LexiYoga

You Booze, You Lose: Why Yoga is a Better Aphrodisiac Than Alcohol

Written by Sarah Stevenson.

We all know that one of the quickest routes to the bedroom is by way of the liquor cabinet. Once those stuffy inhibitions are put to sleep the sensual beast that exists in each and every one of us is un-caged and allowed to play. It's primordial, left over from our furry ancestors. It's also a part of us that gets caged up in this busy world of iPods, meetings and soccer practice. Unfortunately, many people look to a bottle when they want to let the beast loose. That's sad, because numbing out to get off is not half as fun as tuning in to spark up. And you can do that with yoga. Let me explain how.

aphrodisiac

This is your Brain...

Btic and parasympathetic. The sympathetic system is in charge when your body is in active mode, it is also known as the "fight or flight" system. The parasympathetic kicks in when your body is in a relaxed state or sleeping. It handles things like digestion, urination, and sexual arousal. Some people call it the "rest and digest" system.

If you've ever had a hard time loosening up around a new partner, so much so that you are unable to, well, you know, it is likely that the sympathetic system is not shutting down. You're more likely to feel sexy and open to connection when the parasympathetic system is in charge because you've let your guard down.

This is your Brain on Alcohol...

You walk into a bar packed with beautiful men and beautiful women. You see your target and catch their eye. Suddenly, you're nervous as all hell. What's the first thing you do? BARTENDER!!! You grab a drink, and then another and then another. Suddenly, you're standing next to the god or goddess of your dreams and playing some serious game (probably because they're as drunk as you are). You're both ready to slip into something more comfortable. SCORE!!! Right?

Not so much. You have indeed shut your sympathetic system down, but you've also shut down your ability to judge properly. You have about a 50% chance (add 10% to that number for each drink past buzz point) that the person you wake up to in the morning will not be the person you saw through your beer goggles the night before. This wakes up your "fight or flight" system pronto and will likely send you out the door soon after with a hangover, a huge bar tab, and a perfect stranger sending you unwanted texts for the next two weeks.

This is your Brain on Yoga...

Yoga calms the "fight or flight" part of the sympathetic system but heightens your connection to your body, your partner and the world around you. It activates the parasympathetic nervous system that instigates relaxation while allowing you to be more aware of yourself and your environment. So it helps you to drop into the most sensual you without compromising your ability to judge properly.

How does Yoga accomplish this you ask? By pairing meditation, movement and breath to create a mind clearing, soul centering, body beautifying experience. Your mind is cluttered with a constant chatter that takes place nearly every moment of each waking hour of your day and night. Once you give your mind the calm and quiet it longs for, you then begin to really feel what it's like to have that beautiful sexy piece of artwork we call the human body. You begin to tap into your primordial sexual self that enjoys flirting and responding in kind to your entire environment. You begin to taste more vibrantly, see more clearly, hear more pristinely, touch more sensationally and smell each and every aroma more intently.

The breath that is used in yoga is called the Ujjayi (Sanskrit word for Victory) also known as the "Ocean Breath" because the deep inhales and deep exhales sound like ocean waves when the muscles in the back of the throat are constricted. Once the mind is quieted by the beautiful sounds of your ocean waves, your focus is shifted to the body's sensations. As you oscillate from pose to pose pairing it with breath, you shed fear, insecurity and boundaries that block you from connecting authentically to yourself and others. Yoga not only makes you feel sensually beautiful inside, it also helps to produce a sensually beautiful body on the outside.

Any Questions? Didn't Think So...

Simply put, sleeping with Yogis is way better than sleeping with drunks. Yogis and Yoginis that have a consistent practice can indeed make amazing lovers. They show up to the world feeling naturally sensual and ready to connect with you and your environment. It is amazing being able to connect to someone without the inhibition that clouds our experiences. So I hope next time your feeling like hooking up, you skip the bar and head for a yoga studio instead.

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