All posts by Sumana Rao

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Yoga for lungs

Simple yoga poses for lung health

When our body is unable to breath properly we feel tired and exhausted. To keep lung functioning well we can make use of yoga poses and pranayama.  All types of pranayama are helpful to clear the lungs and help to get back to normal breathing. Bhramari, anuloma-viloma, sheethali pranayama are proven to be very effective in curing breathing problems and asthma. Apart from breathing exercises one can practice two yoga poses to strengthen lungs.

Reclining hero pose – also known as supta veerasana in Sanskrit and saddle pose.

Reclining hero pose is an intermediate pose and needs some practice. It helps to open the lungs and nasal passages clearly. Pose also helps to improve the stretching of hip flexor, quadriceps, abdominal, feet and strengthens spine.

How to?

  1. Sit in hero pose on the mat. Keep your upper body straight and legs bent back at knees so that, both knees and feet are on either side of the upper thighs.
  2. Place your hands on either side of your hips and begin to walk the hand backwards towards your hip/butt. Meanwhile lean your torso back slowly.
  3. While bringing your torso back, bend your elbows and come onto your forearms. If you are using a folded blanket (or bolster) make sure the blanket is of the same height in place to support your spine. This should be your limit of bending if you are using bolster or blanket for support.
  4. If you are not using any props and you are comfortable with back bend then, try continuing to release your back towards the floor.  Some yogis will reach floor easily, for some it will take few practices.
  5. When you bend backwards you will feel stretch in your thighs and it is okay. If you feel pain in knees or lower back then come out the pose slowly and hold the pose where you feel comfortable.
  6. Keep breathing and stay in the pose for 5-6 breath. To come out from the pose, either you come on your forearm first or slide one hand beneath the back to give support and lift yourself slowly.

Do not perform this pose if you have knee, back pain and if you are pregnant.

Revolved head to knee pose: Also known as Parivrutta janu  shirsana in Sanskrit.

Revolved head to knee pose not only helps in strengthening lung muscle, also helps to strengthen abdomen. It is a chest opener pose that releases diaphragmatic tension and intercostals muscles. It removes tension from the waist, stretches abdominal organs and improves breathing pattern.

How to?

  1. Sit in staff pose on the mat.  Keep your right leg extended and flex the feet in front of you. Bend left knee and press the sole of into your right thigh, allowing your knee to fold out toward the floor. Try to keep the left leg glued to floor.
  2. Inhale and lift through the torso to lengthen the spine and draw your left hand overhead.
  3. Exhale and begin to side bend at the hip, drawing right ribs toward the right thigh and reaching for the toes. Inhale and lengthen the spine once again.
  4. Exhale and slowly bend further forward. Try to stack the shoulders on top of each other.
  5. Hold the pose for 5-10 deep breaths. To exit, inhale and elongate the spine while returning to an upright seated position and shake the legs.

While bending right or left side, if you feel pain and uncomfortable back off a bit.

Image credit: Photo by wee lee on Unsplash (Free for commercial use)

Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on: October 28, 2020
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Yoga sequence to promote hair health

Yoga Sequences For Hair Growth And Hair Health

Are you trying hard to grow and maintain your hair? Are you trying new hair products and new ways to keep good hair? Try practicing yoga sequences for hair growth and maintenance. Yoga helps to keep body and mind in harmony. When our mind is in good health, our body feels energetic. Apart from good diet, shampooing, conditioning and applying oil, include yoga in your daily practice to promote hair growth.  

Hair plays a major role in our appearance. Hair grows from the bottom root in hair follicle. The tiny blood vessels known as capillaries supply essential nutrients including protein to follicle root for hair growth. The living part of hair called bulb at bottom of hair made of cells and these cells divide every 23 to 72 hours leading to hair growth.

There are several conditions that make humans lose hair. Stress and improper or insufficient nutrients are two key factors responsible for hair loss. Practicing yoga not only helps to reduce stress, also improves blood circulation in turn provide nutrients needed for hair growth. Several yoga poses promote hair growth in different ways.

People who suffer from hair loss, to maintain hair health, to promote hair growth and to reduce gray hair can practice next few yoga poses in sequence. This will help in blood circulation, oxygen supply, nutrient supply, stress relief and good hair growth. Apart from this, adding good diet in your daily regime is also important for beautiful hair and to maintain healthy hair.

References:

Cover image credit: Image by Shahariar Lenin from Pixabay  (Free for commercial use)

Balayam yoga – Rubbing Nails for Hair Growth -Read more

Balayam yoga for hair health

Tadasana  Standing Mountain Pose for Hair Growth – Read more

Tadasana for hair health

Padahastasaa Foot Hand Forward Bend for Hair Growth – Read more

Padahastsana for hair growth

Downward Dog Pose & Mountain pose for Hair Growth -Read More

Downward dog pose for hair health

Fish pose -Mastyasana For Hair Growth – Read more

Fish pose for hair growth

Shirsasana  Headstand Pose for Hair Health- Read more

Shirsasana Headstand for hair health

Vajrasana Diamond Pose for Hair Health- Read more

Vajrasana for hair health
Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on:
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Balayam yoga for hair health

Balayam yoga or Rubbing Nails

One of the popular simple and effective yoga poses that prevents hair loss and baldness. It is highly recommended for hair aliments.  Bal stands for hair and vyayam is exercise. Exercising for hair is Balayam. It is combination of yoga and acupressure therapy.

How to do balayam yoga?

