Did you know, you can beat the heat with Yoga?

In the hot days of summer, you can either stand in front of your air conditioner all day long, or you can try some naturally cooling yoga poses between your ice creams, shakes, and cold showers. Yoga poses practiced gently and meditatively balance the mind and body and are beneficial at any time of the year, especially in summers, as the heat tends to get to best of us. Any physical activity increases body temperature.

Early morning or late in the evening are best times to practice yoga during summer. If the temperature is too high, or if you feel a lot of heat in the body avoid brisk breathing techniques like Kapal Bhati and Agnisara. Try nourishing your emotional, mental, and physical body with these cooling postures during summers 

Prasarita Padottanasana (Standing Wide-Legged Forward Bend)

This pose not only stretches your hamstrings, calves, hips, and back, but also relieves stress, anxiety, mild depression, releases neck and shoulder tension.

• From standing, step wide on your mat with your feet parallel to one another; bring your hands down to the ground.
• Spread your legs as wide apart as your hamstrings and back muscles will allow, ideally about one leg’s length apart.
• Try to keep your hips in the same plane as your heels, as there is a tendency to lean back, causing undue tension. The idea here is to get your head below your heart, which will reduce ‘hot-headedness’ and invite an introspective quality that is emotionally and energetically nourishing
• Bend your knees if you need to for this variation When you find yourself in a steady and comfortable position, take 5-10 deep breaths, without constricting the back of the throat. On particularly hot days, try exhaling through your mouth to let go of excess internal heat.

Balasana (Child’s Pose)

There are several variations of Child’s Pose, but this one is particularly restful, as you curl into a fetal position.

•     Keep the knees and ankles close to one another as you sit back onto your heels. If your head doesn’t easily touch the ground, slip a block or pillow under your forehead.
•    Reach your hands back to the outsides of your feet, with the palms face-up, and fingers effortlessly curled in toward the palms.
•     Allow the shoulders to wrap around the thighbones in a passive and supported manner.
•     Gently tuck the chin in toward the chest so the nose is free and clear for a natural breath.
•     Stay here for a minute or more.

Supta Baddha Konasana (Reclined Bound Angle Pose) 

•     Lie straight and flat on the ground. Then, gently bend your knees; bring your feet together with the outer edges of both your feet on the floor. Place your heels close to your groin. Your palms must lie next to your hips and pressed downwards.
•     Exhale, and ensure that your abdominal muscles contract as your tailbone moves close to your pubic bone. Feel the elongation in your lower back and the stability in your spine as your pelvis tilts. Hold this position.
•    Deeply inhale, and as you exhale again, let your knees open up such that it creates a good stretch in your groin and inner thighs.

Ardhamatsyendrasan (Half Spinal Twist)

•  Sit erect with your legs stretched out. Make sure that your feet are placed together, and your spine is erect.              
•   Now, bend your left leg such that the heel of the left foot lies next to the right hip. You could also keep the left leg stretched out if you like. Then, place the right leg next to the left knee by taking it over the knee.
•   Twist your waist, neck, and shoulders towards the right, and set your gaze over your right shoulder. Make sure your spine is erect.
•  There are many ways you can place your arms to increase and decrease the stretch. But to do it simply, you can place the right hand behind you, and the left hand on the right knee.
•   Hold the pose for a few seconds, about 30 to 60 as you breathe slowly, yet deeply. Exhale and release the right hand, and then the waist, chest, and finally the neck. Relax as you sit straight. Repeat the steps      on the other side, and then exhale and come back to the front.

Savasana (Corpse Pose)

After a long day, do you want to unwind in the evening? Lie down in Shavasana near a wall – with your feet touching the wall. Raise your legs and rest your feet on the wall. After holding the posture for a minute or two, bring the legs down and rest in Shavasana. You’ll find this yoga pose refreshing and restorative. How does this work? Since the heart is pumping out more blood, when the temperature is high, this yoga pose helps the heart by returning more blood back to the heart. (Here we use gravity to bring the blood back to the heart.)

Caution: Those with high blood pressure and back problems should avoid this yoga posture. An easier alternative to this yoga pose is to pile up some pillows and rest your feet on them.

Viparita Karni

•     Being a restorative pose, many people enjoy using props like bolsters, pillows and folded blankets while doing this asana. Keep a prop of your choice next to you while doing this asana. Then, follow these steps.
•     Find an open space near a wall and sit next to it, such that your feet are on the floor, spread in front of you, and the left side of your body is touching the wall.
•     Exhale. Lie on your back, making sure that the back of your legs presses against the wall, and that the soles of your feet face upwards. It will take you a little bit of movement to get comfortable in this position.
•     Place your buttocks a little away from the wall or press them against the wall. Make sure your back and head are resting on the floor. You will find that your body forms a 90-degree angle.

Drink up
The more you hydrate yourself, the better. With 70 percent of water in your body, you’d better ensure there’s a lot of liquid out there. Besides drinking gallons of fluids, you could include the Sheetkari pranayama in your routine. Here’s how.

With mouth open, clench your teeth and press the tongue against the teeth. Breathe in. Close your mouth and breathe out normally through the nostrils. Repeat 5-10 times. Lots of people find that Sheetkari helps to quench thirst. So, if you’re stranded without water somewhere, you know what to do. And even if you have all the fluids, do the Sheetkari pranayama. It also helps to cool the body.

Calm the nerves

When the temperature is hot outside, it’s likely that we lose our tempers, get impatient and tired. That’s where Chandrabhedi steps in. This breathing technique has a cooling effect on the nervous system and on the nadis (subtle channels of energy).

Close the right nostril with your right thumb. Exhale completely through the left nostril and then breathe in through the left nostril. Close the left nostril with your little ring finger and exhale through the right. Repeat 5-10 times: inhaling from the left and exhaling from the right.

Mudras

Listed below are some of the mudras which help to cool down the body.

Jal Mudra

Touch the tip of the little finger to the tip of the thumb on each hand. Hold for as long as you like, till you have increased the temperature either inside or outside.This may be done as meditation, or while engaged in doing other things.
Benefits: Reduces the heat inside by increasing the moisture levels.Used to control dehydration, constipation, dry skin, wrinkles, cramps, dry mouth, halitosis, and osteoarthritis.

Prana Mudra
Touch the tips of the little finger and ring finger with the tip of the thumb, on both hands. Hold for as long as you wish to control heating conditions in the body.Benefits: Cools down mental anger, physical heat.Used to control hyperthyroidism, insomnia, joint pains, dry skin.

•     The next time you’re waiting for a bus or have a few minutes before you rush out for the day, try the Sheetali pranayama.
•    Stick your tongue out and curl the sides of the tongue upward towards the center of the tongue.
•    Breathe in through the mouth, hold the breath and slowly exhale through the nose.
•     Repeat 5 to 10 times and you will find your body temperature cooling down.