Bang On With Yoga!

Asanas that will cool you down.

- A Kartikeyan

Are you feeling hot, sweaty and uncomfortable? With the mercury hovering close to 50 degrees Celsius in some places and the average temperature rising across the country, staying cool doesn’t just mean sitting in air-conditioned rooms and ingesting coolers. Hot weather makes us reactive, if you notice, our reactions become sharper and our tendencies become more irritable.

Correct breathing techniques and yoga can help to reset your body’s internal thermostat naturally.

Yoga lowers your body temperature naturally. The thermal energy released by your body’s metabolic activities produces heat in the body. Sometimes, due to the extreme heat outside and low water intake, your body heats up to uncomfortable levels that need to be dealt with.

Certain yoga postures can lower your body temperature and cool it down.

According to Ayurveda, summer inspires the Pitta dosha. Asanas that help balance Pitta are those that place pressure on the navel and solar plexus regions, in the small intestine where pitta resides.

There should be enough calming postures included to sedate irritation, anger, and intensity caused by Pitta.

In general, all forward bends, side stretches, twists and that in stretch muscles in your stomach will be beneficial. Yoga positions practised gently and meditatively balance the mind and body and are beneficial at any time of the year.