“Surya Namaskar” is actually a Sanskrit term. It means offering prostrations (Namaskar) or obeisance to the Surya (sun).
Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutations’ procedure is to wake up before sunrise to do perform these exercises. It hardly matters when you do these exercises, but it is best done your stomach is empty.
Surya Namaskar consists of twelve yogic postures; one follows another, fixedly and cyclically for bringing good health and bodily processes like digestion, agility, and rejuvenation along with beauty & longevity. It reduces weightiness and trims down the waist. There is no need for any equipment. You just need a small open space from where you can sit on and can see the sun.
Steps of Surya Namaskar
What are the benefits of Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutations?
- These are the perfect combination of warm-ups and asanas.
- These postures are performed to keep your body fit and disease-free.
- Regular practice brings a high level of balance to the body.
- Sub Salutation helps in improving blood circulation and strengthens the functioning of the heart.
- It regularizes cardiovascular parameters like cystolic & diastolic blood pressure and pulse pressure.
- Practicing Surya Namaskar improves respiratory and pulmonary functions like forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume along with peak expiratory flow rate. These parameters ( inspiratory and expiratory) are monitored for accessing respiratory muscle weakness.
- It helps in stimulating hormones. Sun Salutation postures stimulate glands like the adrenal and pituitary glands that tend to maintain optimal secretion of the growth hormones. It also helps in stimulating thyroid glands and regulates menstrual cycles.
- Surya Namaskar Yoga postures involve consecutive elongation & compression of the body that includes the digestive tract organs. If these exercises are performed systematically on daily basis, it can be a great help in stimulating the digestive fluids and abdominal muscles giving rise to ease fecal excretion. It aids in relieving stress and regulates the interconnectedness among body, mind, breath, and spirit. It eases out overstrained or stressed muscles. Regular practice relieves stress and boosts energy levels.
- It tones up different body parts like the neck, spine, arms, hands, back, wrist, and leg muscles and promotes greater flexibility
- It also reduces cholesterol from the body and profound effect on skincare, body care, and hair care.
