Many of us find it difficult to fall asleep and sometimes toss and turn while trying to catch up on sleep. Various studies indicate that more than a third of Indians tend to have occasional insomnia, which is nothing but difficulty falling asleep. Research has shown that practicing yoga can help regulate sleep. Yoga doesn’t have to be an energizing exercise. In fact, doing gentle yoga at home is very beneficial for your health.
Take a few minutes before bed to practice yoga. Relaxing your body before bed is important at the end of a busy day. If you want to sit and relax before going to bed, meditation is another solution for you. However, try the simple yet sleep-inducing yoga poses mentioned below to get you into the habit of getting a good night’s sleep every night.
Uttanasana
Uttanasana pose helps you get rid of headaches and insomnia, reduce anxiety and thoughts. While performing Uttanasana, you must swing to the side and inhale. The knee should be bent as much as necessary to relieve tension.
Doing:
- Raise your arms up and down to the sides of your body and bend forward from your hips.
- Bring the fingertips in line with the toes. Press your palms into the mat.
- Bend the knee.
- Bring your body forward slightly so that your hips are in line with your ankles.
- At the end, fold your head down.
- To come up, inhale and place your hands on your hips. Press down on the tailbone and contract the abdominal muscles to stand up slowly.
Halasana
You should hold the Halasana pose that allows you to relax, which helps relieve both physical and mental stress. Giving yourself time to relax can help you feel more comfortable. As a result, you may find it easier to fall asleep and sleep more deeply.
Doing:
- Lie on your back with your hands next to your body and palms pressed to the floor.
- As you inhale, raise your legs to 90 degrees.
- As you exhale, lift your pelvis off the floor, moving your legs toward your head. Slowly lower your legs over your head, toward the floor.
- Place your hands on your lower back.
- Align the little fingers on either side of the spine, with the fingers facing the ceiling.
- Bring your hands up to your spine to elevate your spine.
- Pull the shoulder blades and elbows as close together as possible.
- If your toes touch the floor, you can drop your arms along your body with your palms facing down and interlock your fingers.
- Hold this position for up to 2 minutes.
- To relax, reposition your hands along your body with palms facing down.
- As you exhale, slowly roll your spine back to the floor.
- Stop and extend your legs to 90 degrees.
- On an exhale, pull in your stomach and slowly lower your legs to the floor, or simply bend your knees and place your feet on the floor.
Shishuasana
This relaxing pose helps to increase flexibility while stretching and stretching the spine. For extra support, place a pad under your forehead, chest, or thighs.
Doing:
- From a tabletop position, lower your hips toward your heels.
- Place your knees close together or wide apart.
- Relax your chest and press your chest to your thighs.
- Relax any tension along the spine.
- Stay in this position for up to 5 minutes.
Viparita Karani
This simple yet effective pose brings relaxation and anxiety relief in the evening. For best results, you should stay in the pose for 5 minutes and close your eyes. The moment you flip your legs up will help the blood rush to the heart. This yoga pose helps you fall asleep easily. You can use a cushion or support under your hips.
Doing:
- Sit so that the right side is along a wall.
- Lie down, swing your legs up against the wall, resting your hips against the wall.
- Place your arm in a comfortable position.
- Watch your breath and focus on relaxing your body.
- Stay in this position for up to 5 minutes.
Savasana
In this pose, you have to put your body into sleep mode with the corpse pose, focus on the body and inhale, thus letting go of the worries of the day. By focusing on alertness, you will eliminate stress and anxiety, thus helping you to sleep peacefully. Do this restorative pose at the end of your workout. During this time, you can simply lie down and relax. Lie on the mat or in your bed.
- Place your feet slightly wider than hip-distance apart.
- Align the head, neck and spine.
- Focus on your breathing as you completely release the tension in your body.
- Allow the body to fall heavily.
- Stay in this position for up to 15 minutes.
Supta Baddha Konasana
This is not a variation of the basic butterfly yoga pose, it can help the body fall asleep easily. This pose calms the nervous system and relieves stress. You can put cushions under your knees when doing this pose.
Doing:
- Sit and press the soles of your feet together.
- Open your knees to the sides.
- Lay up.
- Place your hands in a comfortable position.
- Hold this pose for up to 5 minutes.
Lack of sleep and a lot of stress are very harmful to the body. We often have difficulty falling asleep due to body discomfort and anxiety. Therefore, we cannot sleep on time and suffer a lot of stress. Yoga is a solution to reduce stress levels, calm the mind and is considered the most effective and natural cure for insomnia.
