How to Improve Memory with Yoga and Meditation

For thousands of years, meditation has been practiced by people for their physical as well as mental well being. As per the researchers, meditation helps people in decreasing their anxiety and depression levels. With that, their pain tolerance also increases. Meditation helps in focusing on yourself by eliminating many thoughts apart from yourself. This process helps in memory improvement and self-awareness. 

With growing age and increased stress in life, your brain gets hampered by that. By meditating you can reboot your brain to its original state. 

Importance of concentration

Lack of attention leads to forgetfulness or partial remembrance of memories or information. There are a lot of barriers in your concentration levels, such as low willpower, low self-discipline, impatience, too much interest in other thoughts, tiredness, bad health, etc. 

How yoga improves your memory?

During meditation, you focus mainly on your breathing and the sensations in your body at that point in time. By doing so, your brain waves produce alpha waves, which helps in relaxing your mind. With regular practice, your brains can also produce gamma waves that help in developing deeper concentration. 

Apart from this, the different parts of your brain also improve their functioning. The premotor and the insular cortex, which is responsible for attention, control, awareness, thoughts, and emotions of your body, fire up. The more you meditate, the stronger these regions become. 

All these processes help in improving memory naturally.

Yoga poses for memory

Along with meditation, doing yoga poses starts the process of natural healing of your body and improved bodily functions. Let’s go through some poses which are beneficial for your memory. 

Easy pose (Sukhasana)

For the easy pose, sit on the mat with both legs stretched out in front. Bend your knees to sit in a crossed leg position with knees wide and relaxed. The inner arch of the feet is comfortably placed beneath the opposite shin. If you are unable to keep the spine straight or feel any pressure, use a folded blanket or meditation pillow to sit on. 

You can either rest your hands on the knees, palms down, or rest your hands in your lap, with the back of the right hand over the left palm. Sit straight and perform deep and controlled breathing. 

This yoga pose is perfect for relaxation, concentration, and meditation. Perform 10 counts of controlled and deep breathing while sitting in this pose.

Note: Knee pain and back pain patients must avoid this pose. You can sit on a chair instead and practice breath awareness. 

Seated forward bend (Paschimottanasana)

For a seated forward pose, sit on the mat with the leg stretched forward. Take a breath in and raise your arms upward. Clasp your hands and turn them up towards the ceiling. Take a few breaths here as you lengthen your spine and stretch. This is a great warm-up for your spine. 

Now release your hands and with the next exhalation, slowly begin to bend forward from your hips and try and bring your stomach to your thighs. This will help avoid a rounded upper back. If you can, grab your toes with your thumb, index finger and middle finger. Lengthen the spine with every exhalation and rest your face on the knees. Hold this posture for 10 to 30 seconds with gentle breathing. 

If you can not touch your toes, simply place your hands on the mat (next to your legs)  or hold any part of the leg you are able to reach comfortably – the knees, shin, or ankles. 

To release the posture, inhale and slowly bring your torso to an upright position and give your spine a good stretch by repeating the initial raised and clasped hands position.

Then bring your hands down and lie down on your back. Relax for a few minutes with deep breathing. This pose helps in making your brain calm, relieves stress, and mild depression. 

Note: Patients with back pain and hypertension must avoid this pose.

Plow pose (Halasana)

This is an inverted yoga pose and beginners are recommended to first practice this under an expert’s guidance. Lie on your back and relax on the mat with hands by your side. Breathe in and lift your legs towards the ceiling. Support your hips and lower back with your hands as you lift them off the mat. Continue to move your legs back and down, towards your head. 

Place your feet directly above your head, allowing your toes to touch the ground. Make sure you don’t bend your knees while doing this. To deepen the pose, you can let go of the hand support and stretch your arms behind the back. Breathe in slowly and concentrate on the pressure on the throat. 

After 10 to 15 seconds, bring your hands back to the hips for support and slowly go back to the shoulder stand position with your legs perpendicular to the floor. Breathe gently and relax your hands while lowering your legs to the mat. 

Roll your neck from left to right for a few seconds to release the accumulation of excess pressure in your neck. This pose helps in calming down your mind and helps in reducing stress. 

Note: Avoid this pose if you are suffering from shoulder injuries or neck pain. 

Hand to foot pose (Padahastasana)

Stand in a relaxing position with feet hip-width apart. Breathe in and raise your hands above your head. Clasp your hands and turn them up towards the ceiling and stretch the torso, similar to the warm-up in a seated forward bend. 

Release your hands and on the next exhale, lower your body from the hips as you bend forward with your arms in line with your ears. Keep the awareness on the length of the spine and place your palms on either side of the feet. To avoid rounding of the upper back, keep the stomach close to the thighs, bend your legs gently if need be and with every exhalation, work on straightening the legs and deepening the stretch while keeping your neck and shoulders relaxed.

Hold the pose for 7-10 breaths and to release, slowly come up as your inhale and go back to the initial hand raised position. Stretch and bring your hands down by your sides and relax. 

This pose helps in the healthy flow of blood towards your brain that helps in improved brain functioning. 

Thunderbolt pose (Vajrasana)

For thunderbolt pose, sit on the mat with legs stretched in front. Slowly bend your knees and sit up to come into the kneeling position. To get into Vajrasana, lower your body to sit back such that your buttocks rest on your heels and the thighs on your calf muscles.  

Try to keep the heels and big toes as close as possible, with the big toes touching each other. Place your hands on your knees, palms down, and take controlled and deep breaths in this posture. Maintain a straight spine. Keep your eyes closes and shift the awareness to your breath. You can hold this posture for 3 to 5 minutes. 

If you are unable to sit back, you can place a yoga block in between your feet to sit on. If you feel too much strain on the ankle, you can use a knee pillow to cushion the ankle. 

To come out of the posture, come back to your kneeling position and then sit on the mat with both the legs stretched forward. 

As per the studies, this asana helps in improving the concentration levels of the subjects. They showed improved performance in activities that needed high concentration levels. This posture is also suitable after meals as it helps in healthy digestion. 

You must choose a quiet and distraction-free place while practicing yoga and meditation. Also, the air in your surroundings must be pure. It is better if you practice these yoga poses early morning when the air is in its purest form. 

Having a controlled and focussed mind helps you in leading a healthy, successful, and long life. 

Author Bio:

Henna is a wellness lifestyle writer. She loves sharing her thoughts and personal experiences related to natural remedies, yoga, and fitness through her writing. She currently writes for How To Cure. She can connect with others experiencing health concerns and help them through their recovery journey through natural remedies.

Also read: https://www.juruyoga.com/yoga-for-surfers-beginners-guide/Image