In comparison to men, women are more at the risk of developing reproductive-health issues and are twice as likely to experience mood swings, depression and anxiety.
Since menarche to childbearing age to menopause, a female body goes through lots of hormonal transitions and experiences lots of fluctuations in physical and emotional symptoms.
In women of reproductive age, these symptoms are associated with the cyclical rhythm of their menstrual cycle, pregnancy and postpartum. The symptoms include bloatedness, fatigue, breast tenderness, irritability and mood lability etc.
On the other hand females above 50 years of age due to menopause experience hot flashes, depression, mood swings, fatigue, indigestion, night sweating etc.
The severity of these symptoms ranges from mild to severe to debilitating.
The most obvious solution to balance the level of hormones and help you get rid of associated negative physical and mental symptoms is yoga.
So ladies unroll your mat and experience the amazing benefits of yoga for women.
Why Is Yoga Popular
Well, no doubt yoga is key to a healthier and happier life, for both men and women. It is the best technique to cleanse your mind and body. It involves physical poses and breathing that increases mind-body awareness, cultivates acceptance of thoughts, emotions and sensations and promotes physical movements. Regular yoga practice stimulates the relaxation process (parasympathetic nervous system) and reduces tension and stress, helps you navigate unpleasant feeling, boosts energy level and mental health.
The best part of practising yoga is that it does not make you stretch yourself unnecessary beyond your limits. Your muscles become flexible as well as strong at its own pace.
Benefits of Yoga For Women
Some aspects of yoga are primarily for women support. It eases uterine contractions. The asanas performed increases the blood flow to reproductive systems and balances the level of hormones. Studies have proved that the lifespan of females who practice yoga is more than non-practitioner. Learn below how yoga offers women joy, solace and ease in their bodies.
- Menstruation- Most of the women experiences pain, cramps and discomfort before the onset of menstruation and during the periods. Other symptoms include a headache, depression, discomfort, insomnia and irritability. Regular yoga practice alleviates all these problems.
- Boost sex life– Studies published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine says that 12-week yoga improves women sexual drive along with enhancing the quality of their orgasm.
- Pregnancy- Practising yoga during pregnancy reduces the perception of pain during labour. It also reduces the physical discomfort that women experience during pregnancy and labour. Many females experience depressive episodes during gestation which may be lead to complications during labor, spontaneous abortion and preeclampsia. Prenatal yoga reduces stress and depression. It reduces the risk of gestational hypertension, and preeclampsia.
- Postpartum health– Motherhood is a beautiful journey, but this transition has a significant impact on relationships and works life. Due to the decreased physical activity following childbirth, women gain weight and is emotionally torn. Postpartum yoga helps you lose weight and helps you to cultivate social functioning and achieve vitality. It promotes self-efficacy and counteracts inactivity. Yoga not only helps you regain the pre-pregnancy shape easily and faster but also strengthen the abdominal muscles and pelvic floor muscles.
- Menopause– Between 45 to 55 years of age female body enters the perimenopausal phase to menopause. Menopause is a cessation of ovarian function. It is the end of the female reproductive age. It is the phase when there is a marked fluctuation in estrogen and progesterone levels, and this leads to symptom such as fatigue, night sweating, hot flashes, mood swings, loss of libido, pain etc. These symptoms persist for many years. Yoga can effectively reduce these unwanted symptoms. The restorative postures activate the parasynthetic nervous system and improve the function of endocrine supporting the body in adapting hormonal fluctuations.
- Protects spine– During pregnancy, due to increased weight or wrong posture, your spine has to tolerate heavy pain. Injury to spinal cord makes it difficult for you to sit, stand or walk. Try yoga poses such as flexion, extension, side bend, rotation and axial extension to keep your spine healthy.
- Improves fertility– If you are women of reproductive age, but you are having problems in conceiving try yoga. Fertility yoga releases stress, balances hormones, increases ovulation, increases intimacy and sexual stamina. Also, it increases the blood supply to reproductive organs and improves fertility.
- Improves mood and make your happy- Attaining inner peace is key to happiness. Yoga practices such as Padmasana, Gomuskhasana, Dansana and Sucriandhrasana calms your mind.
- Weight loss- Struggling to lose weight and is tired of trying boring diet plans and sweating in the gym. Join a yoga class and in the guidance of a certified practitioner practice remedial yoga measure to lose weight.
- Makes you social- Yoga not only makes you mentally and physically active but also help you to strengthen your social circle. Join yoga classes with your nearby friends and practice yoga enjoying the company of your friends. Also, you will find that through regular practice you have developed compassion, greater equanimity and friendliness. Thus, yoga improves relationships.
- Flexibility- Men love flexible females, and it may be your choice too. Try yoga poses such as warrior pose, mountain pose and triangle pose to attain a flexible body. Also, these asanas will lower the level of blood sugar.
- Sexy butts- Regular yoga practice can help you achieve a sexy, round and hot butt. In just a few days you will witness the change.
