Yoga Exercise and Postures for Good Health

Yoga for detoxification – IV

Cleansing techniques for the abdomen
 
Yoga is the only form of exercise which uses techniques that massage and stimulate your internal organs As your muscles need stretching and contractions to remain healthy, so do your internal organs like your intestines, pancreas, stomach etc. Some form of pressure or movement on your internal organs keeps them fresh and healthy. Nauli Kriya is a technique by which we actually “hold the intestines” with our abdominal muscles and massage them with a circular movement. This helps in the elimination of all the waste in your abdominal cavity which needs to be removed from your system.

 

 

Exercise 1a

 

 

Exercise 1b

 

Exercise 1c

 
 

Exercise 1 (Nauli)

• Stand with your feet apart
• Take a deep breath and exhale through your mouth, emptying your lungs
• Bend your knees slightly. Rest your hands on your thighs
• Contract your abdominal muscles, as shown in the picture (Ex 1a)
• Now contract the muscles to the left and then rotate to the right
• Repeat in the other direction
• Finally contract the muscles in the centre
• Relax the muscles and stand upright and breathe in.

 

 

Exercise 2

  
Exercise 2 (abdominal breathing)

• Sit with the left leg stretched out.
• Bend the right leg and place the foot between the left thigh and the calf muscles
• Bend the left leg and place the left foot underneath the right thigh
• Keep the back straight
• Place the hands on the knees, the palms up, place the tip of the forefinger on the centre of the thumb
• Keep your stomach loose
• Inhale and expand your stomach. Exhale
• Bring complete awareness to the expansion and contraction of the stomach as you breathe.

Yoga for detoxification – III
 Cleansing technique for the lungs
 Our normal breathing is quite shallow and this results in accumulation of dirt in our lungs. Stale air remains in the lungs and the pollution in the air we breathe gets stuck to the inner walls of our lungs. This reduces the over all oxygen levels in the body making you dull and fatigued. Kapalbhati kriya not only purifies your lungs ridding it of carbon dioxide but also increases your lung capacity and directly affects the frontal lobe in your brain.

 

 

Exercise 1

  
•   Exercise 1
• Sit back on your heels as shown, place the palms on the knees as shown, keep the back straight and close your eyes
• Exhale forcefully  and rapidly through the nose in quick succession, pulling the stomach in towards the spine as you exhale. Inhalation will be automatic and passive between every two exhalations
• Practise 50 inhalations at a stretch
• Repeat three times.

 

Exercise 2

•  Exercise 2
• Lie flat on the stomach with the legs wide apart
• Bend one arm and place it under your forehead
• Fold the other arm and place it over the bent arm
• Rest the forehead on folded arms
• Close the eyes relax the body and focus on your breathing
• Do it for two to five minutes
 

Yoga for detoxification – II
 Cleansing Techniques
Yogis put a lot of emphasis on “Saucha” which means cleanliness. They understood that negative thoughts arise from an unclean system. For example, because of your sinus problem you might have a head ache and this makes you irritable. Sinus is a result of excessive mucus in your system and to remove it a powerful technique called “Jal Neti” can be practised to clear your nasal passage and make your breathing smooth and easy. This technique easily relieves your headache as well as migraine.

 

 

Exercise 1

 

•  Exercise 1

• Add one tsp of salt to half a litre of lukewarm water and fill the neti pot
• Stand relaxed with the legs apart, bend forward and tilt your head to one side as shown. Keep breathing deeply, exhaling through the mouth
• Place the nozzle of the neti pot in the nostril that is facing upwards and slowly pour water into it. The water will flow out through the other nostril
• Straighten up, blow your nose gently to remove any mucous
• Repeat with the other nostril
• Now close one nostril, and rapidly exhale 10-15 times through the other
• Repeat with the other side.

 

 

Exercise 2

 

•  Exercise 2

• Sit back on your heels as shown, place the palms on the knees as shown and keep the back straight
• Close one nostril with the thumb
• Exhale forcefully and rapidly through the other nostril in quick succession, pulling the stomach in towards the spine as you exhale. Inhalation will be automatic and passive between every two exhalations
• Practice 30-50 inhalations at a stretch
• Repeat the same technique by closing the other nostril.

Yoga for detoxification – Day One

Cleansing techniques
 
Yoga is the only science which believes in internal cleansing. We have soaps to clean our skin but we carry a tremendous amount of dirt in our bodies. For example, how would we clean the dirt inside our lungs and alimentary canal? The only way to look good is to feel good. That’s why you don’t feel fresh when you are constipated and it shows clearly on your face.

Kunjal Kriya is one such cleansing technique which cleans your whole stomach removing all the dirt and excessive mucus. It will cure you of acidity, indigestion, blotted stomach and gas. After you finish this technique simply lie down and relax.

Caution: Those with peptic or duodenal ulcers should not do exercise one. Those with high blood pressure, gynaecological problems, stomach ailments or who’ve had recent surgery, should consult their doctor before doing these exercises.

 

Exercise 1
 

EXERCISE 1

•  This should be done in the morning on an empty stomach and should be done once a week
•  Add two teaspoons of salt to two litres of lukewarm water and drink at least six glasses at a stretch
•  Make sure your hands and nails are clean. Stand near a sink with your legs apart, back bent forward. Place the index and middle fingers in the mouth and rub the back of the tongue.   This will induce the vomiting process and the water will gush out of your mouth. Ensure that all the water comes out
•  Relax, you can lie down if you want, and practise deep breathing for a while.

Exercise 2

EXERCISE 2

•  Lie on your back on a mat or on a hard mattress
•  Relax and try to concentrate on your breath
•  Breathe in and just be aware of yourself inhaling and exhaling.