Yoga Pose to Release the Hips

One of the main benefits of yoga is the development of flexibility and elasticity in muscles and thoughts. In a yoga practice, asanas are the physical techniques, allowing the conditioning and strengthening of the body as well as the purification of the energetic channels. Performing certain asanas with the objective of working on a specific area of the body, such as the hips, allows focusing energy on developing techniques to meet personal goals such as doing a split, opening the hips, improving sexual activity, releasing stiffness and increasing self-esteem.

Basic yoga postures to contribute to the opening of the hips:

1. Ananda Balasana- Happy Baby Pose:

Lie on your back, bend knees to your chest, take outer edges of your feet. Once the feet are supported with the help of the inhalation, separate the knees, until reaching the maximum of the hip opening, the knees energetically looking for the floor, spine, and head are fully supported on the mat. Deep breathing cycle of 5 to 7 repetitions, if your body allows it, make smooth movements from one side to the other massaging the lumbar.

2. Baddha Konasana- Butterfly Pose:

Seated with bent knees, both soles of the feet meet, keeping the spine aligned. The sole of the feet is taken with both hands, and it is sought to rotate them upwards. The heels are kept as close as possible to the genital area, providing the opening of the hips. Take a deep inhale while the back seeks to bend forward, in this movement the forearms rest on the thighs, while the back finds the ground.

  • Level 1: Stay in the posture with the spine straight
  • Level 2: Flex back forward
  • Level 3: In forward bending, with the chest touching the ground.

3. Upavistha Konasana – Sitting Angle Pose: 

Sitting on the upper edge of the mat, the legs are separated as much as possible, making a triangle. You will notice that the tension in the inner part of the thighs increases. The back is held in a straight line from the crown of the head to the sacrum. With the help of breathing, forward bending is sought. It is very important that for forward bends, the abdomen stays strong and contracted. Like a straight column.

  • Level 1: Bring both hands to the center, resting on the floor.
  • Level 2: Support forearms on the floor, to experience the opening of the hips and the flexibility of the legs.
  • Level 3: The chest is placed on the floor, index, and middle fingers hold both big toes.

4. Utthita Ashwa Sanchalanasana – Hing Lunge Pose:

Also known as the runner posture. The left foot goes backward with the leg well extended. The right foot is forward with the knee flexes and the hands resting on the mat. The gaze rests on the horizon; the column is as straight as possible.

Benefits:

  • Strengthen the inner muscles of the legs
  • Flex the hip
  • Favor the alignment of the vertebrae
  • Stimulate sexual organs

Recommendations:

  • Maintain continuous and controlled breathing.
  • Pay attention to your tolerance levels.
  • Do not force the posture. 

The Bridge Pose

The bridge pose is also known as chakrasana. It energizes and rejuvenates your body, as it also cures various health problems.

How to Perform the Pose

Step 1– Start with lying in the supine position on the ground and place a neatly folded thick blanket beneath the shoulders such that your neck is kept protected. Set your feet easily on the ground while bending your knees, and keep your heels close to your hip bones as much possible.

Step 2 – While exhaling, gently press your arms as well as the inner part of your feet into the ground in an active manner, push your tailbone towards your pubis in the upward direction by keeping your buttocks firm. Make sure not to harden your buttocks at this point. Now, lift your buttocks off the ground. Make sure your inner feet and thighs are parallel to one another. Extend through your hands while clasping your arms below the pelvis such that you maintain a position at the top of the shoulders.

Step 3 – Now lift your buttocks till a position when your thighs are almost parallel to the ground. Place your heels exactly over your heels and push them in a forward direction so that they are kept away from your hips. Stretch your tailbone lengthened toward the back of your knee and gradually lift up your pubis towards your navel.

