We all want to stay fit and healthy, yet we fall prey to backache, obesity, diabetes, blood pressure issues, and whatnot. That’s why experts suggest that if one wants to increase blood circulation in the body, then one must opt for yoga.
Why Is Blood Circulation Important For Your Body?
The blood circulation process aims at ensuring oxygen and nutrients are reaching around and within the body. Moreover, circulation results in moving hormones to cells and eliminates carbon dioxide from the body.
How yoga poses can improve your blood circulation?
Yoga therapy mainly known as yoga asanas and pranayama is important to improve your health and should become a part of your self-care practice. The yoga poses can prove to be highly beneficial if you are facing blood circulation issues.
Experts usually advise holding each asana for 30 seconds while maintaining the balance of the pranayama technique for a minute or so.
Let’s now focus on yoga poses for weight loss and how these can strengthen your muscles, boost your morale and increase flexibility in your body while keeping you mentally strong.
1. Marjaryasana/ Bitilasana (Cat-Cow Pose)
The cat-cow pose is essential for gently stretching your body while warming up your spine. The synchronization of breath is valuable for your mind and body. This straightforward pose helps in improving your focus, mental stability, and coordination. It ensures blood circulation in your spinal column and aids in relieving backache and mental stress. It calms down the body immediately.
2. Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
Mountain pose is also known as Tadasana or Samasthiti yoga asana. It is one of the best yoga poses for beginners as it needs the person to stand with hands and feet together at both sides of the body. The person stands still with feet together, balancing on the floor through the feet while lifting up the head. The thighs are raised, the waist elevates too and the spine extends. The breathing keeps the person relaxed and conscious while improving blood circulation.
3. Utkatasana (Chair Pose)
Chair pose is beneficial for stretching shoulders and chest, helps in reducing flat feet, and strengthens the spine, thighs, ankles, and calves. This yoga asana could be practiced at home by keeping the knees and hips width-apart, bending the knees, hips are inside and the chest is out, and keeping the arms over the head in alignment with the ears. Blood circulation starts with the flow to your glutes, legs, and hip muscles. It is advisable to hold the posture for a few breaths.
4. Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose)
The downward-facing dog pose is recommended as one of the best yoga poses for adults and kids. The pose helps in toning your core muscles, especially the lower abdominal part. It also helps in reducing tummy fat. When you form an inverted V pose, it places your heart above your head and that ensures the circulation of blood to your head. It helps in enhancing your energy and focus. You can easily get some instant relief on your neck and feel charged up throughout the day.
5. Sarvangasana ( Shoulder Stand Pose)
The shoulder Stand pose is formed when you lay down horizontally while keeping your knees bent. Rest up the shoulders on the floor mat and move the upper arms above the elbows. As a beginner start it by raising your bent legs while supporting your back with your hands. Once up, use your hands to keep the trunk lower towards the head and raise it further while straightening the legs in a vertical direction. This pose is helpful in increasing the blood circulation by reversing the blood flow as you stand back up it fresh up the wave of blood circulation throughout your body. It is also beneficial for muscle flexibility and strength.
6. Viparita Karani (Legs Up The Wall Pose)
Legs up the wall pose help in stretching while increasing the blood flow and circulation to your feet and calves muscles. If your job requires you to sit for long hours, then you must introduce this pose into your daily life to effectively let the blood flow from your hips and upper body to your head. It can be practiced easily by an adult or a kid by lying upside down. The body must form the ‘L’ position. If you have backache issues, you can place the pillow for more flexibility while following the breath in and out exercise. Try to hold this position for 2 minutes as a beginner while practicing this yoga pose at home.
7. Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend Pose)
Standing forward bend pose is beneficial for people who do the Tadasana pose easily. This yoga asana could be formed by standing straight while bending forward until the palms are touching the floor, eventually behind the heels. This yoga exercise for weight loss helps in maintaining the functions of the spleen, kidneys, and liver. It ensures flexibility of hips, enhances strengths in the spine and knees, and ultimately helps in stretching of legs, calves, and hamstrings keeping the blood circulation flow at an excellent level in the body.
8. Setubandhasana (Bridge Pose)
The bridge pose comes into the picture from the shoulder stand pose where the chest is being held forward and the hands help in supporting the hips and the feet remain lowered to the floor mat behind the back. The knees are bent and one raises the back from lying horizontally on the ground. The yoga asana helps in strengthening your back muscles, gives immense relief to the tired back, helps in stretching of spine, neck, and chest, aids in the calmness of the brain, and reduces the level of anxiety, depression, and stress. Further, it helps in the proper functioning of the lungs and reduces thyroid issues.
9. Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)
Cobra pose helps in enhancing the flexibility of your back muscles while toning the abdomen, shoulders, and neck. One can easily form the position by lying straight on the stomach, placing hands beneath the shoulders, and pushing the body towards the sky. It will affect your stomach by stretching it a bit, improving the blood circulation flow in your body. It further helps in removing the stress and fatigue keeping the brain sharp and energetic.
10. Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)
Bow pose is famous for improving digestion and boosting blood circulation. It can be formed by lying on the stomach, curving the hands backward while holding the feet. You can pull yourself backward and feel the stretch in your stomach, legs, and arms. This yoga asana has helped people in reducing weight and improving their appetite while making digestion smooth. It also helps in keeping the spinal muscle flexible, reduces backache and stress from the body.
Bottom Line
By making yoga a part of your life, you can become more aware of your body’s requirements. Yoga asanas can be practiced by people of all ages. It has no hard and fast rule. It works wonders for people with high blood pressure issues and equally for those who like to remain fit by stretching and warm-up poses. Use all or a combination of these yoga asanas to ensure the proper functioning of vital organs in your body. The aim is to keep the blood flowing by bringing more oxygen to the cells, which ultimately improves your health.
References: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3193654/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3155099/
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Mr. Vijay Kumar Pandey is an eminent Yoga teacher with 15 years of experience. He excelled himself in Iyengar Yoga under the guidance of revered master BKS Iyengar Read More