Work out is a physical drill that can make your body go through a lot of pressure within a set time. As workouts are generally intense, it sometimes becomes very challenging for your body to return to its normal state. It needs a session to settle down your body completely, followed by a couple of restorative stretches. Heavy workouts can leave your body with hip openers, twists, and inversions. However, only corrective stretches can relax your joints and muscles to relieve the stiffness from the workout. There is nothing more relaxing than trying yoga poses after burnout. Yoga poses align with your body and soul, thus making the perfect way to stretch. Read about the best post-workout yoga stretches to ccool your down after exercises.
Benefits of Post-Workout Yoga Stretches
After each intense workout session, you must stretch your body to remove muscle tension. It would help if you made it a habit to perform these stretches after every workout. This help relax the muscles, joints as well as nervous system. Workouts cause the warming up of the blood and push it toward the brain. If you feel giddiness after your workout session, the post-workout stretches are ideal for preventing them. Other benefits include reducing muscle soreness, removing fatigue, and washing down lactic acid build-ups.
Additionally, a good stretch marks an end to your workout session and prepares your body to transition into normal day-to-day work. It also helps the brain get the indication that your body needs to relax. An ideal cool-down session includes a few yoga poses and a holistic meditation routine.
Yoga stretches can enhance cognitive and respiratory actions and aid in a significant reduction in blood pressure levels. Moreover, these stretches have a positive effect on the immunity system of the body. Being consistent in yoga can also help prevent or lower your depression levels and reduces anxiety and stress. Along with the added flexibility, yoga postures help your soul and body come in alignment so that you get a balance between the two. Yoga has many forms, postures, and variations to cater to different needs. There is also an open for modifications for added benefits.
The Best Yoga Stretches to Relax Your Body after Working Out
If you are looking for the best yoga postures for stretching after your workout session, here are the ideal ones-
1. The Easy Pose or Sukhasana
Begin this pose by sitting by crossing your legs. The body weight should be completely on the sit bones. Stretch your hands with the back side of the palms touching both knees. Elevate your hips by 2 to 4 inches. Keep your back straight and breath regularly.
Benefits: It stretches the hip area.
2. Child’s Pose or Balasana
Start with sitting in a kneeling position with the upper portion of the feet pressing against the floor. Keep your glutes resting, balancing on the heels and leaning on the posterior. Then, stretch the back and the arms forward and rest their forehead and arms on the ground. Next, place the arms on both sides with the inner side of the palms facing up. Relax in this position and keep the hips down on the back. Lastly, stretch the torso with normal breathing.
Benefits: Overall stretching of the back, legs, and knees.
3. Cat Pose or Marjaryasana
Begin with a crawling position with your wrists under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Stretch your palms on the surface by spreading your fingers. Then slowly push your back up towards the ceiling; the chin should be tucked in an alignment with the spine. Tuck in the tailbone and open the shoulders to make an arch. The focus should be rounding the spine slowly after returning to my previous position.
Benefits: Stretches the back and spine and relaxes the shoulder.
>
4. Cobbler’s Pose or Baddha Konasana
Start by sitting on the yoga mat. Bring the foot together, touching the yoga mat. Then, let both knees fall on their sides. Hold your feet to have a grasp of them. Keep the chin up and back straight. Keep up the pose while your spine and hips stretch.
Benefits: It helps the inner thigh, back, and hips stretch
5. King Pigeon Pose or Eka Pada Rajakapotasana
Start with a crawling position, with you being in a down-dog position. Then, bring the right leg up to the chest and open it to the right side. The shin must be perpendicular to the torso, and the leg should be resting against the floor. Next, allow the left leg to extend behind you. The hips should be in a relaxing pose. Next, stretch the spine and press it down to the hips and tailbone. Move left and right arm ahead and upper body down towards the floor. Repeat the same on the opposite side.
Benefits: Stretches the hips and glutes
6. Corpse Pose or Savasana
This is one of the most popular stretches after a workout session. Start by lying comfortably on your back, keeping all the limbs relaxed. The palms should face upwards. Then, release any muscle tension in the body. Try lying as still and relaxed as possible while breathing normally.
Benefits: Calms the mind and relaxes the nervous system.
Conclusion
A stretching session after a yoga routine or other intense workout is great for speeding up the recovery and helping you retrieve to a calm state. It also prepares the body and mind to move to the next task after a heavy workout. These five yoga postures are great for keeping your body aligned with your mind and thus give you a spiritual outburst. If done in the correct sequence, these can heal nervous breakdowns, release muscle tension, help get rid of sore muscles, and eventually bring the body to its initial state.
There is a reason why yoga has been considered a sustainable workout process since time immemorial. Next time you are working out, try to incorporate these into your post-workout stretching routine.
Read more: Should you get a personal trainer?