Step 4 – Press the top of your sternum towards your chin by slightly lifting the chin away from your sternum and firming the blades of your shoulder against your back. Keep the outer part of your arms firm as well as keep the blades of your shoulder broad and try lifting the empty space between them at the base of your neck upward into your torso

Step 5 – Maintain your posture for around 30 seconds to one minute. With an exhalation release the posture. To perform the same gradually roll your spine down on the ground. Repeat the steps a couple of times.

Benefits

  • Stretches your spine as well as neck.
  • Stretches your chest.
  • It calms your mind and helps to cure stress as well as mild depression problems.
  • Stimulates your abdominal organs including thyroid as well as lungs.
  • Rejuvenates your fatigued legs.
  • Enhances the process of digestion.
  • Renders help to relieve menopause symptoms.
  • It helps with menstruation discomfort.
  • Works as a therapy for cases of high blood pressure, sinusitis and asthma as well as osteoporosis.
  • Reduces problems like backache, insomnia, and fatigue as well as a headache.

Mistakes and Contradictions

In case you are a patient suffering from some kind of neck injury, then do not perform or practice the pose without professional supervision. Having expert guidance would ensure you avoid any further damage.

How to Perform the Pose Perfectly

You must be thorough with the steps of the posture before performing it. The best way to perform the pose to perfection is to have the guidance of a professional expert and master the same.

Food – Your Friend Or Foe?

I’m a picky eater. I admit it. But that is because, over time, I have realized which food items serve my body well from the inside out and which ones don’t. 

I might want to indulge in predominantly plant-based foods, but at the end of the meals, there is always some room for chocolate. If my mind needs it, then my body needs it too. As long as I’m able to stay within some limits, chocolate is actually good for the body, and it gives you the same butterflies as when you’re falling in love — double win.

Do you understand by now that being fit doesn’t come with over-exercising and eating little? It actually comes with eating plenty of nutritious foods. Your choices just need to be right. It is moreover about pairing different nutrients together to making you feel at the top of your game.

Another game-changing habit is to eat around the same time each day. By doing so, you signal your body when it is getting food, so your metabolism adapts to it. Otherwise, it starts storing foods because it never knows when it is getting more. It is the case when you start gaining weight even though on paper, you are eating all the “right” foods.

You should try different things within foods and see what fits your body best. It is important to find balanced nutrition, which you can call a lifestyle. Finding peace with everything you eat and being at ease in your body is what will fuel everything else that you do in life. Make food an experience rather than looking at it as a reward or a sin. Even when you know you’re overindulging, play along with it. If you’ve decided you want a particular food, you might as well enjoy it. But also know your limits and how certain foods make you feel. Try to refrain from them when you know they don’t do you justice.

I do eat everything. I try to eat the foods that I like in small quantities since I know they are not good for me and are not serving my goals when I do wish for them. You don’t need guilt about what you put in or on your body; it is just an extra emotion that weighs you down.

When you do reach for something sweet at the end of your meal, try either a fizzy kombucha drink or a warm matcha latte next time. 

I also tend to drink unimaginable amounts of green tea. I feel that it makes me flush out the toxins as nothing else does. It works for my body, so play around and see what suits you. While during my period, I try to refrain from any caffeine and sugar because they just wear me down even more. 

Listen to your body. You can be your best friend and your most honest critic. Be honest with yourself with both what you need at any given moment and how that decision serves your long-term goals. Know that if you set your mind to and work hard enough, anything is possible. 

The Bound Angle Yoga Pose

Baddha – Bound
Kona – Angle

If your goal is to open up your hips and feel better than you did minutes ago, you might just have found the best asana (pose) for that purpose. This article will be the Bound angle’s pose tutorial; so sit back, read and enjoy.

What does the Bound angle yoga pose look like?

There is nothing to worry about. I am sure you will be able to master this pose in a matter of minutes! The Bound angle pose is very simple but also very effective. Keep in mind that every single detail you read here must be done and practiced in the same way in order to get the full benefits from this pose. So, wear comfortable gym leggings and let’s dive into this.

