Whether your blood pressure is soaring or so low you constantly feel like fainting, yoga can help regulate it. A trip to the doctor can get to the root of the issue, whether it be a too stressful lifestyle or an underlying medical condition. A regular yoga practice can help keep bring it down, raise it up and keep it in the healthy zone.
What Yoga Does
Practicing yoga can help regulate your blood pressure, through its poses and the acute sense of peace and calm that comes during and after your practice. Yoga soothes and relaxes your nervous system which, in turn, brings peace and calm to your other body systems, says yoga.com. Though all yoga poses work to relieve your nervous system, several poses work to regulate your blood pressure at the same time.
Low Blood Pressure Poses
Poses that stimulate your kidneys and increase pressure in your head can help regulate low blood pressure. These include inversions, back bends and twists. Examples include Downward Facing Dog, Upward Bow, Bridge Pose and Bharadvaja's twist. Although all yoga students should move slowly and gently between poses, this is especially vital if you have low blood pressure. A sudden springing from a Standing Forward Bend to Mountain Pose, for example, could make you dizzy.
High Blood Pressure Poses
Poses that best regulate high blood pressure are those in which you lie on your back, sit or bend forward, says Yoga Journal. Examples of seated and forward bend poses include Standing Forward Bend, Seated Forward Bend, Head-to-Knee Forward Bend, Hero Pose and Downward Facing Dog. Examples of supine poses that help regulate blood pressure include Reclining Hero Pose, Reclining Big Toe Pose and Corpse Pose.
A Note on Inversions
Inversion poses, such as Downward Facing Dog, can fall into the group that helps regulate blood pressure, but they also come with a word a caution. Although Yoga Journal says it's probably safe to do inversion poses if you have high blood pressure but take medication to treat it, proceed with care. Inversion poses increase the pressure in your head and neck, with the amount of pressure depending on the specific pose. The Fully Inverted Headstand, for example, causes the largest increase in pressure because your head is fully below your heart and your legs are fully above it. Yoga Journal suggests trying the mildest inversions first, such as Downward Facing Dog, and moving slowly toward the more advanced. If you have low blood pressure, coming out of inversions is a particularly vital time to proceed gently and slowly to avoid dizziness.
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