Engrossed in the hustle of daily life, checking off tasks and meeting deadlines, makes it easy to subsequently put our health to the bottom of our priority list. We have lethargically been ignoring our healthy habits, replacing them with unhealthy ones like surviving on junk food, undue sleep schedules, and minimum physical movement. Along with unhealthy habits, we have also adapted poor lifestyle choices like smoking, use of alcohol making us prone to being diagnosed with serious health-related problems.
Each day the stats of people diagnosed with chronic health problems are increasing. Serious ailments like Diabetes, Menopause, heart-related problems and other diseases have become quite relevant amongst the masses. Popping pills for instant relief from issues like backache, headache and stress aren’t curing the diseases but delaying them for later.
Yoga with its holistic approach to life gives us an opportunity to rectify and cleanse the influence of our past unhealthy habits and strengthens our body, mind, and soul to fight these illnesses. Daily practicing of Yoga Asanas and Pranayamas will help you to organize your life, create a health-conscious routine. When we talk about ailments, we need to understand that there are modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors. Factors that come with the aging process or hereditary traits are non-modifiable- the impact of these can be controlled or reduced by Yoga. Modifiable factors- involve the lifestyle choices which can be altered by changing our choices.
Yogic learning believes in “Prevention is better than cure”. Hence, below we have shared some Asanas and Pranayamas that will minimize your chances to chronic illness.
1. Vakrasana- The Curve Posture: (For Diabetes)
- Sit on a mat with your legs fully stretched forward, toes pointing upwards and hands beside your body, palms resting on the mat. Keep your back straight, neck and head in a line parallel to the floor. Stretch your hands forwards and raise them at your shoulder level. Keep your palms facing downwards. Inhale.
- Exhaling twist your spine towards the right as much as you can ensuring that your head, neck, shoulders, hands and the torso move as one unit maintaining the lower body firmly fixed to the ground.
- Immediately while inhaling, come to the center.
- Exhaling twist to your left side in the same manner.
- Return to the center while inhaling.
- Repeat this posture twice.
Benefits – It relaxes and strengthens your back muscles, Exercises your abdominal muscles, Increases concentration and makes you more alert and attentive.
2. Yogendra Sthitaprarthanasana- The Standing Prayer Posture: (Heart Related Problems)
- Stand erect with hands-on their respective sides and feet as close together as possible. Keep the knees straight but not stiff. Place the bodyweight on the balls of the feet, towards the big toe. Keep the neck straight and abdomen in normal contour and chin drawn in. The pelvis tilted at a subtle angle to prevent any exaggeration of the lumbar curve. Focus your eyes at any point straight ahead, keeping the body calm and mind relaxed.
- Fold your hands in Namaskar mudra and place them in front of the chest. Keep shoulders and elbows relaxed. Close your eyes or fix the gaze at one point and passively breathe (final posture).
- Continue for the next 10 minutes.
Benefits – It aids stance through coordination of the neuroskeletal system. Physical steadiness arises through control over the voluntary muscular movements. It calms your mind and relaxes your nerves.
3. Ardhamatsyendrasana- The Spinal Half-twist Posture: (Diabetes)
- Sit with both your legs stretched out in front and your hands placed on the respective knees or sides on the floor, maintaining an erect posture.
- Fold your right leg inwards and press your heel against the perineum without allowing your knee to lift up.
- Take your right leg, bending it at the knee, crossing it across your left thigh and place your right foot near the outside of the left thigh and bring your right knee close to your chest.
- Bend the left leg at the knee inwards to place your foot close to your right hip.
- Laterally twisting the torso on the right side, let your left hand hold your right ankle/toe grasping the foot anywhere comfortably, in such a way that your right knee comes under your left armpit. Inhale.
- Exhaling, give more twist to your spine and place your right hand across your back with the palm facing outwards.
- Simultaneously turn your head and neck towards your right shoulder.
- Suspend the breath for six seconds maintaining the posture.
Benefits- There is a lateral twisting of your spine. The suspension of breath during the twisted position improves the venous blood flow in your abdominal region. It tones and strengthens your abdominal muscles.
Limitations: It’s not recommended for people with heart ailments or serious spinal disorders.
4. Yoga Pranayamas: (Stress & Menopause)
Thoughts and mind are directly interlinked. We daily think of hundreds of thoughts, negative and positive both impacting our routine and behavior. As negative thoughts are always more compared to positive thoughts, practicing Pranayamas on a regular basis helps in regulating our thoughts, inclining them towards positivity. Smooth rhythmic breathing with mindfulness induces better oxygenation and thereby clears the mind from bad thoughts. It reduces the toxin built up and aids the central nervous system. Daily practicing of Yogendra Pranayamas I, II, III, IV, and Anulom-Vilom Pranayamas are highly recommended for mindfulness.
5. Sattvik Meal
A balanced Sattvik meal consists of fresh organic fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. It also includes nuts which along with others help to keep up our energy levels and keeps the body in active mode. The freshness of Sattvik meals keeps our body and mind fresh and energized throughout the day. It brings in us a peaceful amicability, enthusiasm, health, aspiration, creativity and a balanced personality.
Inducing yogic practices in our lives helps in simplifying our thought process and develops a schedule for a daily routine that prioritizes our health, in return optimizing our body, mind, and soul. This increases our immunity, eluding us from chronic illnesses and also increasing productivity in our work.