Nadi Shodhan Pranayama: An Approach To Inner Calmness

In my second post of the breathing exercises series, I will be covering nadi shodhan pranayama (anulom-vilom) and how it helps manage anxiety, stress, and exhaustion.

Nadi shodhan pranayama is a popular breathing exercise in yoga used to help us work towards improving our mental health and wellness. Usually, it is recommended that this exercise is done for 5-10 minutes daily to reap its benefits. There are no restrictions on when the exercise can be performed; however, it's recommended that this exercise is performed on an empty stomach to avoid discomfort.

The best part about anulom-vilom is that learning it is easy: the process is simple and cyclic, which makes it about a 2-5 minutes learning process for someone unfamiliar with it. To learn and perform this exercise, follow these steps: place your thumb on your right nostril and breathe in with your left nostril; following this, place your index and middle finger on your left nostril, and exhale and inhale from your right nostril; and finally, place your thumb on your right nostril once more and exhale from your left. This constitutes one round of nadi shodhan pranayama, and you can continue to perform multiple rounds of this pranayama by using these steps.

Such a simple yet powerful breathing technique helps us improve our mental wellness because it calms and centers our mind, while also releasing the accumulated stress present in our body. The latter plays a big role in the anxiety and fatigue we experience; and alleviating these symptoms plays a big role in improving your mental health. Plus, I believe anulom-vilom is a great way to start your day stress-free.

To my readers: here's a challenge for you. I've covered a couple of breathing exercises now, so in honour of International Yoga Day, try to pick your favourite breathing exercise and learn it! It's not only a fun way to kill 5-10 minutes when you're bored, but also a great way to destress/decompress in the middle of the day (or at the end of it!). Happy International Yoga Day, and see you in the next post!