The hot summer months are difficult to deal with but there is one form of exercise that can help you beat the heat – yoga.
Yoga can help you cool off, stay focused, healthy and happy and help calm the mind with some very simple and yet effective practices, says Desmond Wong, Yoga Instructor at Fitness First.
A good method to counter the hot, muggy weather is to draft a lunar current within your body by focusing on activities and foods which work to help cool the body.
Here, Desmond Wong, Yoga Instructor at Fitness First gives his top tips on how specific yoga poses can help send calming waves through the nervous system and aid in the body’s attempt to self-regulate:
Moon Salutation
The Moon Salutation, is a series of poses performed in a particular sequence to create a cooling flow of movement. Like the popular Sun Salutations, each pose in a Moon Salutation is coordinated with your breathing: Inhale to extend, and exhale to bend. But unlike Sun Salutations, which focus on heating and stimulating the body, Moon Salutations are cooling and quieting. They are used to calm the mind and to draw one’s awareness inwards. Moon Salutations are useful when temperatures are high and when a tranquil, quiet presence is required.
Supported Back Bends
Backbends can seem intimidating but you don’t have to be a contortionist or drop into a Full Wheel from standing to reap the heart and chest opening benefits this pose delivers. Possibly the hardest part about backbends is that they go against the natural way we hold and move our bodies. We slouch forward and move forward; backbends take us the opposite direction. They force us to be a bit vulnerable—essentially removing the shield that protects our hearts and emotions.
Supported Shoulder Stand
Supported Shoulder Stand stretches the neck and shoulders and strengthens the legs, glutes, arms, and core. The pose also stimulates the abdominal organs and the thyroid gland, aiding with digestion and the regulation of hormones. It can also benefit those who suffer from anxiety, stress, and mild depression. Those with any form of neck injuries should practice this pose with caution, using folded blankets or towels for support beneath the shoulders to protect the cervical spine.
Seated Forward Fold
As a forward folding posture, the Seated Forward Bend pose helps to calm and relax. It can also help with stress, anxiety, insomnia, headaches, and mild depression. Physically, the pose stretches the spine, shoulders, and hamstrings, stimulates the internal organs, and can also improve digestion and help to ease menstrual discomfort.
Supine Twisting Posture
This pose is one of the go-to, end-of-class, postures. Since it helps to make the transition from the yang of practice, into the yin of Savasana, smooth and seamless. This pose is both calming and conducive for meditative, slow breathing, as well as being very healing in its own right.
