Adrenal Help through Yoga

What are the adrenal glands, where are they located, and how does yoga help revitalize and tone the adrenals? The adrenal glands are located on top of each kidney and they are tiny organs that perform important roles in the body. The adrenal glands produce several hormones that effect our development and growth, they help regulate kidney function, and they influence our capability to deal with stress in our lives.

The body’s reaction to stressful events is regulated by the adrenals “fight or flight” response. The adrenal glands also produce hormones that affect our blood pressure, blood sugar levels, growth, and sex drive. When the body is chronically stressed, cortisol is continually release from the adrenal glands in response to the stress, which can damage body tissues. Stimulating the adrenals long-term due to chronic stress can lead to high blood pressure, stomach ulcers, and increase your risk of infection by depleting white blood cell levels.

So how does yoga help? Yoga asana practice, breathing techniques, and meditation can help to calm your mind, breaking the “fight or flight” response. This eases the burden on your adrenals because you learn to better deal with your stress. Practicing slow, deep breathing techniques like ujjayi breathing and extended exhale breathing can calm your mind and slow your heart rate. When you synchronize your breath and movements in asana practice you also help calm your mind. You can think of meditation as a deliberate practice to achieve a calm state from intense concentration on a single object until all other thoughts vanish. All that is left is an intense awareness of the object. Meditation reduces stress and anxiety.

In addition to the general support that yoga asana practice provides to help the adrenal glands, there are many poses that specifically help the adrenals. A mini-sequence of five poses that I will highlight through individual posts is:

• Eka Pada Rajakapotasana in a supine position (Pigeon Pose)
• Tiryaka Bhujangasana (Twisting Cobra Pose)
• Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (Pigeon Pose)
• Setu Bandhasana (Bridge Pose)
• Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)

You can apply this mini-sequence to your practice in full or in part to help revitalize and tone your adrenal glands!

Namaste,
Leslie Ottavi