By Arunima Singhdeo, Founder & CEO, Shvasa
Menopause weight gain can have profound implications for your health. Excess weight, especially around your midsection, increases your risk of many issues, including breathing problems, heart and blood vessel diseases, and Type 2 diabetes. Excess weight also increases your risk of various types of cancer, including breast, colon and endometrial cancers. This is where practices like yoga can help immensely. Yoga has dynamic movements which like other exercises, strengthen, tone (contract and extend) muscles and burn calories. However, the difference is the immense focus and control over breath in Yoga. With each asana in the series, we take deep conscious breaths, and maintain awareness over each movement. This control also stimulates the brain and hormones, making it rhythmic and impactful. Some recommended yoga practices to address menopause-related weight gain are as follows.
Suryanamaskara and other asanas
Practicing suryanamaskar poses is an effective way of loosening up, warming up, stretching, massaging, and toning all the joints, muscles, and internal organs of the body. Its versatility and application make it one of the most useful methods of inducing a healthy, vigorous and active life. It should be steady paced, with the mouth closed and breathing done through nostrils only. Some standing asanas such as the warrior series, side angle and wide leg forward fold are also beneficial. Then there are also backbends like the cobra, camel, and wheel pose apart from sarvanga and halasana.
Dynamic, steady paced yoga sequences of Asanas, irrespective of your level, are great to get your body moving. However, a yoga practice can be modified to intense and deeper variations that are specifically meant for weight loss. Ultimately it is about doing what you can, enjoying and challenging yourself as you progress and grow in your path.
Cooling after asanas
Child’s pose or balasana will not only help you relax after a session of asanas but also provide relief from cramps in the abdomen and pelvis. Lie down in the Shavasana next and take up to 50 breaths. Lying down in Shavasana is wonderful for the back. It removes all tension, tightness and cramps from the body and relaxes the back greatly. Apart from this, the Sheetali (cooling breath through the tongue) and sheetkari (cooling breath through the teeth) pranayamas are also beneficial in helping the body cool down.
While these ashoanas and breathing techniques are important, you should also ensure that you stay hydrated, eat a balanced diet and avoid or reduce the consumption of alcohol, have done enough cooling asanas so that hot flushes are taken care of.
In conclusion, the benefits of a yoga routine may not be obvious in the beginning. However, regular practice leads to a sustained transformation that no exercise in the gym or workout studio can bring about. When done under expert guidance, yoga can help you attain holistic physical and mental well-being.
