← Yoga & breathing

Unwind for sleep

A slow wind-down for the last half hour of the day, moving from gentle spinal movement into supported floor shapes and long, quiet exhales. Nothing here asks much of you, and that is the point: the aim is to let the nervous system change gear rather than to stretch or strengthen. Many people find a settled, repeatable routine at the same hour helps sleep arrive more easily.

20 min · 10 steps · Beginner · best before sleep · for insomnia, stress

See a clinician rather than practising if:
  • poor sleep persists beyond a few weeks despite a settled routine
  • you wake gasping, choking or with chest pain
  • you are very sleepy in the daytime or have been told you snore heavily and stop breathing

Before you start

  • dim the lights and put screens away first
  • a folded blanket, a cushion and a wall to rest the legs against
  • leave at least two hours after a heavy meal

0 of 10 done — tick each step as you go

  1. Cat–Cowमार्जरी–बितिलासन6 slow rounds

    let the breath lead the movement rather than the other way round

    Asana · blanket, chair · avoid with wrist injury · how to do it · watch

  2. Extended Child's Poseबालासन1 minute

    widen the knees and rest the forehead down

    Asana · bolster, blanket, block · avoid with knee injury, late pregnancy · how to do it

  3. Supine Spinal Twistसुप्त मत्स्येन्द्रासन1 minute each side

    keep the twist soft; a cushion between the knees makes it easier to stay

    Asana · bolster, blanket · avoid with acute disc injury or nerve pain travelling down the leg, recent abdominal or spinal surgery, second and third trimester of pregnancy (avoid lying flat and closed twists) · how to do it

  4. Happy Babyआनन्द बालासन1 minute

    hold the backs of the thighs if the feet are out of reach

    Asana · strap · avoid with recent hip or knee replacement, second and third trimester of pregnancy, acute sacroiliac or low back pain · how to do it

  5. Legs-Up-the-Wallविपरीत करणी3 minutes

    legs up the wall, hips a hand's width away from it

    Asana · wall, bolster, blanket · avoid with glaucoma, late pregnancy, neck injury · how to do it

  6. Reclining Bound Angleसुप्त बद्धकोणासन3 minutes

    support the outer thighs so the hips can let go completely

    Asana · bolster, blanket, block · avoid with knee/groin injury (support well) · how to do it

  7. Extended-exhale breathदीर्घ रेचक8 rounds

    make the out-breath a little longer than the in-breath, without straining

    Breath · avoid with shorten the exhale if the following inhale becomes a gasp, stop and breathe normally if you feel light-headed or tingly, not a replacement for prescribed blood-pressure or cardiac medication · how to do it

  8. Humming-bee breathभ्रामरी8 rounds

    a low, soft hum; feel it in the face and skull

    Breath · avoid with ear infection, avoid straining the voice · how to do it · watch

  9. So-ham breath awarenessअजपा जप2 minutes

    Breath · avoid with this is not breath control — never lengthen or force the breath, if watching the breath itself increases anxiety, rest attention on the sound or the body instead, long seated stillness can aggravate low back pain — use a chair or back support · how to do it

  10. Lie still and let the practice settle before you get into bed2 minutes

    Lie still and let the practice settle before you get into bed

Cautions for this sequence

  • come out of legs-up-the-wall slowly if you feel any pressure in the head or eyes
  • skip the supine twist if it pinches the low back; bend the knees more instead
  • in later pregnancy lie on your left side rather than flat on your back
Cautions carried in from the individual practices (20)
  • Cat–Cow — wrist injury
  • Extended Child's Pose — knee injury
  • Extended Child's Pose — late pregnancy
  • Supine Spinal Twist — acute disc injury or nerve pain travelling down the leg
  • Supine Spinal Twist — recent abdominal or spinal surgery
  • Supine Spinal Twist — second and third trimester of pregnancy (avoid lying flat and closed twists)
  • Happy Baby — recent hip or knee replacement
  • Happy Baby — second and third trimester of pregnancy
  • Happy Baby — acute sacroiliac or low back pain
  • Legs-Up-the-Wall — glaucoma
  • Legs-Up-the-Wall — neck injury
  • Reclining Bound Angle — knee/groin injury (support well)
  • Extended-exhale breath — shorten the exhale if the following inhale becomes a gasp
  • Extended-exhale breath — stop and breathe normally if you feel light-headed or tingly
  • Extended-exhale breath — not a replacement for prescribed blood-pressure or cardiac medication
  • Humming-bee breath — ear infection
  • Humming-bee breath — avoid straining the voice
  • So-ham breath awareness — this is not breath control — never lengthen or force the breath
  • So-ham breath awareness — if watching the breath itself increases anxiety, rest attention on the sound or the body instead
  • So-ham breath awareness — long seated stillness can aggravate low back pain — use a chair or back support

Classical references: Hatha Yoga Pradipika — 2.68 — bhramari and the quieting of the mind

Source: Ojastha editorial — classical hatha yoga and modern therapeutic yoga practice

Reviewed by hraovvs@gmail.com

Educational yoga and pranayama guidance, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, recovering from surgery or managing a diagnosed condition, check with your clinician and learn these practices with a qualified teacher.