Point number 1

  1. What you need to do first is sit down with your legs straight in front of you.
  2. If your hips are tight and this basic sitting position feels uncomfortable, raise your pelvis on a blanket.
  3. Now, as you are exhaling, bend your knees and instantly pull your heels to your pelvis.
  4. As you have pulled your heels closer, make sure to drop your knees to the sides.
  5. All that you need to do in the final part of point one is to put your soles on your feet together.

Point number 2

It is important to feel comfortable in this position.

  1. With that being said, place your heels as close to your pelvis as possible, but not to a point where it hurts.
  2. Now, hold your two big toes on your feet with your index fingers, thumbs and the middle fingers.
  3. If you can’t hold your toes on your feet, simply hold both of your ankles.

Point number 3

  1. Make sure that you sit in a way that your pubis and your tailbone are on the same distance from the floor.
  2. Your pelvis should be in a neutral position.
  3. Straighten your front torso and make your shoulder blades firm against your back.

Point number 4

Not just when it comes to this pose, but in every other yoga pose, you should do things naturally and as lightly and slowly as possible. Force won’t cut it with yoga!

  1. With that being said, you should never push your knees down with force.
  2. What you can do in order to make your knees go down is simply release the heads of your thigh bones in the same direction.
  3. You should be in this pose from 2 to 6 minutes.
  4. Once this time period has passed, you should take a deep breath and return to your original, starting position, with your legs straightened up.

The Final Verdict

And that would be it when it comes to the Bound angle yoga pose. It isn’t hard to master this pose, but it can be hard remembering all of the small details.

Like I have already said, those small details are the essence of this pose. Take your time and burn them into your memory. You will start doing the Bound angle pose with perfection in no time.

4 Dynamic Yoga Sequences For A Stronger Body

When we think about strength training, yoga is excellent for calming the mind. It makes use of both eccentric and isometric contractions to simultaneously strengthen our muscle as it stretches, and builds functional strength that helps us in our daily activities such as standing up, sitting down, walking, lifting and bending over. Yoga targets smaller stabilizing muscles and depends on your own body as the weight frequently ignored in conventional weight training.

Follow this dynamic pose sequence through for a stronger body. 


1. Quarter Dog Sequence

The quarter Dog yoga sequence stimulates your internal organs and opens your side of the body. It tones the abs, upper back, and shoulders. 

How To Do It:

  • Start quarter dog sequence in the downward facing dog.
  • Keep your fingers spread wide with your forearms lowered to the mat. 
  • Check thoroughly to ensure that you are making a straight line between your middles fingers and elbows.
  • Endeavor to set your legs straight and lower your heels toward the floor, slightly flaring your heels wider than your toes for the outside edges of your feet to be parallel with the outer edges of the mat.
  • Rest your head between your arms, and direct your gaze up toward your belly button or through your legs.
  • Cleave to Quarter Dog for only five breaths.

2. Chair Pose or Utkatasana

This yoga sequence produces excellent strength in the legs by toning the quadriceps, abductors, glutes, and hip flexors. In addition, chair pose creates strength in the trunk by taking on the rectus abdominus in the front body and the erector spinae muscles at the back. 




Instruction

  • To enter Chair sequence, begin by standing with your feet together.
  • On lungful of air, sit back profoundly as if you are sitting in a chair and reach your arms up to the sky. 
  • As your weight moves away from your toes, feel your shins moving back to guide you from undue stress on the knees.
  • Hold for 5 breaths
  • Release and come back to a standing position.

3. Crescent Lunge aka Anjaneyasana

Crescent Lunge yoga pose builds up the lower boughs such as the glutes and quadriceps and keeps the erector spinae muscles at the back engaged. In addition, it helps to stretch out the hip flexors of the back leg as the front leg is contracting.




