Yoga can help you quit smoking. Try these asanas to get past the cravings, calm your nerves, open the lungs and improve circulation.
Camel Pose – Start by kneeling at the center of your yoga mat and slowly lean your head and upper body back and toward the ceiling. Find the position that makes you feel most comfortable, either with the hands on your lower back or reaching your feet. Breathe into this heart opening pose, which is also beneficial for the lungs.
Bow pose has a similar chest opening movement, but you are on your stomach. In this pose, you are on your stomach, with the front body lifted and the knees bent with the feet facing the sky. Your hands are reaching back and holding the feet or ankles. This pose opens and expands the lungs and the back bend releases tension.
Standing forward bend soothes and calms the mind and relaxes the body. Relax into your standing forward bend, let your neck and head be loose and breathe for thirty seconds or more.
Downward facing dog pose is one of the most common and well known yoga poses. Make sure your palms and feet are pressing firmly down on the mat and that your head is relaxed and loose. This pose has a calming effect on the mind and is often used for anxiety.
Savasana, or corpse pose, is an important part of any yoga practice, but has specific benefits for quitting smoking. Lying on your mat, you completely relax the body and release the tension from the muscles. One technique that many yoga teachers use is to remind you to tense and release each area of the body, starting at the feet and moving up through the body to the top of the head. By the time you are finished, all tension is released and you are completely relaxed. This is an excellent method for getting through those first most difficult days. In your home practice, spend some extra time in this pose for the calming benefits.
Breathe evenly throughout your practice and keep each inhalation and exhalation, slow and even. The length of each inhalation should be the same as each exhalation. This is very helpful for the momentary cravings. You can breathe your way through the craving, relaxing and focusing on the breathing. You don’t have to be on your mat to practice this technique when you are trying to quit smoking.