The world can be tough and stressful place that causes us to "hulk out" sometimes. If you're not familiar, the Hulk is a comic book hero who is a genius scientist that turns into a huge, monsterous rage machine when he gets overly stressed or irritated. He then goes about wreaking havoc and destroying everything in his path. Maybe that sounds familiar to you sometimes? The good news is yoga can help! Let's look at how a little yoga knowledge can soothe your inner Hulk.
The Calming Effects of Yoga
Research and physiology has shown that yoga can calm your inner beast in several ways. Much of the effects appear to be from balancing out your autonomic nervous system. This is the system that controls many of your body's automatic functions such as blood flow, temperature, digestion and elimination. When you are stressed, your system goes into "fight or flight" (sympathetic) mode and your body directs you energy toward preparing you to run away, fight and/or destroy. Your face will flush. Your muscles will tighten. You'll sweat more. Your blood pressure will rise. Your heart will race, and the hulk will take over! If you're constantly "hulking out", your body's automatic functions don't perform well. This can contribute to indigestion, headaches, constipation, insomnia and other issues. However, yoga is a great tool to help push you back towards "rest and digest" (parasympathetic) mode. This will direct your energies back to performing all of your regular functions. Below are some of the ways that yoga can help.
So next time you feel your inner hulk coming out to destroy, take a breath and strike a pose!
Namasté
- Open and expansive postures like backbending reduce cortisol, a major stress hormone that kicks up the "fight or flight" response.
- Good spinal alignment helps improve breathing quality, and good breathing reduces stress and anxiety.
- Inversion poses increase activity of the "rest and digest" mode.
- 2:1 breathing (exhales twice as long as inhales) lowers blood pressure.
- Chanting increases activity of the "rest and digest" mode.
So next time you feel your inner hulk coming out to destroy, take a breath and strike a pose!
Namasté
References:
Adhana R, R Gupta, J Dvivedii, Ahmad S. “The Influence of the 2:1 Yogic Breathing Technique on Essential Hypertension”. Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology. 57(1): 38-44, Jan-Mar 2013.
Hulk art from devianart.net. Hulk yoga cartoon from Lefunny.net.
Kim KS, Lee SW, Choe MA, Yi MS, Choi S, Kwon SH. Effects of abdominal breathing training using biofeedback on stress, immune response and quality of life in patients with a mastectomy for breast cancer
McCall, Timothy. Yoga as Medicine – The Yogic Prescription for Health and Healing. New York, NY: Bantam Books, 2007.
Wörle, Luise, Erik Pfeiff. Yoga as Therapeutic Exercise – A Practical Guide for Manual Therapists. Churchill Livingstone Elsevier, 2010.
Adhana R, R Gupta, J Dvivedii, Ahmad S. “The Influence of the 2:1 Yogic Breathing Technique on Essential Hypertension”. Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology. 57(1): 38-44, Jan-Mar 2013.
Hulk art from devianart.net. Hulk yoga cartoon from Lefunny.net.
Kim KS, Lee SW, Choe MA, Yi MS, Choi S, Kwon SH. Effects of abdominal breathing training using biofeedback on stress, immune response and quality of life in patients with a mastectomy for breast cancer
McCall, Timothy. Yoga as Medicine – The Yogic Prescription for Health and Healing. New York, NY: Bantam Books, 2007.
Wörle, Luise, Erik Pfeiff. Yoga as Therapeutic Exercise – A Practical Guide for Manual Therapists. Churchill Livingstone Elsevier, 2010.
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