Health Benefits of Padmasana

Yoga has gained more popularity than other workout routines because of its ability to have a profound impact on your mental health and well-being. Padmasana is a simple yoga asana that allows you to work on physical and mental fitness. This asana is beneficial for beginners to build their bodies for intense workouts slowly.

Are you wondering about the health benefits of Padmasana? Then, this is the perfect place. This article will discuss these benefits and provide a comprehensive guide on this yoga asana.

Padmasana, or Lotus Position, is a well-known cross-legged sitting asana. "Padma" literally means lotus in Sanskrit. It originates from the meditative practices of ancient India, where feet are placed on opposite thighs. Once performed, this asana resembles a lotus, encouraging proper breathing and improving mental health with meditation.

In the current busy and stressful life, handling both ups and downs regarding physical and mental well-being can be a significant liability. Practising Padmasana can be beneficial to improve such areas. Like lotus is rooted to the ground, this yoga asana can help you stay grounded and energetic.

Padmasana is known for being a simple asana while providing multiple health benefits. Knowing these can help you become more aware and motivated while performing this asana. Here are some of the common advantages of Padmasana:

1. Improves Mental Health

Padmasana effectively improves your mental health by contributing to relaxing your mind and calming the nerves. It is a form of meditation which supports regulated breathing. This helps individuals to develop peace of mind. Additionally, it helps to loosen the tightly bound muscle tissues, which brings down the stress and tension faced all day. Therefore, it promotes positive thoughts.

2. Fights Insomnia

Often, stress and tension tend to disturb a sound sleep at night. Work stress and schedule can also require individuals to have an unhealthy sleep routine. Practising Padmasana regularly, especially before going to bed, can help you fight insomnia. It induces deep breathing and concentration, which helps to bring about peaceful and sound sleep at night.

3. Strengthens the Joints

Joint pains and tightening have been common in recent times. Padmasana requires you to place the feet of one leg upon the other, causing stretch and extension in this area. Constant stretching and blood circulation in the knee and ankle joints are beneficial to strengthen them and thereby reduce any joint pains in these areas. But this yoga pose should be avoided by people suffering from sciatica.

4. Improves Digestion

As unhealthy eating habits have increased in urban life, digestion issues have also increased rapidly. Padmasana offers a gentle massage in the abdominal area, which helps boost your body's digestive functions. It also stimulates blood circulation in the abdominal area, enhancing the digestive system. Practising this regularly will help you recover from digestive issues like constipation and loose motion.

5. Eases Childbirth

Padmasana contributes to strengthening the pelvic region as it massages around this area to improve its stability and endurance. Childbirth is a complicated process, with significant pain and contractions in the pelvic region. However, if you practice Padmasana, your endurance will be more effortless, as your pelvis will be strong enough to handle these contractions.

6. Reduces Menstrual Complications

Menstrual cycles come with unavoidable pain, cramps and discomfort. These can be highly challenging when you have to work in such conditions. Therefore, Padmasana offers a gentle massage in the abdominal area, stimulating blood flow. It helps to reduce the cramps in these areas and relax the adjoining muscles to some extent. Moreover, it provides higher flexibility and elasticity to this area, which helps to control the usual discomfort in the menstrual cycle.

7. Reduces Anxiety and Fear

While improving your mental health, Padmasana can also reduce the levels of anxiety and fear. You need to keep an erect spine and open hips in this pose. It helps to collect your thoughts and ground them. As a result, you can feel the positive energy growing through your spine, and you can gain control over your feelings of anxiety and vulnerability. It also helps to calm your thought process and nerves.

8. Boosts Respiration

Breathing troubles can also be common liabilities while residing in a polluted environment. Padmasana allows you to take deep and regulated breaths, which helps open your lungs. This way, your lung capacity increases, enhancing your oxygen intake levels. As it stimulates more blood flow to the vessels, it can increase blood circulation around the lungs. It reduces the chances of cardiovascular diseases like stroke and heart attack.

