Infertility is one of the most common issues that couples are facing in contemporary times.
High amounts of stress, poor eating habits, delayed marriages, increased consumption of tobacco and alcohol are some of the main causes of infertility, which couples do not realize until they plan and start to conceive.
Simply put, infertility is the inability to conceive naturally after trying for at least a year. Although there are a lot of safe and effective treatment options for infertility, couples, especially women who are skeptical about them, are now turning to a newly emerging concept, known as ‘fertility yoga’.
Fertility yoga is the practice of doing yoga asanas (poses) for treating infertility. Although it is not a full-proof method, fertility yoga can help individuals reduce stress levels, get fitter, strengthen their bodies and increase their chances of conceiving.
Read on to understand how yoga can boost fertility and what are some simple fertility yoga asanas that women can do daily.
How Yoga Postures Can Boost Fertility?
To increase the chances of getting pregnant, one needs a healthy body and a calm mind. Yoga is a holistic approach to improve fertility by ensuring, both the physical and mental health of the body is strengthened and conditioned together.
Yoga helps in beating stress, corrects hormonal imbalances, improves blood circulation and keeps the ovaries (primary female reproductive organ) healthy.
4 Easy Fertility Yoga Asanas
When practised regularly and with the right technique, the following yoga asanas can do wonders for women facing infertility issues:
1. Bhramari Pranayama
This pranayama (breathing practice), also known as bee breath or humming bee breathing, is known to reduce stress and tension, common factors that lead to infertility.
This pranayama aims at making the body calm and helps in relieving stress and anxiety.
Steps to Perform:
Sit comfortably on the floor or on a chair with your eyes closed.
With your index fingers, block the cartilages of your ears to shut out all surrounding noise.
Inhale deeply through the nose and exhale through the nose while making a humming sound.
Try to hum in a high pitch and for as long as you can.
2. Paschimottanasana
This asana is also known as the seated forward bend pose. Paschimottanasana helps in stretching and improving the muscles of the ovaries and uterus, the main organs responsible for conception.
This asana also helps in improving your psychological state.
Steps to Perform:
Sit on a mat, stretch your legs out and make sure the toes are pointing towards you.
Inhale through the nose and stretch your arms over your head.
Start to bend slowly towards your stretched legs (keeping your spine straight) to touch the sides of your feet while exhaling.
Hold this position for 2 minutes.
Inhale and come back up to the sitting position again with your arms stretched out and then exhale.
3. Supta Baddha Konasana
Also known as reclined bound angle pose, this asana opens up the pelvic region and stretches out the inner thigh and groin muscles.
It also helps in reducing stress and symptoms related to menstrual cramps and bloating. It is an important fertility yoga posture that helps in activating the ovaries and giving a good stretch to the knees too.
Steps to Perform:
Lie down on a yoga mat with your chest facing the ceiling.
Keep your shoulders relaxed, spine straight and the neck easy and also sleep easy. Ensure that the shoulders are not lifted off the mat.
Now gently bend the knees and bring the feet together. Make sure that your feet are on the mat. Slowly bring your heels closer to the pelvic region. Your hands should lie next to the hips and palms pressed on the mat.
Now exhale and contract your abdomen muscles, bringing the tailbone closer to your pubic bone. If you sense pain in the lower back region while stretching, discontinue the pose immediately.
If there is no pain, hold this posture for about 20 seconds.
Next, Inhale quickly and exhale slowly, extending (opening) your knees for a good stretch in the pelvic region as well as inner thighs.
Holding the pose for 30 seconds, exhale and slowly come out of the pose. Before completely releasing the pose, hold your knees together and slowly rock from one side to another for 10 seconds. This will help your body relax.
You can raise your arms towards the ceiling to deepen the pose.
4. Bhujangasana
Also known as cobra pose, Bhuajangasana is considered one of the best asanas to improve fertility.
It aims at increasing blood flow to the ovaries and uterus, helps in creating hormonal balance, and improves the production of cervical mucus.
Steps to Perform:
Lie flat on the ground on your stomach, with your legs close to each other.
Fold your elbows and place both your palms on the floor near your chest.
Inhale deeply through the nose and lift your upper body, pulling away from the ground and stretching as you push your raised upper body backwards.
Ensure that you do not lift your feet off the ground or fold them.
Breathe out and slowly come back to the original posture.
Including the above yoga poses in one’s daily workout routine will help couples, especially women boost fertility the natural way.
It is advisable to check with a trained yoga instructor on how to perform them correctly and for how many counts/repetitions to avoid over-stressing or injuring the body.
Disclaimer: This article is written by the Practitioner for informational and educational purposes only. The content presented on this page should not be considered as a substitute for medical expertise. Please "DO NOT SELF-MEDICATE" and seek professional help regarding any health conditions or concerns. Practo will not be responsible for any act or omission arising from the interpretation of the content present on this page.