Instruction:

  • Begin the sequence with your feet put together 
  • Take a big step back into a lunge
  • Make sure your knee align on top of your ankle and your front foot tracks directly ahead. 
  • Place your hips directly to the front and move up your arms above your head. 
  • Draw your front ribs inside to keep the core engaged.
  • Hold for 5 breaths.

4. Boat or Navasana Yoga Sequence

Boat or Navasana Yoga sequence targets the six-pack muscles or rectus abdominus of the core while strengthening the erector spinae muscles of the back, quadriceps, and hip flexors.




How To Do It:

  • Enter Navasana from a seated position. 
  • Elongate your spine and lift through your sternum. 
  • Curve your knees.
  • Lift your feet off the floor, and 
  • Engage the muscles of the thigh to straighten the legs out in your front. 
  • Stretch your arms to the fore and soften the shoulders away from the ears.
  • Hold for 5-8 breaths.

Root Chakra

The root chakra, also known as Muladhara is the first chakra of the chakra anatomy. It is located at the base of the spine. The color is red with a square shape and four petals of the lotus flower. The properties of the base chakra are very instinctual, emphasizing basic needs, survival, grounding, foundation, and security. Another way to understand is Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs. The first tier of the pyramid is physiological needs to help us function just like Muladhara. Muladhara builds a cornerstone with our environment, earth, and body. It is important to feel secure and safe in who we are to make it easier to survive. Sometimes situations can occur where our needs are compromised, or our foundation of who we are is faulty. When we lack these basic needs and foundations, we may experience imbalances. Feelings of insecurities, cynicism, negative energy and living in constant survival mode will reflect a deficiency in the base chakra. Physical defects may manifest as eating disorders, colon and bladder problems, and prostate complications in men. 

Muladhara Affirmations

Luckily, there are ways to heal and activate subtle energy for Muladhara. Each chakra has affirmations specifically to help heal stagnant energy. These affirmations can be said every day as a daily reminder. It is useful to pick an affirmation during meditation or before setting Sankalpa. A few examples of these affirmations are: 

  • “I am deeply rooted. 
  • I feel safe and secure. 
  • I stand for my values, for truth, and justice.”

Affirmations help with reassuring your confidence. It is shifting negative energy or thoughts into positivity. A tip for balancing the root chakra is to focus on the tip of your nose to emulate qualities. The nose is the sense organ for Muladhara which makes sense of smell very heightened.

Yoga Poses To Activate Muladhara 

  • There are poses in a yoga practice that can activate Muladhara energy. The first position is Sukhasana where you are sitting in a cross-legged position with your eyes closed. Staying in allows you to meditate and ground yourself on the mat. It is great for setting your intention and shifting your focus to the objective of the day. It helps with personal balance and trusting your thoughts. 
  • The second pose is Balasana which is also known as the child’s pose. It is often a resting pose. Take the time to let your body surrender and commit to the practice. 
  • Mountain pose is a perfect pose for grounding and building your foundation. Remember to inhale and exhale deeply in this pose. Doing this outside may establish a deeper connection with the environment and the world around you. 

Feeling secure with your emotions and needs develops strength in Muladhara energy over time. Practicing affirmations and poses will open the chakra or eliminate the negative energy that is blocking the base chakra. 

The Formidable Face Pose

The Formidable Face Pose

Ganda Bherundasana or Formidable Face Pose is an advanced Yoga backbend that strengthens the upper back, arms and shoulders. It also opens the chest, stretches the whole front of the body and tones the abdominal muscles.

This posture can be detrimental to the neck especially when performed without proper guidance. Placing your weight on your arms and chest while avoiding any strain on your neck, bending your back and reaching your feet up to your head, is not an easy movement. Formidable Face Pose lengthens the spine, but when done without mastering the foundations of Yoga and a proper approach, this pose can be harmful to the body.

Safely Rounding Back

Before you approach the full Formidable Face Pose, preparing the body for the intense movements is very important. Do not hop into any Yoga pose without warming up your body. Flow smoothly to heat your core and activate all muscles you’ll need for a specific pose. 

