Yoga During Menstruation
Not able to find your flow during menstruation? (no pun intended...)
Don’t stress! Lots of women struggle to practice yoga during their period for many reasons. Whether you experience fatigue or cramping during your time of the month, yoga can actually RELIEVE your discomfort, you just have to take it slow and prioritise rest, as that is what the body is calling out for. So if you are thinking about starting a new Bikram yoga class during your period, maybe think again... try to practice softer and slower yoga in the styles of Yin or restorative.
As a female yogi, I often find that at different times of the month I experience varied energy levels which subsequently affect my practice. As women, our body’s capability fluctuates depending on our hormones, when our estrogen is peaking during ovulation - we are technically more able to take on more high intensity workouts, and as estrogen drops and progesterone rises during our period, we may naturally have an “energy crash”, where the highly demanding workouts that seemed easy a few weeks ago, now suddenly feel impossible. Every woman is different, so this may not ring true to you, but if it does, you shouldn’t dismiss your feelings of tiredness and rather nurture them. Yoga is all about self study, so tuning into how you feel during this time will give your body the love and attention it needs to recover.
Pose types we should AVOID during menstruation:
Intense twists
Inversions of any kind
Back bends
Arm balances
Core poses
These types of poses may put too much stress on the pelvic region which will only intensify symptoms of cramping. Yogis believe inversions go against the pranic flow of energy, the apana (downward pranic force) which aids digestion and menstrual flow so these poses should also be avoided.
5 Poses to RELIEVE menstrual pain
Now we have made it clear what sort of poses to avoid during menstruation, here are 5 different poses to try, these should all feel soothing to the body and feel somewhat empowering to the womb.
1) Childs Pose (Balasana)
This pose should be super restorative and comfort your abdomen, take a normal child's pose and if it feels comfortable, hug a pillow and lie your body onto it, lie your head to one side, this pose is more about the support to the abdomen as opposed to the spinal alignment. You could practice this posture in bed for extra comfort, or take some blankets under the knees. Rest in this posture for at least 3 minutes to feel the effect.
2) Supine Goddess Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana)
The hint is in the name - GODDESS pose, our hips and heart are open in this posture, mirroring the depiction of the Hindu goddess Kali. This pose will make you feel powerful in your feminine energy as you embrace and open your hips. Place some pillows under the knees if you need to prop them up so you can stay in this posture for longer periods of time.
3) Butterfly Pose (Baddha Konasana)
Again with a hip opening posture, during menstruation, our hips sometimes feel tighter, especially for those who suffer with cramping. So gently encouraging the hips to open up helps to soothe this. Feel free to do this with your back against a wall for support, or drop gently forward to put pressure on the lower abdomen if that sensation feels good to you. If not, just the hip opener is enough.
4) Pigeon Pose (Kapotanasana)
Getting the theme yet? Lots of hip openers to encourage fluidity in the womb area, this posture is GREAT and can be adjusted for intensity, remaining upright with the body or lie the body down for some gentle pressure on the lower abdomen. You can also do this practice in a supine position.
5)Cat & Cow Pose (Maryjaryasana & Bitilasana)
These two poses together can help us feel the flow in our lower abdomen if our period makes us feel stiff, it is important to send warmth and energy to our womb area so these very gentle back bends help the Svadhistana (sacral) chakra unblock itself. As sometimes we experience blockages here during menstruation through the forms of PMS and endometriosis.
Disclaimer
You should never push your body to do what it does not want to do, and sometimes, we need to listen to the cues, so if you are experiencing problems during menstruation, give these poses a try. The main focus is to honour the hip and abdomen space, and to allow for rest.
This is not to say you can’t practice intense yoga on your period, but it is advised to give the body rest to allow menstruation to happen as comfortable as possible. We want to maintain our love for yoga, and one of the key ideas in yoga is self-study so if you feel able on your period -then go ahead !
