Jessica Biel Says Yoga Helped Her Find Herself In Her 20s

If you think that you and Jessica Biel are on totally different planes of existence, you’d be wrong. Sure, she’s been rocking that effortless-cool-girl vibe ever since her days on 7th Heaven, and she just happens to be married to Justin Timberlake.

But she struggled to find herself in her twenties, too—until she got into yoga. “I was searching for my identity as a person, and what defines me,” Jessica tells WomensHealthMag.com. “And yoga became a space where I can really touch back into myself and my spirituality.”

While she didn’t consider herself a “class person,” she says, that all changed when she found yoga. “To me it’s not a ‘competition’ class. It was part of a community, which is something I loved.”

Now, Jessica tries to find at least 20 to 30 minutes a day to practice yoga. “It’s become so much more than an exercise—more of a stress reliever and a life calmer,” the mom, wife, actress, and entrepreneur says. “It just helps me with everything that I have to do in my life.”

“I think it’s challenging for anyone in any business to be a mom, while also working and trying to balance personal time,” says Jessica, who is also a brand ambassador for Gaiam, which is launching a new spring collection at Kohl’s.

And for her, yoga is the key to keeping all of that in check: “It makes me a better mom…I come out of [yoga] feeling prepared to deal with any situation and I feel completely rejuvenated and ready to step back into the practice of real life.”

Plus, it helps her feel more connected to her body: “You focus on different parts of your body, by breathing into them,” she says. “To me you kind of check out in other exercise experiences. The benefits of the breathing are so beyond any other exercises I’ve been a part of, and I think it’s so unique in that way.”

That said, Jessica still does incorporate other types of fitness into her routine. “I love working out with a trainer, doing circuit work and strengthening. I think the lengthening and internal breathing you get from yoga, [in addition to] strength training of weights and circuits and cardiovascular, to me that’s the perfect combination.”

Oh yeah, and she totally works out with JT: “I love working out with friends, and partners, and my husband—it’s so much more fun to do it with someone else, you feel like you have a partner in crime, and you’re not there alone.”

This article originally appeared on Women’s Health US.

Source: Read Full Article