Why do Yoga experts recommend that women who are menstrating not do inverted poses?

2 Responses to “Why do Yoga experts recommend that women who are menstrating not do inverted poses?”

1. Ella G says:

   January 22, 2008 at 9:09 am

   gravity – you wanna encourage the blood flow down and out of the body, and not invert to prevent this (although to me it makes about as much sense as saying you can’t get pregnant if you do it standing up…)

   also, some postures are too much of an exertion to perform as we supposedly get weaker when menstruating
2. Alyrc says:

   January 22, 2008 at 1:13 pm

   Ella G is basically right.

   However, if you try, you will find yoga teachers ranging from a frimly held opinion that a woman should never do an inversion pose during menstration, to those with a relaxed “do what feels right to you” attitude.

   Check out the fairly short but good article at YogaJournal.com in sources.

   I think the last paragraph of article sums it up nicely:

   “Beyond just inversions, don’t insist on maintaining a vigorous practice no matter how you feel.
   If you are tired and achy, your body is telling you to take it easy, in which case my advice is to refrain from all strong asanas—such as Sun Salutations, standing poses, and balances—in favor of a more restorative practice.
   Sometimes the “real yoga” is knowing when to back off.”

   Namaste’,
   A.

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Weight loss, diet, and exercise for women. Let\'s face it, women and men respond differently to weight loss programs. This blog deals with female-specific issues when it comes to dieting and exercise.