- Improves the quality of sleep– Practicing specific yoga poses an hour before going to bed unwinds and relaxes your mind.
- Improves digestion- Junk, processed, spicy and sugary food causes indigestion. Yoga prevents the accumulation of fluids that cause bloating and indigestion. It promotes bowel movements and keeps your gut healthy.
- Makes your skin glow- when you are healthy your skin glows. Aasanas such as Padmasana, Adho Mukho Savasana, Sarvangasana and Dhanurasana can make your skin glow in just a few days.
- Improves memory and concentration– Padmasana yoga strengthens your focus, sharpens memory and increases concentration.
- Improves posture– Your head is balanced over your spine. When the balance is direct, less work is required by your back muscles and neck to support it. But when you move your head forward, your muscles are strained. Poor posture causes back pain, neck pain and joint muscle problems. To improve your posture practice yoga.
- Relieve the joint pain and prevents degenerative arthritis- Every time you practice the asanas your joints are moved through their range of motion. This squeezes the areas of cartilage that are generally not used. Joint cartilages receive nutrition. This prevents cartilage from wearing out and exposing the underlying bones.
- Drains lymph nodes– On contracting and stretching the muscles, organs move around and drainage of lymph increases. Your lymphatic system boosts, cancerous cells are destroyed, and toxic wastes are eliminated out of the body.
- Drops blood pressure- Research shows that Savasana drops the blood pressure. So if you are suffering from high BP try it out.
- Lowers the level of cortisol- High level of cortisol is linked with depression, high blood pressure, insulin resistance and osteoporosis. Yoga regulates adrenal glands and reduces the level of cortisol.
From treating fertility to menstrual issues to attaining positive body image, yoga is beneficial for women for physical emotional and mental well-being. Below are the best yoga poses for women to practice every day.
Yoga Poses For Women
Men and women body is different. Yoga created traditionally thousand years back has a male body in mind, and so females should be careful about what poses to practice. Specific yoga poses may lead to physical injury or damage as they are not suitable for women. This is why we have complied safe yoga poses for women in our article that particularly benefits females mind and body.
Yoga Poses For Beginners
- Life Nerve Stretch- This yoga pose stretches the life nerve that is going throughout the back through a sciatic nerve from the back of the heels and continues up to the neck. This stretch makes your spine flexible and also strengthens the digestive system and helps with emotional balance. In women, life nerve stretch pose treats UTI, fatigue, muscle spasm and cold feet.
Steps:
- Sit on your right heel
- Extend the left leg forward
- Now bring the chest to your left thigh.
- Hold this position for 2 minutes
- Repeat with the other leg.
image from kriya-elevationImage
*This pose can also be done with both your legs straight forward.
Steps:
- Sit on a mat with both your legs straight forward
- Inhale, bend forward and try to grab your toes
- Do not bend your knees.
- With a deep breath stretch your chest down to the knees and pull your toes back
- Hold this position for 2-3 minutes and feel the stretch
- Get back to the starting position
- Child Pose- This pose stretches back, hips and quads. It opens the hips and relives the lower back tightness. This pose effectively clams the mind and reduce fatigue and stress. Also, it boosts digestion.
Steps:
- kneel on your mat and sit on heels. With your knees hip-width apart and big toes touching the mat.
- Lay your torso between your thighs
- Now bring your forehead down to the mat
- Extend both your arms straight in front of you to touch the floor with your palms.
- With eyes closed take a deep breath and stay in this position for 1-2 minutes.
- Bow Pose- Bow pose effectively expands the lungs, opens the rib cage and increases the intake of oxygen intake. It also assists the function of the liver kidney, spleen and small intestine. If you have a curved spine bow pose will straighten your spine.
Steps:
- Lie on the mat on your abdomen
- Slowly and gently bend your knees to grab your ankles with your hand
- Pretend to straighten your leg so that torso automatically rises up
- Tilt your head back and bring your legs up
- Hold yourself in this position for 2-3 minute while breathing deeply through the nose.
- Tree Pose- Tree pose stretches the inner thigh and hip and strengthens the spine, legs and core. This pose is practised to get your mind centred when you feel your mind is scattered. This pose improves the balance.
Steps:
- Stand straight with your legs and feet together and your hands on the hips.
- Bend right knee, place the sole of your right foot on the inside of the left leg and transfer your weight to the left foot.
- Press the right foot gently against your left leg.
- Bring both your palms in front of heart or raise your arms above your head with palms facing in the praying position.
- Hold yourself in this position for a minute. Release the pose and then repeat on the opposite side.
- Camel Pose– Camel pose adjusts the female reproductive system. This pose reduces thigh fat, improves posture, relieves lower back pain, improves spine flexibility, opens the chest and improve the respiration. Also, this pose opens the thighs and stretches the hip flexors.
Steps
- Keel on the mat with your spine and thighs straight and knees hip-apart.
- Slowly lean in the backwards direction to reach the right heel with your right hand and the left heel with the left hand. Do not over strain your body.
