Headstand Benefits: 40 Plus Women, Here's Why You Should Be Doing Inversions Every Day

Ladies, if you are 40 plus, then you must pay attention to this. There are a few lifestyle measures that you must follow in order to prevent early ageing. These include not just regular exercise, less stress, good sleep and a healthy diet, but also practicing regular inversion poses such as headstands as part of your yoga practice. Celebrity nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar recently took to Instagram to share a video of her doing inversions. In her post, Rujuta talks about inversions, and how Karin O Banon, one of her yoga teachers at Iyengar Yoga, recommends women over the age of 40 to do inversions daily.

What are inversions?

Inversions are referred to asanas in yoga that require a person to go upside down. Handstand and headstand are two very popular inversion poses. These inversions require the hips to go higher than the heart, and the heart to higher than the head. There's an inversion for every level in yoga.

There is an inversion pose for every level in yoga
Photo Credit: iStock

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Headstands benefits: Benefits of inversions and how to do them without falling

Apart from preventing premature ageing, inversions help 40 plus women become more self-aware. Rujuta, while referring to her teacher, writes that by the time women approach 40, they realise that they have spent a lifetime being good and obedient. But in this process, they ended up losing their true selves. This is something which even reflected in their yoga practice - where most of them are good with doing the forward bending poses, but fearful of doing inversions.

The fear for doing inversions is mostly because of the fear of having a poor core strength to be able to hold themselves against conditioning like gravity.

Well, the trick to perform inversion is simply-one step at a time. Initially you will be afraid of falls and might not be able told hold more than 10 seconds or even lesser. But it will teach you to engage your muscles. With regular practice, 40 plus women can do inversion with better confidence and definitely improved strength. And not just for 40 plus, inversions done at any age can be beneficial for you.

Watch the video below to see how Rujuta does an inversion pose. Follow the instructions she gives carefully, to prevent falls and injuries. Beginners must not perform it without the supervision of a yoga teacher.

View this post on Instagram

A short video to learn basics of inversions - When we turn 40, we often wonder if we must do something special or different to ensure that we don't pre-maturely age. Here's an interesting take that one of my #iyengaryoga teachers, #KarinOBanon had on it. According to her, all women must practice inversions daily after they turn 40. Because most times, as women approach 40 they realise that they have spent a lifetime being good, obedient girls, but in the process, may have lost out on their true-selves. This, according to her, even reflected in their asana practice – being good with forward bends but fearful of inversions. Fearful of using their own inner strength (core strength) to hold themselves up against convention or conditioning (gravity in this case). However, #Iyengaryoga has multiple ways to learn inversions, a step at a time. It might not give you the instant thrill of an upside – down, but teaches you how to engage which muscle. That way when you go against the norm or gravity, you are still safe, secure and graceful. Note – Of course, you don't have to wait to turn 40. The earlier you learn inversions, the better it is. #NationalSportsday #fitindiamovement

A post shared by Rujuta Diwekar (@rujuta.diwekar) on Aug 29, 2019 at 4:11am PDT

Also read: From Diabetes To Thyroid, This Yoga Asana Has Numerous Health Benefits That You Can Bank On: Try It Today To Get Ready For The Weekend!

Following are some of the health benefits of doing inversions regularly:

1. Inversions are great for improving core strength. The body relies on upper body strength for doing inversions. And in order to hold on to an inversion pose, your core muscles must be engaged at all times. Also doing their hard work in holding the pose are your arms.

2. It improves blood circulation. Going upside down by doing inversions reverses blood flow and increases blood circulation in all parts of the body, especially to the brain. As the blood rushes to your head, it provides the brain with more oxygen and improves cognitive function.

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3. Inversions help in detoxification of the body: Inversion help in stimulating the lymphatic system - which comprises a chain of tissues and organs in immune system. The lymphatic system is responsible for removing toxins from the body and improving balance of the immune system and fluid balance. Inversions facilitate flow of lymph to the lungs, where toxins and mucus are found.

4. Inversions boost energy. It stimulates blood flow in the entire body and gives a boost to energy. They are also great for making you more alert and improving your focus.

5. Inversions also stimulate the pituitary gland, which is the body's major endocrine gland - the one that controls growth and development. The yoga asana can also stimulate cerebrospinal fluid of the central nervous system, thus improving its overall functioning.

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.