International Day of Yoga 2022

Celebrating International Day of Yoga

“[Yoga] embodies the unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfilment … a holistic approach to health and well-being. It is not about exercise but to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and nature.”

- Narendra Modi, UN Assembly

Born to service all sports, all forms of movement, P.E Nation welcomes the opportunity to celebrate exercise and connection in all their iterations. This International Day of Yoga, whether you’re enjoying the Northern summer solstice or embracing the Southern hem's shortest day of the year, it's always worth while to take a moment to be in the moment.

A 3,000-year-old practice, a state of being, yoga's benefits go far beyond controlled breathing, calm, impressive flexibility, improved fitness and presence of mind.

Yoga can help reduce stress and anxiety, boost mood and wellbeing, improve balance and strength, and help reduce symptoms of chronic pain, as well as positively impact some of the risk factors for chronic illnesses including heart disease, high blood pressure, and insomnia.

Crucially, given the after-burnout widely apparent in the post-pandemic era, and the collective need for reclaiming calm and balance as we recover and regroup, a New York University Grossman School of Medicine study has found that regular kundalini yoga practice can help reduce symptoms of generalised anxiety disorder in adults.

"Yoga for Humanity"

Reflecting on how yoga has helped countless men, women and children the world over to keep moving and breathing throughout the human experience of the past few years in particular, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi announced "Yoga for Humanity" as the theme for this year's International Day of Yoga.

As well as programs for families, individuals and children taking place across India today to mark the occasion, this year's 'Guardian Ring' initiative - a live yoga relay - will see participants around the world practice yoga, the exercise moving west throughout the day in tandem with the Sun's movements.

“The word yoga itself stimulates in people the need to address their deeper desires. Not the superficial ones like to look better or lose more weight. But deeper desires like to know who they are, what meaning is in their lives, what their purpose is and how they can be actualising it in their life ...

“Exercise, meditation, breathing practices, getting enough sleep and spending some time in nature, are the five basic aspects of a good life that will ensure you live healthy, and yoga contributes to that in a large way." - Eddie Stern, New-York based Ashtanga guru.

We may not have the opportunity to dedicate an entire day to pausing, meditating and moving. But whether it's two minutes or thirty you have to spare today, be unapologetic about indulging a moment to pause, reflect, and acknowledge the growth, resilience and tenacity the past few years have demanded of you.

Through movement, breathing, meditation or a balance of all three, celebrate your physical, emotional and spiritual self. All it can do and has achieved. Your strength, both physical and emotional, your compassion. Your patience. Your kindness to self and the greater world around you.

Because let's be truly real: that is what it means, what it takes, what it's required, to be f*cking crushing it in this surreal moment in human history.

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