Benefits of yoga during menstruation

• Yoga relaxes the mind, the body, and the nervous system

• It helps to relieve stress and anxiety

• Improves flexibility, strength and balance

• Can provide relief from lower back pain

• Can provide relief from menstrual cramps

• Can help to reduce headaches and nausea

• It relieves physical and emotional exhaustion

• Alleviates menstrual and PMS discomfort and pain

• Tones the reproductive system

• Relieves tension in the body

• Can help relieve trapped wind and bloating

• Helps support a better nights sleep

• Supports the health of all of systems of the body, including the musculoskeletal, endocrine, circulatory, respiratory, reproductive and digestive systems.

Yoga Poses for Menstruation – there are many yoga asana/poses that are great to do during menstruation, you can choose one or two of the poses listed below to do daily or as and when needed.  Or choose a sequence made up of the following poses.  If you are new to yoga it is great to go to a few classes so you can learn the basic poses then you can practice any time, any where with ease.

Supta Baddha Konasana

Stretches your inner thigh and groin muscles
Frees energy flow in your pelvic area
Stimulates your abdominal organs and improves mobility in digestive organs
Helps relieve the symptoms of stress, mild depression
Relaxes the mind and the central nervous system

Sukhasana

Opens the hips
Lengthens the spine
Promotes groundedness and inner calm
Promotes serenity, tranquility, and eliminates anxiety
Relieves physical and mental exhaustion and tiredness

Apanasana

Releases tension in the lower abdomen and tones upper abdomen
Massages the entire spine onto the floor
Relieves trapped wind and bloatedness
Soothes the gastrointestinal and abdominal pain of menstruation
Can provide relief from lower back pain
Encourages the release of toxins and waste matter, enabling us to digest
and absorb new input, whether physical or mental nourishment

Ananda Balasana

Opens and stretches the hips
Stretches the inner groins
Lengthens and helps to realign the spine
Calms the mind and relieves stress

Supta Padangusthasana with a belt

Stretches hips, thighs, hamstrings, groins, and calves
Improves digestion
Relieves backache, sciatica, and menstrual discomfort
Therapeutic for high blood pressure, flat feet, and infertility

Supta Virasana

Stretches the front body, including abdomen, thighs, quads and hip flexors
Strengthens the knees, ankles and arches of the feet
Stretches the spine
Improves digestion
Relieve symptoms of menstrual pain

Adho Mukha Virasana – wide legged childs pose

Generates a sense of security, ease, and self-acceptance
Allows for release in tension in hips, back, neck and shoulders
Stretches and tones the spine, relieving pain in the back and neck
Reduces acidity and flatulence
Alleviates menstrual pain and depression associated with menstruation

Majariasana

Improves flexibility of neck, shoulders and spine
Tones the reproductive system
Relieves cramps during menstruation

Malasana 

Stretches the groins, lower back, groins, sacrum and hips
Stimulates metabolism and digestive organs
Stretches your ankles, lower hamstrings, back and neck
Aids in digestion
Strengthens your metabolism
Keeps your pelvic and hip joints healthy

Adho Mukha Svanasana

Calms the mind, relieves stress and mild depression
Energizes the body
Tones and stretches the arms, hamstrings, calves, arches of the feet, and hands
Strengthens the arms and legs
Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause
Relieves menstrual discomfort when done with head supported
Helps prevent osteoporosis
Improves digestion
Relieves headache, insomnia, back pain, and fatigue

Utthanasana

Stretches hamstrings, and calves
Massages your internal organs and helps improve digestion
Relaxes the central nervous system and helps calm your mind
Helps relieve stress
Helps reduces headaches, fatigue, insomnia.

Balasana

Generates a sense of security, ease, and self-acceptance
Allows for release in tension in hips, back, neck and shoulders
Stretches and tones the spine, relieving pain in the back and neck

Khandarasana – Supported with block/s or bolster

Stretches the chest, neck, spine, abdomen and hips
Strengthens the back, buttocks, and hamstring muscles
Calms your brain and central nervous system which helps alleviate stress and
mild depression
Massages abdominal organs and improves digestion
Stimulates the lungs and thyroid glands and helps relieve the symptoms of
menopause
Tones reproductive organs
Reduces anxiety, backache, headache and insomnia

Jathara Parivartanasana

A restorative posture
Can release tension from the pelvic floor
Massages the visceral organs, aiding digestion and elimination
Strengthens the body and centers the mind

Baddha Konasana then forward fold in baddha konasana

Stimulates the heart and improves general circulation
Stretches the inner thighs, groins, and knees
Helps relieve mild depression
Soothes menstrual discomfort and sciatica
Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause
Traditional texts say that Baddha Konasana destroys disease and gets rid
of fatigue

Janu Sirsasana or Paschimottanasana

Stretches the hamstrings, spine, and lower back
Calms the mind, and relieves stress and anxiety
Improves digestion
Relieves symptoms of PMS and menopause
Reduces fatigue
Stimulates the liver, kidneys, ovaries, and uterus

Surya Namaskar – Salutes to the Sun

Stimulates and balances all the systems of the body, including the
endocrine, circulatory, respiratory and digestive systems.

Loosens up, strengthens, tones and massages all the joints, muscles
and internal organs of the body.

Considered to be a complete practice, balances pingala nadi, it has a
vitalizing effect on the solar energy which runs through pingala.
Active, extrovert and masculine. Right side of brain and breath.
Ida is passive, introvert intuitive and feminine.

During onset of menstruation or if you are feeling too tired leave this sequence out of your
practice and resume after the initial flow and when feeling up to it as it is a more strenuous practice but of course can be done slowly.