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Anxious? Stressed? This Is The Exercise You Should Be Doing

According to a Harvard psychiatrist

Whether youโ€™re team pilates or team yoga (or simply team couch), you canโ€™t argue with this: โ€œaccumulating evidenceโ€ indicates that yoga can reduce chronic stress.

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Itโ€™s also useful in treating anxiety, depression, insomnia and a host of other mental health conditions, says Dr Jonathan Greenberg, a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospitalโ€™s department of psychiatry, Byrdie reports. 

โ€œWe know that accumulating evidence shows yoga is good for your body, health and mind,โ€ Dr Greenberg says in a report into yogaโ€™s effect on the brain by NBC.

So just how many downward dogs do you have to do to reap yogaโ€™s benefits? Dr Greenberg suggests 40 minutes a day is the sweet spot for significant stress reduction, according to his research.

meghan markle
(Credit: Getty)
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Donโ€™t take it from Dr Greenberg alone โ€“ none other than the Duchess of Sussex is a fan of the practice, telling Best Health magazine: โ€œYoga is my thing.โ€

 โ€œMy mom is a yoga instructor, and I started doing mommy-and-me yoga with her when I was seven,โ€ Markle explains. โ€œI was very resistant as a kid, but she said, โ€˜Flower, you will find your practice โ€“ just give it time.โ€™ In college, I started doing it more regularly.โ€

And sheโ€™s all the proof of yogaโ€™s benefits that we need.

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