Cold is a common illness that we all suffer from at some point of time during different seasons. Did you know that there exists yoga poses for cold relief? Yes, you heard it right.
You can now beat cold and work on the immunity of your system through these hot yoga poses. The yoga poses help to get rid of toxins from the body, stay positive, and work on supporting your entire immune system in the stage of illness.
Now read how this hot yoga for cold allergy can be useful and positive at the same time. Yoga and wellness go hand in hand, and yoga helps effectively to work on issues such as common cold, headache, and sinus.
What Is Cold?
Before we delve into yoga for the common cold, let’s first clarify what the common cold actually is. The common cold, also known simply as a cold, is a viral infection that primarily affects the upper respiratory tract, including the nose and throat. Although it is generally considered a harmless condition, it can be quite uncomfortable. There are various types of viruses that can cause the common cold, and most people tend to recover within a week or ten days.
How Does The Common Cold Begin?
Before we delve into yoga for the common cold, let’s first clarify what the common cold actually is. The common cold, also known simply as a cold, is a viral infection that primarily affects the upper respiratory tract, including the nose and throat. Although it is generally considered a harmless condition, it can be quite uncomfortable. There are various types of viruses that can cause the common cold, and most people tend to recover within a week or ten days.
Can Yoga Help To Cure A Cold?
Understandably, most of us are wondering how does yoga to cure cold help! Yoga does simple things to our body. It fights the illness by keeping us positive and fit. The yoga activity fights the response given to the body through a virus and helps to keep our body relaxed. While we do not completely tell you that yoga to get rid of cold is totally effective, it surely helps one to work on the virus and general health of the body.
What Causes Cold, And What Are The Symptoms?
Before we get into the yoga poses for cold relief, let us briefly consider what may be the causes and symptoms of a cold.
Causes:
- Cold is mostly caused by the virus, such as rhinovirus, which enters the body through the mouth, eyes, or nose.
- The virus can be transmitted when someone who is sick or sneezes releases droplets in the air, which can enter your body.
- Hand contact or sharing objects with people who have a cold can also lead to catching the virus.
Symptoms:
- Symptoms of a common cold can vary from person to person.
- Common symptoms include a runny or blocked nose, cough, sore throat, congestion near the lungs, sneezing, and low fever.
Standing Forward And Bend Pose:
- The standing forward bend pose, also known as Uttanasana, is popular and works great during common cold and other lack of immunity illnesses.
- The yoga asana helps to work with improving blood flow to the head and clearing sinus infections.
- This yoga for cold and cough brings in energy effectively and clears up the respiratory area, in turn, bringing in relaxation to the entire body.
- Here is how to do it for the best results: Stand straight on the mat. Keep feet apart at hip-width. Stretch your forearms and bring down your head bending towards the feet. Hold for 2-3 minutes and repeat.
- Ensure that you keep a 3-hour gap between the time of consuming food and performing the asana.
Bridge Pose:
- The bridge pose, also known as Setu Bandhasana, helps greatly to stretch several areas of the body like chest, neck, and spine areas.
- It helps to relax the nervous system, open up the lungs.
- In case you are also suffering from cough and bad asthma, this yoga for cold and flu works great to reduce the effects, bring in immunity, and work on sinusitis.
- Here is how to do it: Lie on the floor. Push your tailbone upwards gradually. Support with hands intertwined and feet together. Firm the buttocks and lift them up to the floor. Keep thighs and feet parallel. Hold for 1-2 minutes and relax.
Legs Up The Wall Pose:
- Also known as the Viparita Karani, the legs up the wall pose is popular among many for improving the blood flow effectively and also gives relaxation to the entire body and mind.
- Any case of headache, cold, and cough improves and, in turn, clears the chest area to facilitate breathing.
- It helps further to build up immunity as well.
- Here is how to do it: Stay around five to six inches away from the wall. Swing the legs up parallel to the wall. Stretch your hands on the ground on either side and legs against the wall. Hold this position for at least five minutes. Avoid this pose during menstruation or back injury.
Fish Pose:
- The fish pose, known as Matsyasana, is well known for its effect on the lungs and respiratory system.
- This pose regularly helps to stretch the area around the chest, and the neck area works on providing relief from any respiratory disorders like cold and sinus.
- Given that the pose allows the body to relax and pose like a fish, the name is henceforth matsyasana.
- Here is how to do it: Lie flat on your back. Keep hands relaxed on either side and feet together. Breathe in slowly tilting the head and chest upward. Make sure the chest is elevated and lower the head. Tilt and touch the head to the ground. Now with the support of elbows, press thighs to the floor and remain in the pose. Hold the pose as much as you can and relax.
Bow Pose:
- The bow pose in yoga is Dhanurasana. It is named thus because the body takes the shape of a bow while performing this asana.
- This, in turn, helps not just to strengthen the back but also works on opening up the chest, neck, and shoulders.
- This helps to work on the respiratory system through chest flexibility as well.
- Here is how to do it: Lie on your stomach. Place feet hip-width apart. Bend knees backward and grab your ankles. Inhale and slowly lift the chest up. Look straight while performing this step. Breathe well while posing and ensure that your body is curved like a bow. Hold the pose for 30 seconds, relax, and repeat.
Alternate Nostril Breathing Yoga:
- Most of us already know this popular form of breathing exercise, the alternate breathing technique.
- This is also called as Nadi shodhan pranayama, where the yoga helps to clear up blocked energy lines and gives relaxation to the mind.
- Those who have cold and breathing issues should not miss doing this technique as it helps greatly to clear lungs.
- Here is how to do it: Sit down comfortably. Keep the spine erect, let your shoulders be relaxed. Place left hand on the knee and make sure palms face upwards. Place the tip of the index finger and middle finger of the right hand near the nose at first, making sure the thumb comes near the nostril. The ring finger, as well as the little finger, should be used to open or close the left nostril, whereas the thumb to close the right nostril. Now breathe in and out slowly in a similar fashion. Breathe from the left nostril and press the left nostril with the ring finger, remove the right nostril finger and breathe out. Do the same and repeat nine rounds. Do not force breathing and keep the flow natural and good. Do not apply any pressure.
Widespread Forward Bend:
- The widespread forward bend pose yoga, also known as upavistha konasana yoga, is not popular among yoga enthusiasts.
- This pose, however, is quite proven to bring in benefits with not just relaxing the mind and body but helps to quiet down internal organs and works amazingly with clearing up lung areas.
- Here is how to do it: Sit on the floor. Straighten your legs on both sides in front of you and separate them apart as much as you can. Rest your upper torso comfortably. Hold this yoga pose for three to four minutes. Repeat.
Skull Shining Breathing Technique:
- This technique is famously known by the name Kapalbhati Pranayama.
- This is a powerful and popular breathing exercise, which helps you greatly to relax your entire system, ease up, and clear the respiratory tract and bring breathing in order.
- Here is how to do it: Sit down comfortably and make sure you sit straight with your spine erect. Take a deep inhalation. Then while exhaling, contract your abdomen and allow air to flow out naturally. Take 20 such breaths and relax your mind. Do a total of two rounds per day.
Given these yoga poses for cold relief, we now know how to keep our health and immunity in check. Performing these yoga asanas regularly certainly will help in the overall well-being and improvement of the immune system. Do let us know your thoughts and share your experiences with us on how best these asanas helped you.
