Yoga For Stress Relief (5 Everyday Yoga Poses With Steps)

Everyday Yoga To Release Stress:

Stress is basically the muscular uneasiness which turns into chronic (been there long-term) pain and aches. Here are 5 daily yoga for stress release poses for you. Sometimes, bad posture of the body will also have an impact on stress. You also need to focus on the importance of good posture and practice the posture correction techniques.

We have to learn how to reduce stress by following healthy lifestyle tips and workout on our body with pranayama and yoga. Here is yoga for stress and anxiety relief for different parts of the body. Sometimes too much stress may lead to headaches and migraines, check out yoga for migraine to get rid of headaches.

Stress is possibly the biggest issue we face today and unfortunately we’re doing nothing about it. Even if your training and nutrition is spot on, stress can undo all the good work and screw your health by creating hormonal imbalances which lead to fat storage, sleep deprivation or low immunity, which create more imbalances, so on and so forth.

Yoga For Stress Relief:

The end of a long day is sometimes signalled by minor aches and pains in the body, ranging from headaches to stiff backs. The process of winding down for bed should include a few postures that will detoxify the body and release stiffness from your muscles and joints.

A relaxed body ensures deep and restful sleep. This goes hand in hand with the reason we should not go to sleep immediately after a meal – the body allocates sleep time to the rejuvenation of the organ systems and not towards active digestion. The sooner we take charge of how well we sleep, the more illnesses we prevent in the future.

Stress Effects:

How stress affects the body:

1. Raises blood pressure and pulse rate
2. Makes breathing faster, and often shallower
3. Tenses muscles (may even lead to muscular spasms)
4. Impairs the digestive and immune systems
5. Causes fatigue, skin irritations, headaches, excessive sweating, nightmares, among other symptoms
6. Impacts sleep, may cause insomnia

How stress affects the mind and behaviour:

1. Fosters worrying, indecision, negativity, restlessness
2. Muddles thinking, impairs judgement
3. Triggers irritability, anger, depression, apathy, alienation, forgetfulness
4. Alters appetite (eating more/less)
5. Loss of sex drive
6. Can make one more accident-prone
7. Increased smoking, drinking

Check out these 5 yoga poses to reduce stress and anxiety in your life. It is best to perform the yoga on an empty stomach or atleast 3 hours from eating.

1. Garudasana (Eagle Pose):

Makes your ability to focus on the single point better which is a very good yoga for stress management and relaxation. 

It relaxes shoulders and hips, which accumulate emotional tension.

Garudasana Steps:

• Start with tadasana(mountain pose- stand straight with legs shoulder wide and arms fall freely on the sides).
• Take one of your legs around the other as shown in the picture. You have to balance your body with one leg.
• Make your arms twisted with palms facing each other as shown in the picture.
• Focus on a point at a distance.
• While releasing, open the arms slowly first then turn the overlapped leg out.
• Practice this asana for 2-3 times each side.

Precaution:

If there is an injury in the knee, ankle or shoulder and pregnant women should not attempt this pose.

2. Uttanasana (Standing forward fold):

Practising uttanasana quiets a busy mind, balances the nervous system spreading calm and peace.

Uttanasana Steps:

• Start with Mountain Pose relaxing, exhale and bend the upper body forward from the hips, not the waist.
• Without straining the body continue to bend stretching hips till your hands touch your feet.
• Place the palms by the side of your feet as much possible and touch your forehead to your knees.
• Take deep and slow breaths and relax your body.

Precautions:

People with any spine injury, pain in ankles or hip joints, knee problems, sciatica, heart problems, severe back pain or an abdominal hernia should avoid this pose.

3. Shashankasana / Balasana (Child pose) To Calm The System And Reduce Stress:

Releases the pressure from adrenal glands. Sharanagat Mudra / Shashankasana / Balasana is a simple and non-invasive posture that relaxes the back and restores blood supply to a tired brain.

The posture is best practiced at the end of the day to release stiffness in the muscles that support the spine and hips. 

