Comparative Analysis Of Yoga And Aerobic Exercises On Psychological, Physical, And Physiological Health In School Students

Abstract

The study examined the comparative effects of yoga and aerobic exercises on the mental, physiological, and physical health of school going children. A total of one hundred and twenty participants were selected randomly in either one of the groups namely: yoga (n = 60) and aerobic exercise (n = 60). Psychological health was evaluated with the help of Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), physical health with the help of Body Mass Index (BMI) and Sit-and-Reach test of flexibility, and physiological with the help of Heart Rate (HR) and systolic blood pressure (BP). The results indicated that both interventions had significant improvement in all parameters (p < 0.05). Yoga had more stress and anxiety reductions and larger flexibility improvements, but aerobic exercise a little better in the HR and BP cardiovascular results. These findings suggest that yoga and aerobic exercise have a positive effect on the health of students in schools, and a combination of the two practices can have a multidimensional impact on psychological well-being, physical fitness, and cardiovascular health.