Yoga Push-Up/Chaturanga Dandasana: This version of push-up effectively strengthens the arms and core, which is necessary for supporting your weight. 

  • How To Do The Pose: Start in a plank pose. Make sure that your hands are parallel to your shoulders and spread your fingers in order to have a wider balancing area. Push away from the floor to activate your back muscles. Engage your core by sucking your belly in, tightening your gluteus and legs against each other. To lower yourself on the floor, take a breath in, then exhale. As you exhale, bend your elbows, keeping them close to your ribcage. Maintain a straight line on your body, keeping it parallel to the ground. Hold the pose for five breaths.

Cobra Pose/Bhujangasana. This pose is a gentle chest opener and backbend. Cobra Pose effectively warms up the spine and stretches the muscles at the front of your legs. Though you must avoid any mistakes while taking it casually.

  • How To Do The Pose: Lie on your stomach with your feet together. Place your hands beneath your shoulders and your elbows beside your ribcage. Take a breath in as you slowly push away from the floor, extending your spine up and back, pressing your pubic bone down. Keep pressing until your arms are fully extended. Make sure that your shoulders are drawn away from the ear. Hold the pose for five breaths.

Lunge/Warrior I: Performing Warrior I gently opens the hips, back and chest. It also stretches the quads, strengthens the legs and lengthens the spine. 

  • How To Do The Pose: Start in a plank position. Inhale and extend your right leg up in the sky, then exhale, bring it between your hands. Turn your back leg 45 degrees outwards and slowly stand, keeping your right knee on a 90-degree angle. Push your hips forward to maintain your weight on your right foot. Bring your hands in prayer, and then extend your arms up as you inhale. Hold the pose for five breaths and do the same process on the other leg.

Formidable Face Pose/ Ganda Bherundasana: If you’re trying the pose for the first time, it is recommended to practice under the guidance of an experienced Yoga teacher. Be patient and always listen to your body.

  • How to do the pose: Begin on all fours, knees and elbows planted on the ground. Spread your fingers, and then bring your shoulders above to your wrists. Keep in mind to keep your elbows close to your ribs. After that, extend your left leg back on the floor, and then lift your right foot up to the sky. Point your right foot’s toes. Soften your spine while keeping your arms activated. Inhale, and then press the ball of your left foot away from the ground to fully lift your right leg, followed by the left. Don’t collapse your shoulders and always make sure that your core and gluteus are activated to avoid putting any strain on your chin or neck. Slowly reach your toes down to your forehead. Stay in this position for five breaths. To release, lower your legs back down with control. Rest on Child’s Pose.

You may not be able to do the full pose though you have mastered the basic foundations. Learning requires patience and an open mind. Regularly practice with good intentions, and you’ll surely be curving smoothly soon.

Softly Flowing

As you advance to your practice, you may find some of your favorite Yoga pants are fading, starting to wear off or becoming loose. Having durable and comfortable workout clothes is very important especially if you move intensely. Advanced poses such as Formidable Face Pose can cause damage to your leggings if they aren’t well crafted or overused. Have a look at this amazing legging for women you’ll surely love!

Splendid French Terry Legging: These Yoga pants are ultra-soft and very cozy. Made of 4% spandex, 48% modal and 48% pima cotton, these mid-rise waisted leggings fit perfectly to the body and emphasize the curves. Unlike most leggings for women out in the market today, Splendid French Terry Leggings are not see-through. 

Sometimes, even the thought of learning this pose is already intimidating. Great things often times have scary beginnings. You may not be able to control the process of progress, but you can control your thoughts. Always be patient with your journey and approach the challenges with composure. Practice safely and most importantly, have fun!

