ever tried Yoga?
Author: Master Kongling
Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.How to master 6 Dragons Kung Fu?
Are you searching for:
- Daily training exercises?
- Synthetic theory and concepts?
- A step by step path from white to black belt?
- A path (clear, consequential and gradual) designed to build real martial skills?
- A direct contact with Master Kongling?
Go to our Patreon page and choose a training plan: starting from the Practitioner level, you will gain access to all this and much more.
Inside each Premium Lesson, you will receive the same teaching (practices, tips, concepts, small secrets and corrections) reserved to the live students of Master Kongling.
Important - Once a certain number of registrations are reached, no other participants can be accepted. For more information write to: [email protected].
astaserte
May 30, 2022 @ 12:22 pm
I have tried Yoga but despite the benefits, it is too calm for me, I am more dynamic and I need to add some sort of martial art to it. It is for this reason that I have chosen 6 dragons!
stefano
August 2, 2023 @ 12:44 pm
I never tried yoga but I can certainly get benefit from what you said, master.
Master Kongling
August 5, 2023 @ 8:19 pm
😉
lemontree
February 1, 2024 @ 12:46 am
I followed a course of yoga but it is not good for my nature, I need both yin and yang!
Master Kongling
February 1, 2024 @ 4:30 pm
😉