Yoga has been very well-known as a powerful and relaxing exercise that has tons of health benefits for the practitioner. It helps in strength-building, improving focus and peace within one’s self, proper breathing, and even boosting one’s flexibility. But what people may not know is how much of an effective tool it is for people who have troubles sleeping at night. Insomnia is quite a complicated disorder to understand and treat but through yoga, one can achieve better sleeping times every night. And along with the right determination, almost anyone can practice this physical and spiritual exercise.
Sleeping Better With Yoga
On average, an adult needs seven to eight hours of sleep in order to properly function throughout the day. But times are changing and more and more people are getting infected with sleeping disorders. Hence, the body is overworked and less rested. Engaging in a significant physical activity during the day can actually help in getting a better chance of sleeping early. And for people who aren’t involve in any kind of exercise or tiring tasks, yoga might be the answer.
A study has been conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School in which they engage insomnia patients into eight weeks of daily yoga exercise. In terms of sleep efficiency and time, their whole sleeping experience then exceptionally improved. Proper breathing techniques are one of the most effective and easiest practices in doing yoga. And by mastering this, it ensures that your blood circulation is boosted to help you maintain a proper sleeping cycle and relax your whole mind and body before going to bed.
Easy Poses You Can Do Before Going to Bed
Yoga practices not only help you maintain a stronger body, it also helps you in relaxing and enhancing your inner physical strength. Through meditation and various breathing exercises, one can achieve a sound mind, body and spirit that may greatly affect how we sleep.
- Siddhasana (Accomplished Pose) – This pose is done by sitting on the floor, attempting a cross-legged position but with your ankles parallel to each other. The important part of the Siddhasana is how you relax and breathe to the point where your only focus is how your heart beats and your body responds. A very easy way to calm one’s self and meditate for a while to relieve stress.
- Viparita Karani – Also known as the Legs-Up-the-Wall pose, this is done by lying down next to a wall and resting your legs against it. This can be done with the aid of a pillow or a yoga bolster, to ease any kind of tension on your back.
- Savasana (corpse pose) – The Savasana, or the Corpse pose, can be done right at the very last minute before sleeping. It’s simply lying down with arms and legs slightly open and just letting your body relax. This helps your body to calm down for a much more efficient sleeping time.
Ensuring A Healthy Sleeping Experience
Insomnia is known to be a companion with other major ailments such as heart disease, stroke, obesity and depression. But through yoga, not only do you treat yourself to a regular good night’s sleep, you also battle other medical conditions that yoga has to offer. There are various medications and pills that you can get from a doctor’s clinic but why not start with yourself and how you treat your body?
About the Author – Amelia Jones is the Editorial Executive of iYogaprops, Australia’s leading supplier of yoga mats, yoga blankets, yoga DVD, yoga bolster and high-quality yoga props.
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