Yoga and Health: Asanas for Asthma

By Bharat Thakur

Yoga and Health: Asanas for Asthma

Asthma is a disease that more and more people seem to be suffering from today. Many things trigger asthma - the main amongst those being: stress and anxiety, allergies and genetics. This yoga program seeks to tackle the root causes and work towards strengthening the immune system.

We will present asanas (postures), kriya (cleansing technique) and pranayama (breathing techniques) that strengthen, stretch and relax the body physically and re-balance internal systems at a deeper level. We begin with asanas that focus on increasing capacity of the lungs and relaxing the chest muscles which contract and remain tense during and after asthma attacks.

Caution: Those with high blood pressure or heart problems should not hold their breath.

Those with cervical spondylitis should keep their chin up and not press it downwards.

-       ¥ Sit in Padmasana, or any comfortable posture with your back straight. Keep your palms resting on your knees and fingers facing outwards.

-       ¥ Breathe, sucking the breath in through clenched teeth.

-       ¥ Exhale forcibly making a 'hah' sound while taking the tongue out towards the chin. Spread the fingers out and open the eyes wide.

Exercise 2: Ardha Chakrasana

-       ¥ Stand straight, feet together, arms by your side.

-       ¥ Raise your right arm up to shoulder level.

-       ¥ Turn palm upwards, raise your right hand over the head and stretch it up.

-       ¥ Exhale and bend body to the left side.

-       ¥ Inhale and come back to the standing posture.

-       ¥ Repeat with the other side.

-       ¥Note: Don't hold your breath in this posture.

The above exercise helps in curing asthma, as the capacity of the lung gets enhanced when you bend to the side and the other lung gets closed. Shifting the load of the two lungs to one, clears the blockages in the lungs, thus improving the functional capacity of the breathing system.

Kriyas help to detoxify the body and strengthen the 72,000 nadis which are channels of energy in the body. The kriya given below will strengthen your lungs and clean out your nasal passages.

Pranayama (a breathing technique) also helps strengthen your lungs, your nervous system and help relax and calm both body and mind.

Both kriya and pranayama need to be done regularly and with commitment to be effective.

Caution: Those with high blood pressure, gynaecological problems, stomach ailments or who have had recent surgery, should consult their doctor before doing exercises 1 and 2.

Exercise 3: Kapalbhati Kriya

-       ¥ Sit in Vajrasana, or any comfortable posture with your back straight for all three practices. 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 exhalations at a stretch.

-       ¥ Repeat 3 times

Exercise 4: Bhramri Pranayama

-       ¥ Close your eyes and inhale deeply as you count 1-5.

-       ¥ Hold your breath, press chin down on jugular notch (mid-point of the 2 collar bones under the chin).

-       ¥ Raise chin up 4 fingers above the jugular notch and make a humming sound, from your throat, like a bee. Slowly exhale as you hum.

-       ¥ Listen to the sound vibrations as they travel up and spread through the head.

-       ¥ Repeat three times.

Exercise 5: Bhastrika Pranayama

-       ¥ Bend arms at waist, elbows close to body, make fists.

-       ¥ Raise both fists up, a bit higher than head, keep elbows close to body.

-       ¥ Exhale forcefully through mouth (cheeks puffed out) as you pull the arms down, taking elbows behind waist as shown.

-       ¥ Repeat 20 times, exhalation should be rapid, movements smooth not jerky.

-       ¥ Inhale deeply and slowly

-       ¥ Exhale slowly.

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See also: Yoga and Health, Yoga, Yoga and Health, Yoga Systems, Yoga Positions)