Anti-Aging Information

In any long-term approach to stress management, relaxation is a key component. Various methods have been effective, ranging from transcendental meditation to biofeedback and psychological counseling. Yoga is effective not only for developing relaxation techniques but also for preparing the body before strenuous exercise. In this sense, yoga is used as a form of stretching.

Relaxation should be considered a complement to exercise, not a replacement, just as exercise must complement relaxation. Take your typical type A up-and-coming business wonk. Such an individual has never learned to relax easily. He thinks it's wimpy to relax. (Remember Michael Douglas's Gordon Gekko in the movie Wall Street? "Only wimps eat lunch.") Even his workouts are exercises in aggression and competition. He doesn't know how to achieve a relaxed state characterized by a decreased heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen consumption, muscle tension (EMG), electrodermal response, skin temperature, and nervous response. He probably wouldn't care even if he did recognize such a mellow state. That he was hyper was all the better to get the upper hand, to win, to screw the competition.

That exercise can facilitate relaxation is seemingly a paradox. But anyone who has experienced a night of passionate lovemaking or who has exercised heavily knows this is true. This is the body's own method for balancing itself. And the exercise (or the lovemaking) doesn't even need to be that intense. Even exercise of moderate intensity and duration relaxes muscle tension. What few men realize is that immediately following exercise, an optimal window for relaxation opens, whether it be in the sauna or hot tub or just simply meditating. In fact, it's a necessary component of healthy living, especially in avoiding postexercise arrhythmias and dysfunctional mood states. In other words, it's important to relax.