Are you suffering from stress, anxiety, and weight gain? Are these health issues unwelcome companions in your life? They can act as a burden for ones suffering from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Nowadays, PCOS is every modern-day woman’s nightmare.
PCOS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is one of the most leading causes of infertility with 6% to 12% of American women of childbearing age being affected by it.
It can continue beyond the reproductive years in women. Higher levels of androgen are known to likely cause PCOS. Family history and overweight issues are two factors that increase the risk of PCOS, as these two factors impact insulin resistance. But do you know you can manage PCOS with better postures? Take a look at this article and find out how yoga can help treat PCOS.
Yoga Poses for PCOS
Benefits of Choosing Yoga for PCOS
Practicing yoga to treat PCOS has more advantages than a typical exercise session. Let’s have a quick look at the benefits of choosing yoga for PCOS(1).
- Yoga for PCOS is inexpensive, unlike the various treatments and medicines that women need to undertake to address this issue.
- Yoga relieves tension in the body and calms the mind, which in turn regulates hormonal imbalance. Yoga helps to balance out blood lipid levels and glucose metabolism. Eventually, it helps to decrease the weight gain by normalizing regulation of hormones. Yoga for polycystic ovary syndrome also improves sex hormones and regulates regular menstrual cycles in women.
- Yoga lowers blood sugar levels and increases muscle strength, strong muscles, and improved flexibility. Yoga also protects us from conditions like back pain and arthritis. Also, yoga reduces the symptoms of PCOS in women
- Yoga increases muscle mass that helps to combat the insulin resistance which often comes along with the PCOS.
- The yoga postures help regulate the endocrine(2) glands, that in turn resolve infertility, weight, and other psychological issues
[Read: Natural Remedies to Treat PCOS]
9 Effective Yoga Poses for PCOS
Here are the 9 best effective Yoga poses for PCOS. Read on.
1. Butterfly Pose
The butterfly pose helps to open up the hips. It is a great stretching exercise for PCOS. It relieves anxiety and stress in women.
How to Practice?
- Sit on the ground in a lotus pose.
- Bend your knees and touch the soles of your feet to each other.
- Rest your hands on your legs and pull little inwards to your pubic region as possible.
- Keep your spine erect and breathe deeply.
- On your exhalation try to push your knees down towards the ground.
- Allow the knees to come back up as you exhale in a flapping motion.
- Continue the process for 15-25 times.
[Read: Herbs for PCOS]
2. The Bridge Pose
The pose stimulates organs in the abdominal cavity and helps to regulate thyroid function, and aspect of PCOS.
How to Practice?
- Lie on the back, fold your knees, and position your feet on the yoga mat about a hip-width apart. Position your feet in such a way that you can touch the heels with your fingers.
- Lift your hips high while you press the shoulders. Make sure you place your feet firmly on the mat. Gaze straight at the ceiling while holding the pose
- Squeeze your shoulder blades and draw in the chin away from the chest.
- Hold the position for about five long and deep breaths.
3. Cobbler Pose
This posture would comfort your pelvic region(3) easing all the pain caused by joints that get utilized during this exercise.
How to Practice?
- Sit straight with your legs stretched out in front of you.
- Bring the feet together towards the pelvic region with both soles joined, hold the joined feet with both hands, bend the knees, and let the legs fall out on either side.
- Once you get comfortable in the position, check that your tailbone and pubis are at equal distance from the floor, ensuring pelvis must be in a neutral position.
4. Cat-Cow Pose
Cat-cow pose helps to loosen the muscles and prevent back pain. The pose gives strength to endure childbirth and tackle menstrual contractions.
How to Practice?
- Start with your hands and knees on the ground and ensure your wrists are under your shoulders and knees are under your hips.
- On your inhale, lift your tailbone and head towards the sky, let your belly bend towards the ground to appear into cow pose. Feel a stretch through your abdomen.
- On your exhale, round your spine up towards the sky to go into cat pose and imagine you’re pulling your navel up towards your spine while bending your chin to the chest and let your neck release.