The pressure of the legs against the abdomen massages the internal organs and boosts digestion. Increased blood flow to the head relieves a headache and burning sensation in the eyes.

he pressure of the legs against the abdomen massages the internal organs and boosts digestion. Increased blood flow to the head relieves a headache and burning sensation in the eyes.

Shashankasana Steps:

• Start with Vajrasana with the eyes closed and relax the whole body.
• Inhale raising the arms straight and shoulder width wide above the head, exhale slowly bend forward from the pelvic region.
• Rest the hands, forehead, and elbows and retain the position as long as you’re comfortable.
• Release with exhalation and slowly lift the forehead, arms to the vertical position, lower the arms resting the palms on the thighs.
• Do it 3 times increasing the duration gradually to 5 minutes.

Precautions:

People suffering from vertigo, high blood pressure, knee problems or slipped disc and pregnant women should avoid doing balasana.

4. Vajrasana (Thunderbolt pose) Yoga Pose For Stress:

This pose calms the mind and body very effectively and is also good for the digestive system.

Vajrasana Steps:

• Kneel with the knees closer and big toes touching each other.
• Place your buttocks in the space between both of your heels separated but big toes touching.
• The spine and head should be straight and relaxed.
• Breath normally closing your eyes and relax the whole body.

Precautions:

If there is an injury in the knee, ankle or shoulder should not attempt this pose.

5. Supta Baddha Konasana (Reclined bound angle pose):

This pose opens up the hips, inner thighs and groin and release tension and stress in there.

Supta Baddha Konasana Steps:

• Start with Dandasana, with your legs extended in front of you and bend your knees with soles touching each other towards your pelvis.
• Lean backward with support on elbows to the floor.
• Gently adjust your buttocks and spine along the floor maintaining the natural curve of the lower back.
• Let your arms relax with your palms facing up.
• Release the pose drawing your knees together and roll to your right side and rise with hands pressing yourself to the seated position.

Precautions:

If you have a groin, knee, lower back, shoulder, or hip injury and pregnant women should avoid this pose.

6. Trikonasana (Triangle Pose):

The Trikonasana, or triangle pose, stimulates the function of the entire body and gives a lateral (side) stretch to the spine. It helps reduce blood pressure, stress, and anxiety.

Practice this asana every day and you’ll gain strength in the ankles, thighs, knees, hips, calves, and hamstrings. All standing poses build the cardiovascular system, so the more you do it, the better your stamina.

Trikonasana Steps:

1. Stand with your feet three to four feet apart, arms by your side. (If you’ve never done it before, use the wall for support.)
2. Open the right foot to 90 degrees and turn the left foot slightly in, towards the right.
3. Inhale; raise both your arms out to the side, palms facing down.
4. Exhale; extend the torso towards the right, bending from the hip joint, not the waist.
5. Start the movement by strengthening the left leg and grounding the heel firmly to the floor. If you’re new to this, feel free to bend the knee ever so slightly. Rotate the torso to the right, keep both the sides equally long and ground the right leg.
6. Rest the right hand on your shin, ankle, or the floor outside the right foot. Using a yoga block to place the hand helps here. Stretch the left arm towards the ceiling, making sure that both the shoulders are in line. Keep your head in line with the spine gazing towards the right big toe.
7. As you get used to this, aim to look at the ceiling. Hold this position, and breathe deeply for five breaths or for 30 seconds.
8. Inhale to lift up, pressing right foot firmly on the floor. Repeat the same on the left side. You can do this on both sides, three or four times.

The aim is never to overdo it but to engage regularly so that you get stronger and more stable over time.

The next time you find yourself stressing out, snap out of it and try to talk some sense into yourself. While stressors and stressful situations are unavoidable, reacting to those stressors is a choice we make. And trust me when I say all we need to do is to choose not to react negatively during such situations.

Take Away:

If you’re stressed about what you are doing, you’ve got two options to make your choice:

1. Quit doing what stresses you, if that is not what you actually want to do.
2. And if what you’re doing means the most to you, make your body and mind such that it goes through the situation (that causes stress) effortlessly by practising the above-mentioned everyday yoga for stress, pranayama for stress relief regularly.