- Keeping thighs vertical, push hips in the forward direction
- Bend your spine and head as backwards as you can without straining.
- Relax the muscles of the back.
- Support your body equally on your arms and legs.
- Arms should anchor your shoulders to maintain the back arch
- Stay in this position for 1-2 minutes or as long as you are comfortable.
- Return to the starting position by releasing the hand from heels
- Realx and take deep breaths
Specific Yoga Poses For Women
- Reclined Butterfly Pose – A woman gets so busy looking after family and home that she forgets to get enough time for her. Reclined butterfly pose makes sure that female nurtures herself. This pose relieves menstrual cramps and discomfort. Also, it reduces the symptoms of indigestion, insomnia, asthma and heart diseases. Reclined butterfly pose increases the mobility of hips, calms the mind, reduces stress and stimulates the urinary bladder and kidney meridians.Steps:
- Sit on the floor and extend both the legs
- Bring soles of feet close with knees so that your legs together make a diamond shape.
- Now slowly lie on your back on the mat.
- Place your hands out to sides on your belly
- Stay in this position for 5-10 breaths
- Roll on sides and come out of this pose using your hands to sit back.
- Pigeon Pose – Women are emotional beings. They hold emotions. Pigeon pose is wonderful pose that engages the sacral chakra that stores a great deal of stress and emotions and opens the hip. This pose releases negative energy and feelings. It stimulates the internal organs, stretches groins and deep glutes. It relieves lower back pain, pain in hip or buttock and pelvic pain. This pose helps with urinary disorders and improves posture.
Steps:
- Begin with dog pose. Both the palms and knees touching the floor
- Extend the right leg up and back and while doing this inhale
- Bring right knee between your both palms and exhale
- Slowly slide your right foot back towards the end of the mat
- Lift your chest and walk the right heel to the left.
- Hold this pose and breath.
If you are ready to practice advance, pose lower your upper body, extend your arms and let elbows touch the ground and lean on your forearms.
*Do not jump to pigeon pose as yoga class begins. You need to warm up the body with preparatory asanas suggested above. There is variations in this posture. Do not challenge your body and progress slowly and steadily
3. Goddess Pose – This pose strengthens the lower body and stretches the hips. It is about letting go all frustrations of daily life and finding inner peace. This pose gives the power of energy and stimulates the respiratory system, cardiovascular system and urogenital system.
Steps:
- Stand with both feet almost 3 feet apart.
- Bend your elbows to the height of shoulders and turn both palms to face each other.
- Turn feet 45 degree to the corners of the room
- Exhale and bend your knees over the toes while squatting down.
- Now press you to hip forwards, knees back and chest to the front
- To keep your arms active you may hold a ball over your head
- Look straight, breathe and hold the position for 3-6 breaths
- Inhale and straighten your legs. Your fingertips should reach the ceiling and then exhale both the arms to sides.
4. Head Stand – The inverted body position stimulates the production of hormones. Headstand pose flushes out toxins and detoxifies the adrenal glands. This pose brings fresh energy to the brain, scalp, face, and improves the blood circulation and lymphatic system. This pose decreases the build-up of fluid in legs, feet and ankles and improves the digestion. It strengthens the bone and muscles of arms. Leg, spine, shoulders, tone the tissue of the abdomen and enhances the capacity of the lungs.
Steps –
- First set yourself in a child pose
- Before you lift, you need to set a perfect foundation with your arms. Shift your hands up to meet them and clip them without moving your elbows.
- Next step is to get your head in the right place. You have to place your head into the clasped hands so that while you push up from the shoulders, there is not much pressure on your head.
- You need to straight both legs lifting your butts as done in downward dog pose and then start to walk your feet with small steps towards the head until the upper body is vertical.
- Now lift your feet slowly using core and bring knees into the chest or straighten your legs in front and lift your legs up
Coming down from this pose safely is also important. Keep the core tight and slowly put your feet back to the ground and acquire the child pose slowly.
*For the beginners we suggest supported headstand pose. Better, do this pose under a certified yoga guide. This pose puts an extra stretch on body and shoulders. In the absence of adequate preparation and experienced teacher, you may injure yourself.
5. Knee to Chest Yoga Pose – This is a gentle pose that makes you feel centred and connected. This pose eliminates body impurities through the excretory system and lungs. It is helpful in relieving menstrual cramps, bloating and indigestion and also great to reduce the lower back pain. This pose reduces anger, over excitement, high blood pressure and anxiety.
Steps:
- Lie on the floor and bring both your knees to the chest.
- Warp your arms around the knees
- Inhale and roll the shoulders down
- Exhale and with your arms, gently squeeze and press your thighs towards the core.
- Tuck the chins slightly to elongate the spine top on the neck. Stay in this position for as long as you want.
A healthy soul keeps mind and body healthy, and yoga purifies your soul. Ladies do not take your health guaranteed. Eat good, live active and practice yoga for your well-being because a healthy woman makes a healthy family.