Yoga Routines for Travelers

Traveling is amazing and there’s nothing quite like it. When you travel a lot, even with all the problems and annoyances, the world opens in way that you can’t easily describe to people who don’t travel very much. Unfortunately, traveling a lot has its downsides too and one of the big ones is the fact that your exercise routine tends to get forgotten. Between a new environment, working out how and where to get food, where to stay, and looking at all of the new and amazing things, the idea of working out just seems like too much trouble. If you’re staying somewhere for a long time or spending a few months on the move in different countries, you really do need to exercise. Otherwise, you can’t eat all that amazing food without ending up not being able to fit into your clothes, and nobody wants to come home and have to diet.

One of the problems with exercising when you’re traveling is the time factor. This especially applies when you’re constantly on the move, taking trains, buses, and planes to different areas or countries. The idea of spending an hour in your room when you could be taking in some amazing tourist sights seems like a waste of time. But it isn’t. The reason people do yoga is to relax. Of course, there is the fitness element, but for the most part, yoga is about moving your muscles in a way that makes them stronger and looser. Yoga is also about settling your mind into that peculiar open, calm state that yoga seems to invoke so easily.

That doesn’t mean that you need to spend an hour in your hotel room every day. It means that you need to carve out twenty minutes to half an hour and have a routine already in place for when you travel. It’s especially helpful after flights and long bus rides, when your muscles are tensed and cramped, and your mind is stressed after dealing with all the logistical aspects of travel. Sometimes, a short yoga session can be just what you need to unwind and start to enjoy the new place you landed in.

Another concern for traveling can be space. Most hotel rooms are tiny, without the room to really move around, and your travel yoga routine must respect and compensate for that. You also need to restrict your practice to moves that work well without a yoga mat, unless you’re happy to carry one stashed in your suitcase.

With all that in mind, here are a few yoga moves that can be adapted for wherever you end up.

Chair pose: This pose is a great warm up. Start with your feet hip distance apart and your arms out to the sides, lower yourself until your thighs are parallel to the ground.

Warrior II: Stand at one end of the space you have, step back and turn your back foot at a forty-five-degree angle. Face forward, with your arms out to the sides and lunge over your front leg.

Triangle: With your legs in the same position and your arms out, hinge forward over your front leg without moving your hips until you can’t bend any further, lower your bottom hand to the ground and stretch the top one up to the sky.

Split leg Bend: With your legs apart and your feet parallel, bend forward and try to put your head on the ground.

With a little bit of thought, and perhaps some rearranging of furniture in your hotel room, you can create your own yoga routine that is quick and easy but still effective and allows you to maintain all the conditioning you’ve gained at home. That’s one of the amazing parts of yoga, it’s instantly adaptable to its surroundings and easy to keep as part of your life even when everything else is changing.

Aerial Yoga

Aerial yoga is the same as traditional yoga, but with a nifty addition. Instead of practicing on a mat, you practice swinging through the air. During an aerial yoga class, you sit in a fabric hammock. Aerial yoga hammocks are different from traditional hammocks used for outdoor activities. These hammocks resemble long scarves. The long scarf is suspended so that there is a drooping middle that resembles a swing and two strands of the fabric on either side to hold on to. Yoga hammocks are designed in this way to allow maximum amount of movement. This hammock hangs from the ceiling and is made out of high-density nylon material to prevent tearing. The hammocks are held up by carabiners, support chains, and webbing straps. Each hammock can be adjusted to the perfect height for the practitioner. Hammocks come in various styles and colors. Not only is this class fun and inventive, but the colored hammocks swinging and swaying makes for a beautiful environment.

Traditional yoga poses are taken during class with aerial adaptions. It’s a combination of acrobatic arts and anti-gravity asana (poses). Simple stretches may be taken while seated in the hammock. However, other poses can be taken completely off the ground hanging upside down. Full relaxation on the back or Savasana can be taken to a whole new level during Aerial yoga. The practitioner can relax fully back into the hammock and float above the ground to achieve pure relaxation.

