Yoga for a Healthy Cycle

Yoga is a way of healing our internal world to live in greater harmony with the world around us. Yoga is not only about the postures, but about creating deep, inner stillness in order that we enhance the peaceful space that we take up in the world and come together in a more balanced way.



The menstrual cycle is a natural time in a woman's life, that can occur monthly from puberty to menopause. Many hormonal changes take place during the cycle, which can last 2-7 days, with symptoms going on for more than a week prior. Yoga is an excellent way to help the menstrual cycle be a time for greater introspiection and healthy reflection in a woman’s life, as well as by practicing yoga during other times of the month, can lead to have a healthier and pain-free cycle.

Poses to practice while menstruating, include:

Sukhasana:
Sit in a comfortable cross-legged position, while gazing into the horizon and breathe for 1-2 minutes.

Bhujangasana: (good for the lower back)
Cobra Posture
Lie on your belly. Bend your elbows beneath your shoulders, spread palms wide, and have forearms making contact with the ground. Press the palms down and gently lift the gaze (avoiding overstretching in the neck) and lift your chest. Shine your hear foreward, and rest back down. Lift 2-3 times. Inhale as you extend, and exhale as you rest back down.

Pavanamuktasana: A good relaxing pose.
Wind relieving pose.
Lie down on your back. Lift your legs, bend your knees to your chest, simultaneously bring your chin to reach the knees. Don’t try too hard, inhale as you lift knees to chest, and exhale, rest your head back down and straighten the arms, taking the knees away from the chest.

Poses to avoid are as follows:
Inversions (any pose where your head is below your heart)
Such as headstand and handstand

Yoga is an elixir for the hormones. Wherever you are man, woman, young, old, flexible or not-so, yoga can balance your inner life with the world in which you live. Learn to breathe deeply, circulate the energy in order to create greater overall life balance and optimie well-being through your yoga practice. It does not have to be powerful, just what you need. Sometimes that may be as gentle as stepping in a creek and feeling the water brush across your legs. And other times, you may feel the need to dive straight into the waves, and so a power yoga practice may enhance your inner serenity. During the menstrual cycle, be mindful of slowing down a bit, listening to your inner world, and preparing to move forward with a cleansed and rejuvenated perspective.

Shantilove,
Waller