For immediate release
May 31, 2007
YOGA IMPROVES CONCENTRATION,
MOTIVATION
Benefits Beyond Strength and Flexibility
NEW ORLEANS – Practicing yoga can lessen anxiety,
heighten concentration and improve motivation in as little as eight
weeks, according to research presented in New Orleans at the 54th Annual
Meeting of the American College of Sports
Medicine (ACSM). Researchers sought to quantify benefits that
go beyond the strength and flexibility typically associated with yoga in
the western world.
ACSM members Traci A. Statler, Ph.D., and Amy Wheeler, Ph.D., tested
84 students during the second and eighth weeks of four, 10-week Hatha
yoga classes at California State University San Bernardino. Most
participants were female (93 percent); 45 percent were Hispanic, 35
percent Caucasian, seven percent African-American, and two percent
Asian. The students averaged 24 years of age; most had at least three
months of consistent yoga experience prior to the class.
Two weeks and again nine weeks into the class, participants completed
three standard assessments to measure their concentration, motivation
and anxiety level. The results were dramatic. “We were surprised
by the degree of difference in just eight weeks of practice,”
Statler said. “We measured significant increases in all three
areas. We’ve noted empirical evidence that yoga carries affective
benefits, but now we’ve been able to objectively measure the
results.”
Statler, a sports psychology consultant, teamed with Wheeler, a yoga
expert, to gauge the commonalities between sports and yoga. “Both
require focus and confidence,” Wheeler said. “While
westerners tend to regard yoga primarily as a physical discipline, in
the East it is pursued as a mindful discipline, helping people live
their lives with clarity and a positive outlook.”
Further research, said Statler, may address how best to translate
yoga benefits into improvements in sports performance. “We’d
like to study a broader sample, including more male students and more
athletes,” she said.
The American College of Sports
Medicine is the largest sports medicine and exercise science
organization in the world. More than 20,000 international,
national, and regional members are dedicated to advancing and
integrating scientific research to provide educational and practical
applications of exercise science and sports medicine.
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The conclusions outlined in this news release are those of the
researchers only, and should not be construed as an official statement
of the American College of Sports Medicine.
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