Yoga for sex: 11 asanas that women need to start doing today - Part 2

One of the many benefits of practising yoga is improved sex life. A study published in  The Journal of Sexual Medicine  by Dikav, et al., studied the impact of regular yoga practice on the sex life of women aged 22 - 55. The participants reported that yoga improved their sexual experiences “in all six domains… desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain”. The researcher further added that the improvement was more noticeable in older women.

In this second story in a three-part series on yoga for sex, we bring to you some of the asanas that the women in the study practised and a few others. Each of these asanas serves a different purpose. Together they are designed to open up the hips, strengthen the pelvic floor, stretch the hamstrings and spine and strengthen the core. Remember to do these yoga poses under an experienced teacher’s guidance.

Start  

1. Begin your yoga session with 3-5 surya namaskars, as explained in   part 1 .

Standing poses

Asana 2 to 9 can be held for 30-60 seconds. However, if you’re a beginner or feel uncomfortable, try holding the asanas for 10 seconds, to begin with, and then move up.  

2. Uttanasana: Stand up straight in “attention”. Bend from your hip and lower your hands to touch your feet. Go as far down as you can.  

3. Trikonasana: Stand at one end of your mat, facing the wall, turn 90 degrees and open your legs wide. Stretch your arms out keeping them at shoulder height. Bend from your waist and touch the right leg with your right hand. Your left hand will follow your torso as you bend. Look towards the fingertips of the left hand, which should be pointing to the ceiling. Repeat on the other side.

4. Malasana: Stand with your legs at least shoulder-width apart. Squat down like you would while using an Indian-style toilet. Go as far down as you can without losing your balance or lifting your heels off the mat. Place your elbows against the inside of your knees or thighs or shins, whichever is most comfortable. Fold your hands to make a namaste mudra with them.

Sitting poses

5. Ardhmatsyendra asana: Sit on your mat with your legs stretched out. Bend your right knee. Now, gently drop it to the side like you would if you were trying to sit cross-legged. Bend your left knee. Now, slide your right foot under the left leg to bring your right heel towards your left buttock until you’re able to tuck your right foot under the left buttock. Place the left foot in front of or to the side of the right knee, whichever is comfortable. Twist your body leftwards and place the outside of your right elbow on the outside of the left knee to increase the stretch.

6. Naukasana: Sit on your mat with your legs stretched out. Keep your hands on the mat, next to your hips. Now lift both your legs to make a V with your body. Take the hands off the mat, stretch your arms towards your knees, but don’t touch or hold the knees. You should be making an inverted “A” with your body now.

7. Paschimottoasana: Sit down with your legs stretched out straight. Bend from your hips and extend your hands towards your toes, and touch them if you can. Over time, you’ll be able to touch your chest to your thighs.

Lying down poses

8. Pavanmukatasana: Lie down on your back. Lift your legs off the mat and bend your knees as you bring them close to your abdomen. Once the knees are within your reach, clasp the top of your shins or knees - whichever is more comfortable - with your hands. Bring your head up to touch the knees.

9. Ananda Balasana: Lie down on your back. Bend your knees and bring them close to your chest. Now keeping your arms between your legs, grab your toes with your index and middle fingers. Now begin to lift your legs until your arms are completely stretched out and your shins are perpendicular to the ground. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart.

Pranayama  

10. Anulom-vilom: Sit comfortably. This could be just cross-legged, with one leg over the other (sukhasana) or in padmasana, whatever works for you. Keep your eyes closed.  

Close the right nostril with your right thumb and take a deep breath through the left nostril. Now let go off the right nostril and close your left nostril with the little finger of your right hand. Exhale from the right nostril. Take a deep breath in with your right nostril. Let go off the left nostril, and close your right nostril with your right thumb. Exhale from the left. Repeat for two minutes.

Finishing up

11. End your yoga practice with savasana. Take as much time as you need, but no less than 5 minutes.

Health articles in Firstpost are written by myUpchar.com, India’s first and biggest resource for verified medical information. At myUpchar, researchers and journalists work with doctors to bring you information on all things health. To learn more about yoga and its benefits, please visit our section on   Yoga _._

This is the second story in this three-part series on yoga for sex. The   first story   talked about asanas that both men and women should do, and the third will be about asanas specifically for men.