Should yoga be done on empty stomach?
Yoga Day 2022: Yoga dates centuries back and in the busy modern lifestyle, it has emerged as one of the best practices to stay fit. The term "Yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root Yuj, which means "to join," "to yoke," or "to unite." Yoga, according to Yogic teachings, leads to the unification of individual consciousness with universal awareness. Extensive research on Yoga therapy over the last few decades has revealed the effectiveness of Yoga as an adjuvant to medical care and also for long-term rehabilitation. Yoga has the potential to play an important role in illness prevention.
Yoga is usually done on a mat with loose clothes and bare feet. Slowly and progressively, a sequence of stances known as Asanas in Sanskrit is performed, focusing each action on the deep abdominal breathing that goes with it. Movements between poses are as vital as sustaining a position, and stances are often maintained for 4 or 5 breaths depending on the many teaching styles of yoga that are prevalent today, such as Hatha, Ashtanga, Anasara, Iyengar, and Bikram yoga.
Despite the widespread Yoga practices across the world, there is still one question that is most prevalent and asked mostly by people which is whether one should practice yoga empty stomach or not? Fitness expert Meenakshi Mohanty gives an insight into whether Yoga should be practiced empty stomach or not.
The answer to the question is very simple because the most efficient way to get the most out of a yoga practice is to do it on an empty stomach. By empty stomach here we mean that before you start doing Yoga the last meal which you had must be 4-5 hours back with the option of having a short snack up to one hour before.
Some reasons to practice Yoga on an empty stomach
- The human body requires time to process the food and digest it which is the reason that one should have their meal 4 hours before or a light meal at least 2 hours before doing Yoga.
- Digestion requires a lot of energy, which your body does not have while practicing. The digestive function loses energy as you do yoga asanas. This indicates your body isn't adequately processing the nutrients, and food may become trapped instead of flowing forward. The food trapped inside the digestive tract may cause you to feel bloated or gassy if you perform Yoga right after having your meal.
- When food enters the digestive tract, your body sends energy to the tissues to help them process the meal and transport it through the system. Energy also aids in the absorption of nutrients by the body.
- One of the most fundamental preparations for yoga practice, according to experts, is to do it on an empty stomach. In general, it's better to wait 1–2 hours before doing asana or pranayama, which are Yoga breathing exercises.
- Food in the stomach or intestines takes up space in the stomach when practicing Yoga. This makes it more difficult to accomplish asanas/positions that need the abdomen to compress, such as twists or forward bends. With a big belly, inversions like headstand and shoulderstand become more difficult.
- An empty stomach allows the abdominal walls to stretch and contract freely inside postures. In spinal extension, you'll obtain a deeper stretch and a more severe twist. Your body will flow more effortlessly through Vinyasas and lift more gently into those difficult inversions.
- Yoga practiced on an empty stomach allows the body to efficiently harness energy from the body's energy stores such as fat. The human body tends to lose weight more efficiently if fat is burned instead of food because if you eat and then exercise, your body will concentrate on the energy you just consumed rather than your fat.
- Practicing Yoga on an empty stomach allows us to harness energy from our body's energy sources, such as muscles, liver, and body fat. As a result, the human body is required to consume energy from various energy sources resulting in effectively burning those extra calories.
In the end, it will be right to say that Yoga is a wonderful gift to humanity that aids in the improvement and maintenance of people's health. In the last several decades, yoga has been studied for its potential to treat modern epidemic diseases such as mental stress, obesity, diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. If we take a closer look at Yoga and its benefits, we can see that it offers several advantages.
When a person does multiple asanas and postures, his body is strengthened and he has a sense of well-being and health. Yoga also aids in the sharpening of the intellect and the improvement of intelligence. Through Yoga asanas, people can improve their attention and learn to control their emotions.
(This article is attributed to Meenakshi Mohanty, Fitness Expert)
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of India TV)
