BY ANNA BARTTER
Yoga is renowned for its restorative benefits, making it a perfect, gentle way to move and care for your body throughout the menstrual cycle.
Syncing our movement with our menstrual cycle has been growing in popularity for some time, with many of us harnessing the benefits of tuning into our natural energy fluctuations to stay active and feel good over the course of the month.
Traditionally a holistic and nurturing practice, yoga is a great way of moving our bodies and relieving some of the symptoms of our menstrual cycles, whether you struggle with heavy periods, ovulation pain or you sail through your cycle with barely a niggle.
Why is yoga so great for people who menstruate?
Yoga is renowned for its restorative benefits, making it a perfect, gentle way to move and care for your body throughout the menstrual cycle.
Syncing our movement with our menstrual cycle has been growing in popularity for some time, with many of us harnessing the benefits of tuning into our natural energy fluctuations to stay active and feel good over the course of the month.
Traditionally a holistic and nurturing practice, yoga is a great way of moving our bodies and relieving some of the symptoms of our menstrual cycles, whether you struggle with heavy periods, ovulation pain or you sail through your cycle with barely a niggle.
A new study shows women are more creative during ovulation
Here’s our guide to which practice to lean into at each stage of the menstrual cycle and poses that you might find beneficial. Enjoy.
Why is yoga so great for people who menstruate?
Studies show that practising yoga has a beneficial effect on menstrual discomfort and distress, with certain poses shown to help relieve cramps and alleviate both the severity and duration of discomfort.
And the benefits don’t only apply when you’re bleeding, either.
“Yoga is a potent tool that can support all aspects of women’s health from menstruation through to menopause,” explains Le’Nise Brothers, yoga instructor and founder of Eat, Love, Move. “During our menstruating years, yoga in all its different forms can support us during each of the four phases of the menstrual cycle, when our energy levels naturally differ.
“Remember, it’s normal not to feel the same way every day, so matching your yoga practice to how you feel energetically can be helpful to prevent pushing yourself too hard and feeling depleted.”
Here’s how to do it.
Menstrual phase
Some of us barely even register that we’re on our periods, while others can feel drained and crampy, but if you feel up to it, asana yoga is perfect for this time of the month.
“Focusing on a slower, more restorative asana practice with lots of breathwork and meditation is a beautiful way to support your body and mind during your period,” says Brothers. “It’s a lovely invitation to slow down and listen to your body. It’s important to remember that menstruation is a physically demanding time, so you may not feel your best if you add in a movement practice that is energetically demanding.
Don’t fancy it? Don’t do it – simple.
“Don’t feel that you have to tax your body while you bleed,” advises Kiranjot, a kundalini yoga teacher. “It’s traditionally women’s wisdom time, when we would gather together and rest. Our energies are drawn deep within. Any class with a slow, more meditative aspect like yin would suit this time of the month.”
If you are susceptible to cramps and pain while you bleed, try relaxing into some pelvic and hip-opening poses such as mandukasana (frog pose), which helps to stretch the pelvic floor, or pigeon pose, which will help you to slow down and support healthy blood flow around the pelvis.
Follicular phase
Directly following menstruation, our oestrogen and testosterone levels rise during what’s known as the follicular phase.
“This is when we typically feel an increase in energy,” says Brothers. “Testosterone makes us feel stronger, so poses such as warrior and tree feel easier. Warrior two pose asks us to tap into our inner and outer strength to hold the bend in our front knee and ground down into the edge of our back foot, while tree pose combines strength, balance and focus.”
Pre-ovulation is a great time to lean into strong dynamic practices such as ashtanga, vinyasa and rocket. “Any of the warrior postures are great to build focus,” says Kiranjot, “and it’ll be easier to do strong navel work like navasana (or boat pose), which builds inner strength to help us stay centred.”
Ovulatory phase
As we move into our ovulation phase, it’s time to make the most of feeling creative, strong and calm – but take care not to overstretch, as levels of the hormone relaxin (which allows our joints and ligaments to move more easily and prepares our bodies for pregnancy) are at their highest.
“During the ovulation phase, you could try a kundalini class,” says Kiranjot. “This practice is more energy and strength-based with less stretching, which is good so as not to overstretch our relaxed ligaments and to protect our joints. Any yogic practice that helps maintain connection to the heart and generate feelings of love are particularly wonderful at this time: try chanting sacred mantras for a deeply healing and uplifting sensation.”
Try goddess pose: “One of my favourite poses to practise and to teach during this phase of the menstrual cycle, goddess pose, asks us to step into our power, opening the pelvis and hips, while using our breath to find calm and focus,” says Brothers.
Luteal phase
The final phase before the cycle begins again is the luteal phase. Levels of oestrogen and progesterone will be falling, and some of us might experience some pre-menstrual symptoms around now. “Asana, pranayama and dharana are all fantastic yoga practices for this phase,” advises Brothers.
“Keep up the kundalini – it’s a stimulating practice and as your energies start to wane it will help keep your spirits lifted,” advises Kiranjot. “Again, vrikshasana (tree pose) is a lovely grounding, mediative balancing posture that calms and relaxes the central nervous system and is a nice strong stretch for the entire body.”
If you are prone to pre-menstrual anxiety or depression, now is a great time to practise some healing yogic breathing techniques. Try nadi shohana (alternate nostril breathing) or bhramari breath (close your lips and gently and smoothly make a bumblebee-type noise in your throat). These both work to calm the nervous system by shifting to our parasympathetic state.
And exhale.
NO COAST MENOPAUSE