Aerial yoga also makes it easier to practice more challenging mat poses such as handstands and forearm stands. Instead of using the wall to try and master these poses, the hammock helps to support and hold these poses in a more natural way. Being suspended has more of a realistic feel as opposed to leaning against a wall to balance.

Being suspended off the ground is not only fun, but it also packs some big benefits. The fabric hammock provides more freedom of movement. The hammock allows for deeper stretches. The flexible support system allows for lunges, back bends, and other stretches to be taken beyond what could be achieved on a simple mat. By using the fabric hammock in aerial yoga, simple mat stretches will prove to be easier and flexibility will improve greatly.

Being suspended in the air allows you to focus on your surroundings more. This provides for a more alert and focused practice. Yoga is not only about physical movements, but mental awareness as well. Being suspended in the air forces the mind to concentrate more on the movements that it is doing. Connecting the mind and body this way is the core and ultimate accomplishment of any yoga practice.

Aerial yoga is also an awesome ab workout. Swinging through the air might seem like a fun and easy workout, but after that first class your abs will be burning. This is because during practice you have to keep yourself stable which immediately engages the core muscles. This means your core is engaged during the entire practice instead of just during specific poses.

Aerial yoga is perfect for those that have joint and spine problems. The hammock provides a zero impact practice that puts no pressure on aching knees and joints. Hanging from the hammock also decompresses the spine which in turn provides some much needed pain relief.

This new take on traditional yoga is gaining momentum and with good reason. Aerial yoga not only provides the wonderful benefits of traditional yoga but also has the addition of benefits from being suspended in the air. It further broadens the amount of people that can practice and enjoy the benefits of yoga. If you would like comfortable workout leggings for aerial yoga then make sure to check out this site. Thanks for reading!

Benefits of Nighttime Yoga

I don’t know about you but if I get little to no sleep at night, my whole day is shot. Getting a good night’s sleep not only makes you feel rested but also helps your body recover from the day. It also helps reduce stress. Many people struggle to get enough sleep though, so what can we do to solve that? If you are desperate for a night of solid sleep, having a nightly yoga routine could help you catch some more zzz’s. Grab your favorite pair of black leggings or pajamas and get ready for bed; here are several poses that will help you settle your mind and relax.

Child’s Pose: Child’s Pose is a classic resting yoga pose. To perform, start in a table top position then spread your knees wide while keeping your toes together. Bow your torso forward between your legs and let your forehead touch the ground. Rest your arms alongside your legs or extended forward. Child’s Pose helps to calm the brain which is what you want when trying to sleep!

Wide-Legged Forward Bend C: Wide-Legged Forward Bend C has a variety of calming effects, which make it a great pose to do before bedtime. This pose has benefits of both inversion poses and forward folds. It calms the mind and gives relief from stress, anxiety, and mild depression. Perform this pose by standing with your feet 3-4 feet apart on your mat, your heels should be slightly wider than your toes. Clasp your hands behind your back in a fist. Fold your torso forward at the hips, move your head and hands towards the ground.

Nighttime Goddess Stretch: Nighttime Goddess Stretch is a relaxing pose you can even do in bed! It is performed by laying on your back either on the floor or on your bed. Move the soles of your feet together and let your knees fall outward. Lastly place both arms at a 45-degree angle on either side of your body and close your eyes. You can hold the pose for 3-5 minutes and allow your mind to relax and unwind from the day.

Legs up the Wall: Legs up the Wall pose helps to relieve lower back pain and instills a sense of calmness in your body. This pose is simple to perform, just lay on the ground in front of a wall and lift your legs up against the wall. Be sure to rest your bottom against the wall to get the proper stretch for your body.

These poses will help instill a calmness and rest in your brain so that you can get a better night’s sleep. I find when I do these stretches before bed, I get a great night’s sleep. I wake up way more rested and equipped to handle the daily stresses of life. My daily cup of coffee isn’t completely out of the picture but I have an extra boost in the morning when I take time at night to do some yoga! I hope that these poses help you to get a better night’s sleep!

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