Heartburn/GERD and Yoga

Yoga promotes relaxation, reduces anxiety, and help you cope with stress. Some yoga poses are thought to improve gastrointestinal symptoms. Always check with your doctor before starting any exercise.

Read more details about Yoga.

Sukashana

This basic yoga pose is a good meditation pose for beginners. Sukhasana opens the hips, lengthens the spine, relieves tiredness and and promotes inner calm.

• Sit down on the floor or a mat. Cross your legs, placing your feet below your knees.
• Rest your hands on your with the palms facing up
• Keep your head and body straight. Imagine your spine as a straight line ending in the top of your head.
• Breathe deeply.
• Hold the pose for 1 to 3 minutes.

Lighning bolt pose or Uktasana

Utkatasana means“raised posture.” This pose relieves shoulder stiffness, strengthens the legs and ankles, lifts the diaphragm, tones the back and stomach, and develops your chest. It also warms up the body.

• Stand with feet together, your back straight, and hands at the sides of your body.
• Bend your knees. Keep your feet together or slightly apart.
• Straighten your arms overhead, with your palms together. Your arms should be in line with your torso
• Lean slightly forward. Concentrate on your balance. Your body should look like a lightning bolt from the side.
• Breathe deeply
• Hold the pose for 5 breaths then slowly go back to the starting position

Safety Issues

Hatha yoga is generally at least as safe as any other stretching-based exercise program. However there are a few hatha yoga positions, such as the headstand, that can cause injury when they are performed by a person who isn’t yet sufficiently advanced in yoga, or who has certain health problems, such as a detached retina. A properly qualified instructor can help you avoid injury, taking your own individual health status into account.