Organic Yoga – Yoga for your organs
Our organs are influencing all the (physical, emotional and spiritual) processes happening in our body. In ORGANIC YOGA we are supporting our organs in their constant work through movement, stillness, stretching, compression, breath and mindfulness, so our body and mind can function on their best and our vital energy can flow effortlessly through the entire organism.
TIRED? ANXIOUS? STRESSED OUT?
Feeling constantly tired and experiencing anxieties or chronic stress in daily life is not an unusual condition in today’s society with increasing numbers of burnouts and breakdowns. But it is definitely a condition to take care of, a condition called adrenal fatigue. In fact it means literally that: your adrenal glands are exhausted from constantly producing stress hormones. What an inflamed situation for your body! Endocrine system out of balance, hormones all over the place, the body overwhelmed, because your adrenal glands make no difference between the kinds of stress you are facing throughout the day, whether it is a life-threatening situation or (most of the time) not. The adrenal glands are tiny – and still so powerful.
Now, what I find interesting is their location: they’re basically sitting on your kidneys and are relying on them.
TAKING CARE OF FLUIDS
So what are the kidneys actually doing? These two organs located on either side of your spine just beneath your last ribs are an essential part of the urinary system. They filter your blood and eliminate the extracted waste via bladder and urine. Furthermore they stabilize the balance of water and electrolytes.
The adrenal glands are smaller but their job is rather more complex. They are part of the endocrine system, which is a group of small organs responsible for hormone secretion into your bloodstream (your hormones regulate growth, development, metabolism, tissue function, mood, energy levels, sex drive and many other things). Together with the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland the adrenal glands are responding to stress and release stress-related hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones put your body into a state of readiness to react to extreme dangers – being confronted with a furious grizzly bear for example – by raising blood pressure and heart rate. A mechanism which can be lifesaving, but is contra-productive, if it turns into a constant condition, because your body can’t make the distinction between the threat of a grizzly bear and the threat of a deadline at work you’re struggling with. A condition, which cannot only lead to insomnia, weight gain and chronic fatigue, but can also be the cause for heart disease or even a stroke.
Apart from the general stress you might have, mismanaged blood sugar, inadequate sleep and lack of physical activity or muscle tightness are also stressors for your adrenal glands.
ENERGETIC CONNECTIONS
When looking at the energetic connections within the human body, I like to lean on the teachings of ancient medicines such as TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine). Your kidneys are connected to your bladder meridian (meridians are energetic channels running through your body, through which our vital energy is flowing). The energy is flowing down your backside through the bladder meridian along your spinal cord, all the way to your feet and then back up on your frontside through the kidney meridian. The bladder meridian is the ‘psychological connection to the organs’ and runs through the sacrum bone, which is the home of your vital energy, your battery. Imagine the flow of your vital energy while trying out the yoga poses below! Visualisation, attention and mindfulness are helpful tools for energetic work.
Furthermore the kidneys are connected to the tissues of bones and teeth.
Symptoms indicating an imbalance in your kidneys or kidney energy are swelling/digestive problems (lack of nutrients), back pain, ear problems, restlessness, sleeping issues, lack of energy, anxiety, pain along the spine or inner thighs, immobile legs/feet, feeling cold, lethargy or pain on the soles of your feet.
SUPPORT YOUR KIDNEYS AND ADRENALS
So what can you do to take better care of your kidneys and adrenal glands?
- get proper sleep and try to stick to regular sleeping patterns, do anything to get into a relaxed state before going to bed
- take breaks and make them real breaks, take time off your phone/computer/TV
- keep warm, especially on your feet and lower back area
- avoid extreme things, which provoke further production of stress hormones (adrenaline sports)
- stabilise blood sugar
- eat for your kidneys: black and dark foods such as black sesame, seaweed, dark root vegetables, raw cacao products, get enough healthy salt, use ginseng and goji berries
- reduce caffeine and sugar to a minimum to avoid extreme highs followed by extreme lows
YOGA FOR YOUR KIDNEYS
A yoga practice for your kidneys should be calm, restorative and comforting. Create a space for yourself, which makes you feel safe, stay in the following postures for several minutes, breathe deeply into your kidney area and try to completely let go. Slow breathing can have a tremendous effect on our nervous system, signalling our whole organism to calm down and release any stress, tension or worries.
Supta Baddha Konasana – Supported Reclining Bound Angle Pose
This is a great way to locate your kidneys and give them a slight compression to squeeze out any stale blood. Use a rolled up blanket or bolster beneath your lower back. Bring your soles of the feet together, let your knees fall apart and try to completely relax your hip joints. Grab the opposite elbows on top of your head for opening your ribcage and shoulders or choose a different arm position. Tune into the interconnectedness of your whole body.
Utthan Pristhasana – Lizzard Pose / Dragon
In this position we are addressing the energetic connection of the kidneys to the thighs. As you are trying to stay for a while, take time to find the good position for you! You might want to put a blanket underneath your back knee. Try stepping the front food a bit further front than usually (where it would be aligned with your knee) to avoid any pressure on your front knee. Find a comfortable position for your hands. Sink deeply into your hips, but rather go to a place, where you can still breathe and stay, than pushing yourself too far. Try to let go further with every exhalation.
Salamba Bhujangasana – Supported Sphinx Pose
Place a rolled up blanket or a pillow underneath your lower stomach on the height of your hipbones. Bring your elbows in alignment with your shoulder joints. Now activate your stomach as if you were trying to take your belly button off the blanket in order to lengthen your lower back. Apply slight pressure into your feet to activate your hamstrings. Slide your sternum forward through your shoulders. Again you’re just gently compressing your kidneys. Additionally you’re having a slight opening of your chest and a gentle activation of the lymphatic system by having the compression of your support on the lymph nodes in your lower stomach area.
Balasana – Child’s Pose
This is for sure one of the most restorative postures for both mind and body. It’s gently opening your hips, comforting your organs, relaxing your back and supplying your brain with fresh blood. Try to sink into the floor, let go of any tensions and breathe deeply into your back.
Paschimottanasana – Seated Forward Bend
In this relaxed version let your head hang forward and let gravity work for you. There’s nothing to force, nothing to pull, simply try to relax and breathe into your kidneys. They are getting a gentle stretch. I recommend sitting on a small support to make the stretching of the legs easier. Forward bends can be very confrontational, observe what comes up when you stay for longer than usual.
Finish your session by spreading legs and arms on the floor and relaxing in Savasana – Dead Body Pose, try to find complete stillness for 10 minutes or longer. This is the moment, when your heart can pump the blood effortlessly through the body and all the postures done before are having their effects.