Do you suffer from nasty period pains every month? Then try these three yoga exercises, which have a wonderfully relaxing and antispasmodic effect.
Many women experience symptoms such as cramps and abdominal pain during their monthly menstrual period. If you want to relieve your symptoms in a gentle and natural way, you should try yoga . “With its holistic approach, yoga not only relieves this pain mentally, but directly on a physical level,” explains Kristin Rübesamen, author, yoga teacher and editor-in-chief at YogaEasy , where you also find the podcast “Better Living with Yoga”directs. The gentle and calm movements have a pain-relieving and relaxing effect. Kristin Rübesamen advises: “A gentle flow while lying on your back helps against cramps that are caused by the uterine muscles cramping and less blood circulation than usual, so that some movement comes into the region.” For example, suitable asanas are lifting the pelvis or circling movements with the knees.
However, not every yoga exercise is suitable during menstruation . “During your menstrual period, it’s better to avoid intensive rotations, challenging exercises for the core and generally sweaty practice,” explains Kristin Rübesamen. These include the knee kiss, floor kiss with leg straddle, the tortoise, the swivel seat or the child’s pose .
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Yoga exercises for period pain
On the other hand, these three yoga exercises have a positive effect on your body and your period. Wear clothes that fit well and are comfortable. You will also need a mat and a couple of pillows and a blanket to help you out.
1. Gentle pelvic tilt while lying down
Lie on your back on your mat and place your feet hip-width apart. Following your breathing rhythm, gently tilt your pelvis without lifting your bottom and back off the floor. When exhaling, the pubic bone tilts a few centimeters towards the navel. On the next inhale, press your tailbone toward the floor and arch your back slightly. Repeat the exercises about 20 times, then straighten your legs and trace your legs.
The gentle pelvic tilt ensures that your lower back relaxes and the pelvic floor muscles relax. The menstrual cramps subside.
2. Pelvic movement in the sign of infinity
You lie on your back and place your feet close together. Use the pelvis to draw a figure eight (infinity sign). To do this, lift your right hip slightly and bring it back to the floor. Then it’s the turn of the other hip, which you also raise and lower again. Repeat the pelvic movement 20 times, then straighten your legs and feel. After that, start with the left hip and do 20 repetitions again.
This exercise gently massages your uterus and loosens the tendons and ligaments in your pelvic area. Cramps are noticeably reduced and menstrual bleeding can drain more easily.
3. Lying butterfly
You lie on your back. Bend your legs and bring your feet together. The knees fall apart. Lie on your back on a rolled-up blanket or large pillow. Since the head should be higher, take another pillow to help. If the position is uncomfortable for your knees, you can also support them with pillows or yoga blocks. Place your hands on your stomach, take a few deep breaths, and observe your natural breathing.
The exercise has a beneficial effect and releases tension in the pelvis, while the hands resting on it give your stomach warmth.
By the way: Even gentle breathing exercises such as alternating breathing have a relaxing effect on your body and have a positive effect on your abdominal cramps. And this is how it works: You alternately breathe in through one nostril and out through the other. Then switch sides.
Menstrual cramps: does yoga help in the long term?
Those who regularly step on the yoga mat can relieve period pain in the long term. “Yoga helps us to consciously relax, reduce the production of stress hormones, localize the pain through conscious breathing and breathe away. On the meta level, the realization that nothing is permanent also helps, not to dramatize menstrual cramps, but to accept them as part of our nature and in this way to alleviate them integrally,” explains Kristin Rübesamen.
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