Admin Regardless of the reason preventing you from falling asleep, here are some of the best yoga poses for deep sleep that will help you stop your racing thoughts and fall asleep.
Yoga is not just for flexibility or weight loss. It even helps calm the nerves and relax so you can drift off peacefully. But this doesn’t mean you can follow all the yoga poses you know without being mindful. To reap the benefits of yoga and experience sound and peaceful sleep, the best yoga asanas for sleep should be followed correctly.
Here, we have rounded up the best yoga poses for helping you sleep peacefully, through insomnia, or in deep relaxation.
How can yoga positions help you fall asleep?
Yoga, like any other form of physical exercise, helps to alleviate stress. When you engage in yoga poses, and concentrate on your breathing, the physical and psychological release of certain hormones is enabled helping decrease cortisol levels making you feel relaxed and stress-free.
As you settle into a slow and steady breathing pattern, take time to feel the yoga pose and the movement at a slow pace. Your body relaxes, making your mind stop worrying about what happened in the day and what might happen. When you bring your attention to your body and the present, you become physically aware, which helps you release tension and focus on what is important.
This makes you feel relaxed and go into a state of rest, which is the opposite of tossing and turning on the bed. Once you perform the yoga poses with mindfulness, you start to feel a change in mood and go into a restful sleep state.
10 Best Yoga Asanas for Sleep
You can practice the following yoga poses for better sleep. As you follow these sleep yoga positions, you will feel the tension released from different body parts. You just need 30 minutes to follow these 10 best yoga positions.
While practicing yoga for sleep and insomnia, do not rush. Feel the stretch, inhale, and exhale completely. Give yourself time to relax and feel the tension being released. This will help you get a disturbance-free sleep.
1. Cat cow pose | 1 minute
To get into this pose, kneel, come into a tabletop position, and place your hands shoulder-width apart. Ensure your knees are below your hips and your hands are not too wide. Now, take a deep breath and look toward the ceilings. Make a curve while sticking up your pelvis.
Then slowly exhale, bringing your head and pelvis down like a cat. Repeat this motion for a minute until you feel relaxed.
2. Forward bend | 1 minute.
After performing the cat and cow post, do a forward standing bend. To do this, stand upright with your feet hip-width apart. Inhale and bend your back from the hips. If you feel a stretch, you can bend your knees slightly. Now, release your shoulders and let your hands rest alongside your feet. If this is difficult for you, loosely hold opposite elbows, keeping a relaxed grip.
Keep breathing when in this position. As you lengthen your back, exhale and allow your neck and shoulder to relax slowly. Turn your head one way and the other to release the tension. You will feel that your head, shoulders, and arms are getting lighter. Do this for a minute and hold it for as long as possible. Inhale and rise to standing.
3. Bridge pose | 2 minutes
Lie on your back, and straighten your legs and arms. Take a few deep breaths, and fold your knees. Place your hands next to your body, raise your hips and back from the ground, and bring your arms closer to your body to balance. Your knees should be 90 degrees, and your hands should be flat. However, if you find it difficult to balance, bring your hands together underneath your core.
This will provide support, and you can hold the position for a few seconds. Keep breathing now, exhale, and slowly bring your body down. Unfold the knees and then repeat the same steps 4-5 times. Pay attention to your breath, and do not strain your shoulders and neck. If you feel any discomfort, you might be doing it wrong.
4. Lizard pose | 2 minutes
Bring your left foot forward between your hands and lower your right foot to the ground in a low lunge. Bring your hands to the floors underneath your shoulders in a lizard pose. Feel the stretch along the front and back of the right leg.
Gaze forward and down. Hold yourself into this pose and let your weight settle to release any shoulder tension. Breather here for a minute. Switch sides. Inhale and sit in a relaxing position.
5. Wide-legged standing forward bends | 1 minute.
Stand with your feet wide apart with your torso straight. Inhale and stand tall, lift your chest, exhale, and bend forward from your hips, resting your fingertips on the floor. Now bend your knees and let your neck relax. Try to touch your head to the ground. If you cannot do it, rest on a block, a stack of books, or a pillow, whichever you can find. Stretch your shoulders by interlocking your fingers behind your back.
This will help relax your neck and shoulders and release the stored tension. Take a long breath, stay for a minute, bring awareness to your body, and release all the tension. To return to the standing pose, press down through your feet, inhale, and slowly rise.
6. Seated forward bent | 1 minute
Sit on the edge of a folded blanket with your legs straight. If you feel a strain in the back or in your legs, put a blanket underneath your knees. Bring your feet together or keep them hip distance apart.
Slowly inhale, keep your torso straight, and exhale as you lean forward. Stay flat and in this position for a minute, and feel the tension releasing from your shoulder and neck. If you have a block or a pillow, you can rest your head on it as it will make you feel more comfortable.
7. Reclining bound angle pose | 2 minutes.
Sit and bend your knees with your feet on the floor. Lean back using your forearms and then lie flat, bringing the bottoms of your feet together. Keep a pillow underneath both your knees to feel relaxed.
Feel the relaxation in your leg, shoulder, and neck. Remain in this position for 2 minutes. Keep breathing now. Using your hands, bring your knees together, roll to one side, and set up right.
8. Legs up the wall | 3 minutes
Sit with your hips touching the wall. Bring your hands behind your hips, bend your elbow, and come on to your back. Swinging your legs up the wall, bring your legs hip distance apart and let them rest against the wall. Keep the knees slightly bent for a more comfortable position.
Lie down, place the arms on the sides, and let your body weight sink to the floor. Remain in this position for 3 minutes. You will find yourself feeling sleepy in this position. You can practice this in bed if you don’t have a headboard.
9. Child pose | 2 minutes
Sit upright and slowly fold your legs to sit on your knees with the tops of your feet underneath you. Start to bend forward until your forehead touches the ground. If this is difficult, spread your knees, allowing your upper body to bend and rest. Place a pillow between your hips and calves if this doesn’t work. Get comfortable. If you want, you can put a pillow under your forehead. Stretch out your arms and place your palms facing down.
Stay here, take several deep breaths for a minute, focus on your breath, and pay attention to how your body feels. Feel the tension and stress releasing.
10. Corpse pose | 4 minutes
Lie on your back with your feet hip-distance apart, hands on the side, palms facing upward. Bring your attention to your breath. Keep exhaling and letting your body weight sink into your mat. Take a long, slow acceleration. Stay in this position for 4 minutes. Keep your attention on your breath. You will feel a sense of relaxation, and you will fall asleep.
Have a Good Night’s Sleep
You are ready to doze off once you are done with these yoga poses for better sleep. Do not use your mobile or chit-chat; feel the relaxing sleep yoga positions brought for you and go to bed. You will have a peaceful sleep. Your mind and muscles need rest, so give it that you have attained with yoga positions for sleep.