  1. Sitting straight, bring hands together in front of your chest.
  2. Curl your fingers so that palm will face each other, and nails should face each other.
  3. Keep thumb sticking out as in the picture
  4. Start rubbing the nails vigorously up-down for about 15 minutes.

Remember -Do not include thumb nails while rubbing nails.

This stimulates the scalp cells and known to boost natural hair growth and cure Androgenic alopecia or male pattern baldness. The pressure points under the fingernails puts pressure like needle pricking but without pain and inconvenience.

When one practices balayam, the nerves below nail that are connected to scalp stimulates blood flow and oxygen circulation to scalp. Rubbing fingernails helps in rejuvenating hair follicles and enhances hair growth by controlling the level of Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This results not only in hair growth, reduces dandruff formation, helps to maintain thick, dense hair.  In addition, it helps to relief headache and neurological related pain in head.

Balayam also stops early graying of hair. Practicing balayam regularly – daily 3 to 4 times at few hours intervals- for four to five months will yield the results.

  1. Curl the fingers of both your hands inwards towards your palm.
  2. Bring your nails in contact with each other and start rubbing them. vigorously. Ensure leaving the thumbnails out.
  3. Keep rubbing it continuously for 5-10 minutes

Image credit: Pinterest

Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on:
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Tadasana for hair health

Tadasana or Standing Mountain Pose

Tadasana or standing mountain pose is one the simplest pose that helps to keep good and healthy hair. It activates the entire body and stimulates internal organs. Adding namaskar by taking both hands back in this pose will help to stimulate shoulder and neck muscles and improves circulation to head region. Tadasana in any form improves respiration and digestion.

  1. From standing, rest your arms loosely by your side
  2. Find minor core engagement
  3. Tuck your chin in slightly towards your chest
  4. Lengthen your spine
  5. Reach your arms behind you with palms facing each other
  6. Bend your elbows and reach your fingertips towards one another
  7. If accessible, keep your shoulders relaxed and broaden your chest as your palms meet behind your back
  8. Rest your palms together and your pinky fingers against your spinal column
  9. Look toward the floor if any strain is felt in the neck.
  10. Practice the pose with the feet hip-distance apart.
  11. Widen the arms into a cactus position to lessen the stretch in the shoulders.

Image credit: https://www.pikist.com/free-photo-sdmwr (Free for commercial use)

Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on:
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Padahastsana for hair growth

Padahastasana – Forward Bend

After balayam yoga, tadasana practices indlude Padahastasana – Foot Hand Forward Bend – it is an intermediate pose that helps to come out from stress. Practicing padahastana reduces insomnia and promotes sleep. Sleep deprivation is one of the major reasons many people cannot maintain existing hair and end up in hair loss and baldness.

How to do padahastana?

1. Stand in mountain pose, place hands on hips (feet together or hip width apart). Exhale and slowly hinge forward from the hip joints (not from the waist). As you bend, draw the front torso out of the groins and open the space between the pubis and top sternum. Lengthen the front torso as you move more fully into the position.

 2. Bend your knees and place the hands under the feet (palms facing up), bringing the toes to meet the wrists.

 3. Pull the navel into the spine and with an inhalation, straighten your arms and lift your front torso away from your thighs, creating a gentle concave in the back (Sit bones and heart lift). Hold for a few breaths, exhale and lengthen down bending your elbows out to the sides, framing the head. Lift the shoulders away from the neck and draw the shoulder blades down the back. Keep the weight evenly distributed through the feet and lift the sitting bones toward the ceiling. Turn the top thighs slightly inward.

4. With each inhalation in the pose, lift and lengthen the front torso just slightly; with each exhalation, release a little more fully into the forward bend. In this way the torso oscillates almost imperceptibly with the breath. Let your head hang from the root of the neck, which is deep in the upper back, between the shoulder blades. Stay in the position for 20 seconds.

 5. To come out of the pose, release the hands. Bring the hands to the hips and inhale, come up with a neutral back.

Image credit: https://www.pikist.com/free-photo-xnjbk (Free for commercial use)

Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on:
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Downward dog pose for hair health

Downward Dog Pose & Mountain Pose

Adho Mukha Svanasana is the Sanskrit name for Downward dog pose. This pose increases blood and oxygen circulation to face and head. It helps to stimulate blood capillaries that supply food to hair follicles. To perform Downward dog pose –

  1. Start with tabletop position.
  2. Spread fingers and bring your wrist crease to front of the mat. Place palms on mat.
  3. Slowly lift hips up and back while placing both feet at back of the mat. Your body should be in V shape.
  4. Both feet should be hip distance apart and hands at should width distance apart.
  5. Press elbows towards each other and shoulder blades against back ribs. Rotate biceps forward.
  6. Squeeze elbows towards each other and lift the armpit.
  7. Draw your tummy in. Slightly rotate inner thighs back, firm your quadriceps. Press heels towards floor.
  8. Your neck should be relaxed, and head should be between two shoulders. Gaze towards feet/ankle.
  9. Hold the post for 5-7 breath.

While performing the pose, you might notice increase in blood flow towards head.

Parvatasana: Or mountain pose is like downward dog. Only the difference is, in this posture feet placed together, and hip pulled up. This pose increases blood and oxygen circulation to capillary blood vessels and nourishes cells.

After downward dog pose or mountain pose move onto fish pose on the floor. Image credit; https://www.pikist.com/free-photo-vkxxq( Free for commercial use)

Author: Sumana Rao | Posted on:
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