The Benefits Of My Good Friend “Viparita Karani!”

Now before I get into why you should be intrigued in my good friend “Viparita Karani” let me start off by explaining who she is. First off “Viparita Karani” is not a person, but of course the first time I heard of “Viparita Karani” my response was “Who is that? Is she a famous designer?” (LOL) Well she’s not a designer either!!! From there I did my research and learned that Viparita Karani is a restorative yoga pose meant to calm your body and restore your mind.

Pronunciation (vip-par-ee-tah car-AHN-ee)

viparita – turned around, reversed, inverted

karani -doing, making, action

Did you know you’ll start to feel a difference just after 5 minutes of performing Viparita Karani? I find it to be very true. Before being introduced to Viparita Karani, I’ve never taken yoga classes in my life. But the moment I seen an example from photos on how to perform this pose, I decided to give it a try! Why? Because this pose looks very easy and it just involves breathing while balancing your legs up the wall and back flat on the floor with flexed feet! Why? Because I was stressed out to the maximum, I had anxiety most likely from balancing work and school, and for my constant lack of sleep. Why? Because I was curious to see if it actually works!! And just five minutes into the pose I already felt more relaxed and relieved from stress. It helped me concentrate on my homework a lot better, and if you have a hard time concentrating like I do, Viparita Karani just might be what you need. Anyways, I started to consistently perform this pose whenever I felt anxiety sneaking up on me, and just like that Viparita Karani became my best friend! No wonder this is known to be a favorite pose by many yoga students according to jayayogastudio.com

Source: http://www.jayayogastudio.com/blog/2016/6/10/pose-of-the-week-viparita-karani

Now enough about my experience with Viparita Karani, now it’s time for me to help you release some of your tension and stress. Here are the steps on how you perform Viparita Karani:

  1. First, you’ll begin by sitting on the floor while being close enough to the wall (make sure you have enough space on the wall and between the ceiling and the floor).
  2. Then, you are going to bend your knees while laying your back down on the floor with your legs up. (Feel free to place a pillow or cushiony object under your head or lower back for more comfort).
  3. Next, you are going to push yourself towards the wall, make sure your legs are firm and straight until they touch the wall.
  4. Now that your legs are touching the wall, make sure your legs are perpendicular to the upper body and toes are pointing downward (you must try to keep your balance).
  5. Make sure to flex your feet. Your neck, shoulders, and chest should be relaxed. Your arms should be relaxed on the side of you. 
  6. Finally, close your eyes and stay in that position anywhere from 5-20 minutes. Don’t forget to take deep breaths while performing this act!

Sources: https://www.tummee.com/yoga-poses/viparita-karani/steps

https://www.doyouyoga.com/6-benefits-of-legs-up-the-wall-pose-48440/

Now here are a list of things Viparita Karani are good for:

-Anxiety

-Mild Depression

-Mild Backache

-High Blood Pressure

-Stretches Hamstring and Lower Back

-Swollen ankles

-Insomnia

-Menstrual Cramps

-Varicose Veins

-Blood Flow To Your Core

-Calms your nerves

-Improves Digestion

-Headaches 

Source: https://www.yogajournal.com/poses/legs-up-the-wall-pose

There we have it! Now that you all know how to perform Viparita Karani, and are aware of the great benefits we receive from this self healing process, I highly recommend that you take some time out of your stressful day from school and work to perform Viparita Karani. Give it a chance, and I promise you will feel a difference within the first few minutes. The main root of this message is that Viparita Karani is absolutely free! You don’t have to pay money to release stress, anxiety, and mild back pain. (Although massages are nice LOL) All you need is yourself and a wall!! It worked for me!! Now is your chance to see if it works for you!! 

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