5 Best Yoga Stretches to Unwind Before Bed
Georgia Gurzick
| 3 min read
Winding down before bed with relaxation and meditation may allow your mind to calm down after a long day and improve sleep.
According to the Sleep Foundation, incorporating gentle yoga stretches can release tension held in the muscles, promote deep breathing and ease stiffness, all of which may help you prepare for a restful and restorative sleep. Here is a restorative yoga sequence that can help you relax before a deep sleep.
Standing forward fold
The first move in the series is a standing forward fold. Stand with your feet hip distance apart and bend down slowly, trying to get your hands as far as they can go toward the floor. This stretch improves mobility in the hamstrings and back muscles and can relieve lower back pain by releasing tension.
Downward dog
After your standing forward fold, place your hands on the floor and walk them out to a desired stretch. Downward dog adds an extra stretch to the hamstrings, calf's and Achillies tendons. This stretch also will elongate your spine, which helps your posture after a long day of work. Downward dog is categorized in yoga as a foundational yoga posture that relieves stress, boosts circulation and calms the mind.
Childs pose
Transition slowly to child's pose by lowering your knees to the ground and pushing backwards into your hips with your arms as far as they can reach in front of you. According to the Cleveland Clinic, child’s pose is one of the most well-known yoga poses to reduce stress and anxiety. This is because of the amount of tension it reduces in the body. The main body parts that are stretched in child's pose are the ankles, thighs, hips, back, obliques and glutes.
Vaparita Karani
After staying in child's pose for as long as you want, find the nearest wall and lie on your back, extend your legs and place them up against the wall. This pose is called Vaparita Karani, but it is more well known as legs-up-the-wall.
The Cleveland Clinic says one of the best effects of Vaparita Karani is how it contributes to blood circulation. If you are on your feet all day, your blood commonly doesn't circulate efficiently from your legs back to your heart. By holding this pose, the return of blood flow back up the body is enhanced, helping improve circulation, reducing swelling in the legs and promoting relaxation throughout the body.
Corpse pose
To get to corpse pose, remove your legs from the wall and lay flat on your back. Lay your legs and arms out on the floor and face your palms upward with your arms by your side.
Breath in for five counts and exhale for five counts. Cleveland Clinic says corpse pose helps enhance body awareness, slow your heart rate, and boost mental health. It can help you transition your body into a resting state, making it easier to fall and stay asleep.
Photo credit: Getty Images
