Regular physical activity is important for living a healthy lifestyle, it can improve overall physical and musculoskeletal fitness. It also helps in reducing the risk of different cardiovascular diseases, neurological conditions, systemic diseases, musculoskeletal conditions, depression, and fall-related injuries.

Namaz/Salah is a religious practice, a five-time prayer per day which is an obligation upon every Muslim, to learn quran online and perform without fail.

Salah includes both spiritual meditation and physical movements in which where the muscular system of the human body becomes active without muscle fatigue and induces serenity in the body and soul. Salah is believed to improve equilibrium, balance, and joint flexibility as well as maintain lower limb performance. It can also be termed Islamic yoga because of some common postures and benefits like Yoga.

Namaz has a short duration and is beneficial for mental and physical health. The procedure of the Salah includes a series of postures and movements that involve standing, bowing, prostration, and sitting consecutively. Each position involves the movement of different parts of the human body in ways that encourage health and well-being. Each posture has its own benefit:

• Standing up straight is the correct position for the spine
• Bowing at a right angle allows a flow of energy from the pituitary gland in the back of the head.
• Prostration (placing the head on the ground) allows a large amount of blood to enter the brain.
• Sitting with the back straight and focusing all one’s attention on the right finger while moving helps in enhancing concentration.

Namaz postures are similar to yogic postures and therefore they can give all the benefits of yoga and can be regarded as a type of stretching exercise. While Offering Salah, one performs continuous gentle muscle contraction and relaxation with perfect harmony and balance, inducing flexibility without over-exhaustion. These physical acts which are performed during Namaz are gentle, simple exercises suitable for all ages and conditions.

Physical Benefits of Salah

1. Improved Body Posture

When a person offers Salah, while standing in the state of Niyyah, it is the best exercise for body posture improvement. In this position the feet of an individual are evenly apart, the whole body is kept firm and straight, and both the hands are tied at a particular place which makes the backbone aligned and straight positioning the head looking downwards which also allows the body to loosen while being in a firm position. Thus, in such a posture the brain, as well as body, are both at ease and when such a posture is practiced multiple times every day, it will definitely help improve the posture of the body.

2. Stretches the Body

During Namaz, after Qiyam (standing position) there occurs a state of Ruku (bending in a standing position) here an individual bends to the knees maintaining the back and the hands straight. This posture during Namaz is one of the best ways of stretching the body without exhaustion. In such a posture, the back, the thighs, and the calves of a person get fully stretched and the flow of blood toward the upper part of the body also improves. Apart from stretching the body, this posture also helps work on the core of the person offering Salah. Also, it works on the abdominal muscles and serves as a crunch for them. Overall in this posture, a person gets to stretch the body five times a day, and also helps strengthen the core of an individual.

3. Abs Control

Across the world, people go to gyms for various different kinds of abs exercises for controlling their belly fat and keeping it slim. In this regard, the Sajadah (bending in a sitting) posture of Namaz can help highly in controlling the belly from expanding and accumulating fats. In this position, the knees and both the feet are touched to the ground while the head is bending towards the ground in such a way that refined pressure is put on the abdominal muscle making them strong. This type of exercise is also advisable for women who want to hold the fetus in the proper position. Also, read how to become an hifz Quran online?

4. Blood Flow

Most people have blood pressure problems because of the blood flow. Either they have too much blood flowing in a particular part of the body or very low blood flowing to certain parts. In order to avoid such a blood flow problem which can lead to blood pressure issues, all the posture in Salat helps to regulate the blood to all the parts of the body. The Qiyam position helps to keep the blood flow in a normal position, the Ruku posture helps the blood flow to the upper part of the body, while in the state of Tashahhud (Sitting position) the blood flows to the lower part of the body as well. Therefore, all the postures & movements in Salah can help regulate the blood flow to all the parts of the body.

5. Improved Digestion

During the Tashahhud state in which men sit with their right foot curled while women sit with both feet soles up under their bodies, this posture can help in improving digestion in both males and females. For males, it works on the liver improving the liver function and relaxing the large intestine, while in women it provides huge relaxation which eventually aids in relaxing the body forcing the stomach contents in a downward direction assisting in better bowel movement.

Hence concluding, Salah can be beneficial for the overall circulatory, respiratory, digestive, nervous, and hormonal systems of the body leading to physical and mental fitness.