Yoga for Better Sleep

Are you struggling with insomnia or simply having a hard time sleeping at night? Do you wake up feeling tired and groggy even after lying in bed for hours trying to fall asleep? Many people are unable to get a quality night’s rest because of stress or lifestyle choices, but there is an easy, enjoyable solution: Yoga! Practicing yoga can help relieve stress and relax the mind and body, allowing you to sleep better and feel better too. Including yoga in your daily routine can improve sleep quality and help you to wake up feeling refreshed and ready for the day ahead.

Practicing yoga just a few times a week, especially before going to bed, allows for relaxation of the body and mind, improvement of overall fitness levels, increased meditation and mindfulness, and greater flexibility for muscle repair during sleep. When practiced consistently, these four benefits to yoga prepare the body for a satisfying, restorative night of sleep.

Relaxation:

Breathing is one of the most important parts of yoga. Focusing on your breath while holding poses allows for greater relaxation. Taking slow deep breaths increases oxygen flow and supply to the brain, calming the body and relieving any pent-up tension and stress. Deep breathing relaxes the body, and putting your mind’s focus onto your breath takes the focus off of other stressors, calming the mind as well. Including a short yoga flow with mindful breathing techniques into your bedtime routine causes the body to be relaxed and prepared for rest. With the stress of the day released, it will be easier to fall asleep, and to stay asleep, when you finally crawl into bed at night.

Fitness:

Yoga, like any other exercise, improves the overall fitness of its participants. However, yoga is unique because practically anyone can do it! Yoga may range from beginner exercises with simple, easy poses to advanced flows with difficult stretches and positions. Practicing yoga, even as a beginner, can help you lose weight and improve your personal fitness. This improvement in fitness directly leads to better sleep, as weight loss and cardiovascular health play a huge role in sleep quality. As your yoga skills develop and grow, so will your health and your quality of sleep!

Mindfulness:

Practicing yoga helps you be more mindful, which increases melatonin levels and relieves stress. Yoga includes meditation, causing you to relax and be more aware of yourself and your surroundings. Practicing meditation brings calm and peace to the body, making you feel more content, happy, and satisfied. During yoga flows, you are encouraged to think less about outside stressors and focus on finding peace within the flow itself. When done before bed, this peace found during yoga carries itself with you as you fall asleep. You will be more content when you go to bed, allowing you to spend less time stirring and worrying so you can fall asleep faster.

Stretching:

Every yoga flow incorporates stretching. Whether it’s bending into a downward dog or reaching up into a tree pose, your body is constantly being lengthened and stretched during yoga. This type of focused stretching is not found in many other exercises. However, it is necessary for proper muscle growth. Many athletes experience pains and cramps during sleep because of muscle development, but by stretching the muscles properly and getting plenty of water these pains can be minimized and prevented. The stretching included in yoga helps prevent muscle cramps, spasms, and pains during sleep because it lengthens the compressed muscles, keeping them flexible and preventing discomfort.

Poses:

Though all yoga flows include a portion of relaxation, fitness, mindfulness and stretching, there are a few poses that specifically help with sleep quality, especially when done before bed. Try Child's Pose, Legs up the Wall, Standing Forward Bend, Corpse Pose, Extended Puppy Pose, Cat-cow, Downward Dog, or Bridge for better breathing and relaxation before you go to sleep.