While she's having her period, a woman may experience cramps, heavy bleeding, low back pain and overall emotional discomfort. Geeta Iyengar, daughter of yoga legend B.K.S. Iyengar, recommends this as a time for turning inward, applying the brakes to a fast-paced lifestyle and replacing a high-energy yoga practice with gentle, restful poses.
Menstrual Cycle
The menstrual cycle begins when a woman gets her period. Counted from the first day of bleeding to when it starts again, the menstrual cycle generally runs 28 days but can last as much as a week more or less. During the first half of the menstrual cycle, the rise of estrogen levels helps build strong bones and thickens the lining of the uterus in preparation for pregnancy. Around halfway through the cycle, ovulation occurs when an egg develops and releases from the ovary and, if not fertilized, hormone levels drop, and the next cycle begins.
Yoga Practice
According to Bobby Clennell, Iyengar yoga teacher and author of "The Woman's Yoga Book: Asana and Pranayama for All Phases of the Menstrual Cycle," you can match your yoga practice to your own menstrual cycle with more restorative poses during menstruation and active poses mid-cycle when hormone levels are high.
Menstruation
During the bleeding phase, Clennell advises avoiding strenuous activities and taking the time to rest and gather energy. The best physical practice for this time includes seated poses, twists and reclining poses. Right after menstruation, Clennell recommends inversions, if you are already practicing them. Before ovulation, when strength increases, practice standing and seated poses, twists, back bends, forward bends and inversions, says Clennell.
Ovulation
During ovulation, high levels of estrogen may relax tendons and ligaments enough to make more advanced poses easier. After ovulation, notice your level of energy and continue a balanced yoga practice.
PMS
As hormone levels decline and the premenstrual phases arrives, back bends can help lift your energy, but add some extra warm-ups first if you feel less flexible, Clennell suggests.
Yoga can help alleviate PMS by relaxing your nervous system, balancing your hormones and increasing circulation of blood and oxygen to your reproductive organs, says Linda Sparrowe, author of "Yoga for a Healthy Menstrual Cycle," which includes sequences and yoga tips from renowned yoga teacher Patricia Walden. While many teachers recommend not dong inversions during menstruation, this is a great time to practice them, according to Walden. For instance, a headstand or a shoulderstand stimulates the pineal and pituitary glands, both of which are key to the menstrual cycle.
Theories/Speculation
Practitioners of Ayurveda, a healing system related to yoga, believe that the menstrual cycle causes women to live longer than men. Ayurveda also teaches that menstruation purifies your body by removing toxins that have built up during the month.
References
- "The Woman's Yoga Book: Asana and Pranayama for All Phases of the Menstrual Cycle"; Bobby Clennell; 2007
- "Yoga for a Healthy Menstrual Cycle"; Linda Sparrowe; 2004
- WomensHealth.gov: Menstruation and the Menstruation Cycle
- Yoga Magazine: Yoga and Menstruation, Questions Answered by Geeta S. Iyengar