9. Improves Posture

Your overall physical posture and appearance can also improve with this yoga asana. It requires you to sit with an erect spine for a long time, which enhances the flexibility of your back, shoulders and spine. It also stretches the shoulders, which contributes to developing a better posture for your body.

There can be two types of Padmasana. First, you need to select the position based on your requirements and expertise. Here are the two types:

1. Ardha Padmasana

As the name suggests, it is like performing half the asana. Instead of crossing both legs, you need to place only one foot on the opposite thigh. This is effective for beginners who find the pose slightly challenging.

2. Baddha Padmasana

This is the actual Padmasana, which requires completing a locked lotus pose. Both your feet should rest on opposite thighs. Moreover, your hands should go around the back to catch the opposite foot. It is a complicated pose, adequate only for experienced individuals.

It is essential to know the steps to perform Padmasana effectively. Even though it is a simple yoga asana, there are always chances of making mistakes. For avoiding these, follow the steps listed below:

Step 1: Start by sitting on the floor or on a yoga mat. Keep your legs stretched in front of you.

Step 2: Now, bend your right knee, and place it over your left thigh. The sole of your right foot should point upwards, while the heel should be closer to your abdomen.

Step 3: Repeat the same process with your left leg, placing the left knee on the right thigh. Both feet should be on opposite knees.

Step 4: Erect your spine and place your hands on both knees in a specific mudra position. Ensure that your head is straight, and take long and gentle breaths.

While Padmasana might seem like an easy yoga asana, it can be slightly challenging for you if you are a beginner. However, the following tips will help you perform this asana without hassle:

1. Initially, it would help if you started with the Ardha Padmasana pose, which will help you get used to the position of crossing legs with a lower difficulty level. Then, once you get habituated, you can perform the full pose.
2. In the beginning, practise this pose only for a short period. Then, increase the practice time as your expertise with this pose increases.
3. Taking long breaths while sitting in the position can be beneficial. It will help you calm your mind and collect your thoughts.
4. Practising this pose early in the morning and before going to bed at night is advisable. This helps to improve your sleep routine and have a healthy start to the day.
5. While bringing a foot on the opposite knee, avoid pulling the leg upwards with force. This can result in tissue damage.
6. Avoid letting your feet move towards inversion, where the feet move towards the inner shin once the ankles roll in. This can hurt your ankles, causing a sprain.
7. To make it more challenging, place both hands on the ground, keeping them adjacent to the body. Now, try to lift your body slightly off the ground with the support of your hands.

If you start practising Padmasana, you should know its precautions and contraindications. These will help you avoid possible negative consequences. Here are some precautions essential to keep in mind:

• If you are having stomach, back or knee pain, you can avoid this yoga asana. It usually targets these muscles and might increase pain.
• People who recently suffered injuries in the spine, leg or ankles should not attempt this yoga asana until they recover completely.
• If you have a chronic back problem, leg sprain or injuries in the calf, you should not attempt this yoga asana, as it might have some side effects in these areas.
• This yoga asana is not suitable for people suffering from sciatica or weakness in the sciatic nerves.
• If you plan to practise this yoga for a long time, stretch your hands and legs before starting.
• Practising this asana with a full stomach might result in issues like nausea and indigestion. So it would help if you did it on an empty stomach.

If you find Padmasana challenging, some easy modifications can help you get started. These are as follows:

• Practising easy yoga poses like Cobbler's Pose, Hero Pose, and Head-to-Knee Pose will help you prepare for this yoga asana.
• If you feel your knees are sticking up as you sit cross-legged, you can place rolled-up blankets or pillows under the hips or above the knees to avoid such issues.
• You can sit against a wall and take its support to keep your spine and back erect while performing this yoga asana. As a result, it will be less challenging, and you can hold the pose longer.
• Placing yoga blocks under your knees will be beneficial to release your hip flexors.
• Sitting on a yoga blanket will help you develop alignment in your pelvis and spine.