Bhastrika

Do you ever feel tired without any reason? Would you rather charge yourself up and boost your energy rather than lying down on the couch? Then bhastrika pranayama would definitely be your cup of tea.

What Is Bhastrika Pranayama?

Bhastrika pranayama is a unique yet powerful breathing technique that fuses tremendous energy in your being so that you feel charged up. It is a kind of cleansing practice that clears the passageways of your body and makes you feel energetic and strong.
In this pranayama, you enhance the yogic breath of fire by rapidly inhaling and exhaling your breath combined with certain body movements. Also known as bellows breathing, this exercise will boost your body with a sudden rush of energy. So the moment you feel that you are low on energy, then remember that bhastrika pranayama will come to your rescue.

The Science Of Bhastrika Pranayama

Have you ever experienced that you get out of breath while doing certain vigorous exercises? Does it happen that you are unable to complete an exercise session due to fatigue and tiredness? So what is the reason behind all this?
When you expose yourself to certain vigorous exercises that your body is not ready to cope up with, it sends certain signals to the brain and demands more oxygen to complete the functions. As a result, you start breathing heavily to get more oxygen and the heart starts pumping faster in order to match the pace of your breathing.
This may often result in higher heart rate that may prove to be dangerous for your health in the long run. So how can you increase your stamina and stop this disorganized behavior of your body? By regularly practicing bhastrika pranayama that will regulate your heart rate and control your breathing as well.
Bhastrika pranayama clears the blockages of the body and increases your oxygen levels so as to energize your body. Just like bellows it pumps up a lot of air using the diaphragm and the abdominal muscles to release extreme amounts of energy that boost up your stamina as well as your immune system.

How To Perform Bhastrika Pranayama?

Bhastrika pranayama can be practiced at any time of the day but keep in mind that you can do it only with an empty stomach. Since it creates pressure on the abdominal organs, pregnant and menstruating women along with hernia, heart problems and high blood pressure must avoid this practice.
There are certain bhastrika pranayama steps that must be followed in a sequential order to perform this procedure successfully:

First of all you must sit in a comfortable position preferably in vajrasana or sukhasana.
Keep your spine straight and fold your fingers into a fist placing them at the sides of your shoulders. Just like you are about to lift some dumbbells.
Take a deep breath and raise your hands and open your fists in the air.

Breathe out with slight force initially (you can create your own pace with some practice), and bring your hands in the same position by the side of your shoulders with closed fists.
Continue with the procedure for 20 breaths. This would complete one round of bhastrika pranayama. For effective results, you must do at least 2-3 rounds at a single go with some rest in between the rounds.
You can perfect this pranayama with time by practicing it regularly and putting in all your efforts as this would purify your body, boost up your stamina and energize every cell of your body and awaken your powers.

Benefits Of Bhastrika Pranayama:-

You may feel at the initial level that bhastrika pranayama is a challenging breathing technique but with time you will be able to perfect it and it will prove to be very effective for you in the long run. There are various bhastrika pranayama benefits and some of them are as follows:

It energizes the mind and body in such a way that you feel fresh and active at all times.
With the help of this pranayama, you will be able to detoxify your body by expelling out the impurities by breathing out forcefully.
It enhances the functioning of the respiratory system and maximizes the capacity of lungs to inhale and exhale the air in a better manner.
It balances the doshas of the body and restores the energy that is lost from within the body.
A regular practice of bhastrika pranayama can improve the functioning of your digestive system as well and also help in getting rid of digestion problems.

Therefore, we may conclude that by mastering the art of bhastrika pranayama you can control the flow of energy in your body and retrieve it whenever you feel low and tired so as to strengthen your stamina and improve upon your overall well-being.