Outside the windows, the temperature exceeds even 30 degrees C. Each of us is looking for ways to cool down and escape the tiring heat for a while. A special exercise derived from yoga can bring some relief.
- Shitali pranayama is a yoga exercise focused on breathing. On hot days, it helps to cool down the hot body
- Although its name sounds exotic, the exercise itself is not complicated and it shouldn’t be a problem for anyone to master it
- The key element of “cooling breath” is the proper tongue position
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Cooling exercise – how to do it?
When you feel that you are overheating too much, controlling your breathing can help. This is where yoga exercises come to the rescue.
Shitali pranayama, also known as sitali, is a short breathing exercise that, according to yoga teachers, calms the mind, emotions and body.. It is called cooling breath. “It has the power to cool down your body in minutes,” said Meera Watts, founder of Siddhi Yoga.
This exercise relaxes, improves digestion and removes toxins, strengthens immunity, lowers the temperature, works well with high pressure and elevated temperature. On hot days, it helps to cool down an overheated body.
How to do them?
First, we should assume a comfortable sitting position, with our back straight and hands in our lap. They can also be performed standing or lying down, it is important that the spine is straight.
Then we arrange the tongue in the shape of a tube, folding its outer parts inwards. We inhale slowly through our mouth, with a characteristic «sssss», and then exhale through our nose. The exercise is repeated five to eight times, the whole exercise should take about three minutes.
When someone is not allowed to fold their tongue into a tube shape, they may grit their teeth and press the tongue against them.
What else helps in the heat?
Exercise is not enough. On hot days, we should remember about the most important rules that will help you better withstand the worst moments.
It is primarily about regular hydration. You should drink much more water than on cooler days. Exactly how much should we drink? According to the American agency CDC, we should drink one glass of water every 15-20 minutes.
The diet should be light, based mainly on fruits and vegetables. We should also moisturize ourselves externally. Special cosmetics can help with this.
Clothing and footwear should be appropriate to the weather. On warm days, light, airy, natural fabrics are the best. We should change clothes when they get soaked with sweat. Wet clothes do not allow the body to cool down properly.
The Nuud brand offers Antiodorant, which is recommended as a revolution in personal hygiene. It does not prevent perspiration, but it makes the sweat odorless. You can buy it at Medonet Market.
During the hours of the most intense solar operation (between 11 and 15), we should limit going outside, and avoid excessive physical exertion. When we leave, it is imperative to use creams with a high protective filter, as well as sunglasses.
In turn, we should keep the rooms cool by covering the windows in the middle of the day.
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time, Olga Komorowska, sound therapist, voice trainer and singer, will talk about what sound therapy is all about. What are the benefits of “faking”, what is vibrotherapy and how is sound wave transmitted? You will find out by listening to the latest episode of our podcast.