All of us – at one point or the other – have struggled with hair fall or hair growth problems. Hair can fall out due to a multitude of reasons like unhealthy lifestyle, scalp conditions or lack of blood circulation. We spend a lot of time focusing on our diet and masking to curb hair fall. Of course that helps. But it might not give a major boost to your hair growth. Please don’t fall into the trap of ‘oh! Your genetics decide how much hair you’ll have’ There’s more to it! We will be talking about the ultimate solution to hair growth and reversing hair fall today: Yoga Inversions!
What are yoga inversions?
Just as its namesake, yoga inversions are the asanas that take you upside down so your heart is higher above the ground than your head. For those who practice yoga daily, inversions are a crucial part of their routine. But for those who don’t, inversions might sound scary. After all, who wants to do things the unusual way!
However, that’s what yoga is all about! Taking you away from the habitual patterns, so you can get out of the rut and connect with your spiritual & mental self in a better way.
Don’t mistake inversions with just headstand. There are many other asanas that do the job with the same benefits. Headstands are advanced yoga poses and would take a lot of practice and time. So, we will be suggesting to you some other poses that are easy to do and are perfect for beginners!
Here’s How Yoga Inversions Can Help With Hair Growth!
When you are holding your head closer to the ground, you are practically working against gravity. This boosts blood flow through your entire body. A rush of blood and nutrients to your head and scalp is the primary reason why inversions are the best kind of yoga practice to stimulate hair growth.
Even when you eat right and get in all the nutrients, they will never reach your scalp if you have poor blood circulation. These postures also work amazingly well to correct any hormonal imbalances. Women with PCOS/ PCOD, inversions will kick your hair loss due to hormonal imbalance right away!
6 Easy Yoga Inversions You Can Start Doing Now:
Forward Bend Pose or Uttanasana:
The most common type of yoga pose – a forward bend yoga pose is probably the easiest to nail down and build flexibility in your legs while stretching your spine. Don’t push yourself too much the first time and don’t bend your spine a lot. Make sure your back is straight even if you can’t bend completely. It will happen over time.
Downward Dog Pose or Adho Mukha Svanasana:
Downward Dog is a great workout for your arms, legs and core. It stretches the back of your hamstrings and calves, strengthens the quadriceps and ankles. To start you can lift up your feet if putting them down hurts your calves too much. Pedal it out to ease some tension. As you get stronger, begin doing three-legged downward dog and hold it in place for around 30 seconds or so.
Bridge Pose or Setu Bandha Sarvangasana:
A pose touted to give you the butt of your dreams is also a yoga inversion asana. It has a relaxing and invigorating nature. Practicing bridge pose defines your hips, tines your upper thighs, and stretches neck & spine. It also stimulates thyroid glands and abdominal organs so help with digestion and revamp your metabolism.
Fish Pose or Matsyasana:
A modified kind of yoga inversion but particularly beneficial, because it works on the parts of your body which only a few asanas are meant to help with. Fish pose stretches the front of the body, mainly your chest, throat, and abdomen. It is particularly useful for your respiratory system and helps to fight ailments like asthma, bronchitis etc.
Legs Up The Wall Pose:
A passive kind of yoga posture but with equally amazing benefits. You must have seen a lot of posts and pins about how just 10 minutes of it can do wonders for your body. Well, it’s true. Just a few minutes of doing it daily can help you relax, facilitate venous drainage, eases swollen calves or feet, and stretches legs and back.
Note that you don’t have to keep your hips perpendicular to the wall, slide them a few inches or place a small pillow or towel beneath them.
Happy Baby Pose or Ananda Balasana:
Probably the easiest one on the list, happy baby yoga pose is an excellent hip opener. If your job requires you to sit and scare at your screens, you should really practice this asana daily.
All you have to do is stay in these positions for at least a minute and repeat 3-4 times. For legs up the wall pose – you can start by doing it for 10 minutes. If you exercise regularly, you can include these inversion exercises as a part of your stretching regimen.
Please Note: Anyone with back, neck, eye or head injuries should consult a doctor before performing any of these asanas. Even after being given a nod, we suggest you take it slow.
Along with inversion poses, breathing exercises like pranayama are great for your hair as well. However, it isn’t necessary that you do a kapalbhati or pranayama sequence. You can do simple breathing exercises where you inhale the air in 6-8 seconds, hold for a few seconds, and exhale in the same amount of time. Do it for 3-4 minutes along with the inversion exercises. Deep breathing also helps in building lung capacity, something that Covid-19 has also made vitally important.
Other Benefits Of Yoga Inversions:
- They make you feel energetic. Inversions allow for more blood flow throughout the body than most of the exercises. This improves your focus and concentration on the tasks.
- It has anti-aging effects. This one is a given. Over time, inversions can help prevent sagging skin and wrinkles! And blood circulation gives a beautiful rosy glow to your face.
- They can help in building your immunity. Your lymphatic system plays a major role in your body’s health. Inversions stimulate lymphatic drainage and thus, elimination of harmful toxins and bacteria from your body. This boosts the immune system and builds lung strength – from where major toxins enter the body.
- It helps in building balance & muscle and core strength. Inversions require patience and practice. Over time, they improve your balance and tones up your entire body by bolstering its core & muscle strength.
- It makes you feel happy. Increased blood circulation also amps up endorphin circulation – a major mood and hormone regulator. Goodbye lockdown depression + anxiety! In general, people who practice inversions have an easier time staying positive throughout the day.
Caring For Your Gorgeous Tresses:
To maintain healthy hair, here are some tips to follow:
- Eat the right kind of foods. Consume foods rich in protein, nuts & seeds, citrus fruits and vegetables.
- Take in the right kind of hair vitamins. (Read: 5 Hair Vitamins You Can Buy Off Amazon Indian Right Now) Hair vitamins make sure that any minor slips in your nutrition are substituted instantly. They nourish your tresses from the inside out.
- Use shampoos that are mild on your scalp & don’t strip it of the natural oils.
- Condition and hydrate your hair or else, you’ll end up with hair cancer a.k.a split ends. Learn how to cure them out of your hair here.
- Consult a doctor if your hair fall is excessive & getting out of control/
Key Takeaways:
Out of all the ways promoted to boost hair growth, inversions have certainly lagged behind. Albeit, it’s importance remains. Besides the usual, right nutrition and regular treatments, inversions are wonderful to amp up your hair health. They will save you all the expensive salon sessions. Give them just a month’s time and you’ll see the results for yourself!
Let us know how they worked for you in the comments section below.