- Repeat the cat-cow poses for at least ten rounds.
5. The Child Pose
The child pose is a great asana to strengthen the hips. It helps the body to return to its normal posture after the stretching. It is a good “counter asana” for women with PCOS.
How to Practice?
- Roll your body over onto the knees and hands and then position the knees at each side of the mat while keeping the big toes of the two legs together.
- Lower your hips into the heels and put your forehead on the yoga mat for the Child Pose.
- Stretch your shoulders out a little more and bend your elbows. Position the elbows on the mat and place the palms above the head.
- Press your shoulders towards the yoga mat and do a deep shoulder stretching. Hold the position for about five long and deep breaths.
[Read: Keto Diet to treat PCOS
6. Seated Eagle Pose
The seated eagle pose strengthens the thighs, hips, and stretches the upper back shoulders. The pose builds balance, focus, calm, and concentration.
How to Practice?
- Place the right elbow beneath the left elbow and try to bring the palms together.
- Breathe in deeply while lifting the elbows and breathe out gently while gently drawing the forearms and hands away from the face.
- You can either maintain this position or fold forward in the direction of inhalation.
- Lift the torso slowly and switch elbows to repeat the same steps.
7. The Cobra Pose
The cobra pose helps in activating sexual energy, thereby assists in controlling symptoms of PCOS.
How to Practice?
- Lower your body into the belly and position the arms beneath the shoulders on the yoga mat.
- Roll the shoulders away from your ears and draw the shoulder blades open and together across your chest.
- Maintain the pose for about five long and deep breaths. Relax your lower back and lower the torso on to the belly.
- Release the lower end with the Child Pose.
8. Supine Twist
The twist helps to loosen the muscles around the spine and lowers blood pressure and soothes the nervous system.
How to Practice?
- Lie down on your back on the ground and hug your right knee into your chest.
- Place your right arm to the opposite side with your palm touching the ground.
- Use the left hand to pull your right leg across your body to come into the supine twist pose
- Place your right shoulder on the ground, straight up towards the sky
- Hold for 6-8 breaths, then change the sides.
9. Wide-Legged Forward Bend
This bend works on your hips by opening them wider. The bend helps women tone visceral organs and abdominal muscles.
How to Practice?
- Stand straight on your yoga mat, stretch your body, and spine.
- Keep your feet apart anywhere by 2-4 steps depending on your height.
- Rest your hands on your hips and inhale.
- Exhale and softly bend down and let your hands rest on the floor.
- Ensure your arms are parallel to each other and look straight.
- Feel the fold and the stretch from your hipbone.
- Retain for 15 to 30 seconds and repeat it for 8-10 breaths.
[Read: Essential Oils for PCOS Treatment]
Tips to Remember:
Yoga is not a high-impact or high-intensity exercise, but you need to be watchful when you start with the practice. Here are the following tips that you should keep in mind while doing yoga for hormonal Imbalance (PCOS).
Always use a yoga mat for doing all postures and asanas. You can also use a carpet or thick blanket instead of a yoga mat, to ensure that it is inflexible on the floor.
- Wear stretchable clothes as they improve flexibility during yoga poses.
- Do not overeat before the yoga session; else it could put more compression on your stomach or belly region. While you do it with a full stomach, it leads to nausea, cramps, and acid reflux.
- Don’t push yourself if you’re not able to do asana correctly. Slowly push yourself towards the perfect posture step by step.
- After a successful yoga session, don’t forget to drink water. It is essential to stay hydrated after practicing yoga.
Women with PCOS often use harmful chemicals and drugs to manage PCOS. But yoga for PCOS has many health benefits and a natural way to control PCOS. The best yoga poses for PCOS is mentioned in this article which gives beneficial results without causing any harm to your health. Yoga is a natural way to maintain metabolism, and it can be just another step to build the best version of you. Embrace the goodness of yoga and live a peaceful life.
