Yoga asanas to control heart disease risk factors

A recent study revealed that yoga can be helpful for those who have risk factors like obesity, cholesterol level, heart rate/minute for heart disease and want to manage them better.

How does yoga help improve heart health?

There are various asanas in yoga that work on breathing, improving circulation and lowering heart rate. Some of them facilitate strengthen heart muscles and also help regulate cholesterol and lipid levels in the body. Most importantly, by involving physical strength, it help you reduce weight, preventing and managing obesity which is one of the biggest risk factors for development of heart disease. According to the team of investigators, yoga works in the same way as physical activities like walking and biking. But people who cannot these activities due to limitations like joint pain can chose yoga instead to achieve similar benefits.

The study compared risk factors in those who performed yoga with those who did not . It was found that heart disease risk factors in those who did yoga improved compared to those who did not exercise. Their body weight fell by 2.32 kg, cholesterol levels dropped by 18.48 mg/dl and heart rate reduced by .27 beats per minute. Here another study proving yoga can help cut heart disease risk

So, which yoga asanas can you perform?

Veerabhadrasana: Also called the warrior pose, Veerbhadrasana works by improving balance and increasing you stamina. It reduces stress and induces a calming effect on your. This in turn works to keep your heart rate in check. It also helps weight loss and losing belly fat, in turn keeping the heart healthy.

Marjariasana

Also called the cat pose, Marjariasana helps the body relax to lower the heart rate and blood pressure.

SetuBandhasana

Also called the bridge's pose, this asana facilitates deep breathing, and improves blood flow to the heart. It helps keep your blood pressure under control. Here are 20 more yoga poses to keep your heart healthy

Image source: Getty images

With inputs from ANI

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