Most of us feel exhausted while returning home from the workplace, after doing tedious work at the office. We carry a lot of stress and pressure in our minds and also strain our body in order to step up on the career ladder. But still, we all want to be at better places in professional lives even if it demands a lot of stress and strain. Stress can lead to several other problems like overweight, high/low blood pressure, cardiac diseases, etc.
Yoga can be the best answer for relieving from stress. It can be ‘the’ solution for all your stress-related problems, solution for critical health-related problems like obesity, cardiac problems, constipation, hemorrhoids and you will soon be able to realize it after starting to practice yoga. Regular practice of these yoga poses will help you build stamina, take up more stressful works without actually getting stressed, and meet all your responsibilities easily.
10 Most Effective Yoga Poses for Relieving from Stress
1.Downward Dog Pose
It eases your body and relaxes your muscles. For performing this yoga pose, spread arms to shoulder-width & tuck toes for raising hips. Move your chest back along with the thighs. By bending your knees, try to walk down, one heel each time. Make sure to keep hips high. Hold this pose for at least 10 to 15 seconds and repeat.
2. Standing Forward Bend Yoga Pose
It relieves from back pain almost immediately. It is a very simple yoga pose to practice. Just stand straight and bend forward such that your hands touch the floor. Hold this position for at least 10 to 15 seconds and repeat. This yoga pose not only reduces stress at work but will also help in improving digestion power and easing constipation.
3. Camel Yoga Pose
It is not that easy to perform, you require some practice to do it properly. This yoga pose can be good for improving the strength of back muscles and reduces lower back pain. Hold this pose for at least 10 to 15 seconds and repeat.
4. Bow Yoga Pose
It is an easy pose and you can perform this pose at any time conveniently. This pose helps in strengthening the abdomen and back muscles. It tones the body and improves flexibility. For performing this yoga pose, lie on your abdomen on a yoga mat and raise your chest and legs upwards. Hold your legs with your arms and try to stretch your muscles as much as possible. Hold this position at least 10 to 15 seconds before relaxing and repeating.
5. Spine Twist Yoga Pose
It is again simple yet effective yoga poses for stress relief. You just have to sit on the floor, bend right leg over the left knee and twist your torso to one side. After holding that position for at least 15 seconds repeat the above steps with opposite sides. You can feel stretch in your hips and back.
6. Thunderbolt Yoga Pose
This yoga pose improves digestion, reduces stress, improves the flexibility of muscles and also tones the overall body. For doing this yoga pose, bend your knees and sit on your calf muscles with an erect spine. Keep your hands on your thighs and focus on your breathing. Hold this position for at least 1 minute.
7. Head to Knee Forward Bend Pose
It is again a simple yoga pose which helps in reducing stress and also in reducing tummy fat. For performing this yoga pose, sit on the floor (or yoga mat) with legs spread out straight in front of you. Bend your back to reach your heels with your hands. Try to touch your forehead to your knees. Hold this position for at least 10 to 15 seconds. If you can’t touch your head to knee, try to come as close as possible for you. Get back to the original position and repeat the pose.
There are few more variations of this yoga pose, all of which are effective in relieving from stress.
8. Legs up the Wall Pose
This is relatively difficult but is very much effective. For doing this pose, you have to lay on your back near a wall. Raise your wall upwards and lean them against the wall such that your legs are perpendicular to the floor. Hold this position for at least 15 to 30 seconds and get back to the original position. This yoga pose is reported to improve blood circulation to the upper torso and brain and helping in reduction of stress.
9. Corpse Pose
No other yoga pose can be as easy as this one. You just have to simply lay down on your back with arms relaxed on the floor (or mat). It recovers all the energy and rejuvenates yourself. Hold this position for at least 15 minutes and try to focus on your breathing.
10. Pranayam-Breathing Exercises for Stress Relief
Apart from the above yoga poses, breathing exercises can be a good solution for relieving stress. Make sure to complement your yoga session with breathing exercises (Pranayama what we call) at the end. This will improve the effectiveness of your yoga poses along with relieving you from day-long stress.
Meditation for Stress Relief
Even when you practice yoga daily, you will not get proper results when you are not meditating i.e. focusing on a single point while performing the poses. Hence, it is obvious that meditation part of the yoga is actually working miracles in relieving you from stress. Once you understand and experience the magic of meditation, you will start loving it. After you master this art of focusing your attention, you can practice it to enjoy its benefits.
Diet for Stress Relief
If you are serious about relieving from stress and making your life a better one, you also have to take care of your diet. Try to avoid junk foods and processed foods as much as possible. Opt for natural foods, fresh fruits, and vegetables for snacks.
What you take in has more effect on how your body will react to things. So, for healthy life take healthy foods. Changes in the lifestyle, improper sleep, strained relations, etc also cause stress and hence such problems are also to be addressed in a suitable way.
There are several effective yoga asanas for piles, constipation, stomach flattening, memory boosting, diabetes, that you can consider practicing and Yes, do practice the above yoga poses regularly to fight stress effectively. Share your experiences/views on stress-relieving techniques.