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Frozen shoulders, brain fog, anxiety, body and joint pain, weight gain, plantar fasciitis. No, this isn’t a description of life without your regular yoga practice. All of these issues are associated with menopause.
Although menopause is defined as the moment that menstruation ceases, the transition (aka perimenopause) can take several years, generally occurring in women ages 45 to 55. Shifts in hormones, including estrogen (which regulates inflammation, bone health, and more) and progesterone (which affects sleep and mood), can trigger the above symptoms as well as mood swings, hot flashes, and more. So much more.
Jesi Mifsud, owner of Blue Door Yoga and Wellness, believes that adapting your routine to include yoga for menopause can make for a more bearable experience. In her role as a studio owner and yoga teacher, Mifsud offers classes and workshops designed to bolster women through all stages of menopause, from peri to post. “Managing stress and prioritizing sleep and movement are among the best ways to maintain balance throughout your menopausal years,” she says.
In her classes, for example, Mifsud incorporates more restorative poses, such as Legs Up the Wall and Child’s Pose, to calm the nervous system and improve sleep quality. She also offers slow and soothing rounds of Cat and Cow to help relieve joint pain and offer a welcome moving meditation.
She also likes to include two takes on Bridge Pose, which she says stimulate the thyroid and can potentially support hormonal regulation. “It also allows menopausal women to stretch out the front body, which can feel a bit alien if they are experiencing meno belly (a proliferation of fat around the internal organs),” she says.
A yoga practice that includes thoughtful, targeted poses can help support your changing body in myriad ways through perimenopause, menopause, and beyond.
Yoga for Menopause: 5 Low-to-the-Mat Moves
These shapes can be practiced alone or in sequence, for a few breaths or up to 20 minutes each. Mifsud recommends listening to your body—if you need to rock from side to side in Child’s Pose or throw on a guided meditation during Legs Up the Wall, feel free to follow that.
Legs Up the Wall
Sit with one of your hips flush against the baseboard of a wall. Pivot your body as you lower your back to the floor and swing your legs up the wall, scooching and adjusting your body until you’re comfortable, whether your sit bones are right up against the wall or slightly distanced Flex your feet and settle into the pose. Let the weight of your legs rest against the wall so you can feel supported rather than holding them in place. Stay here for 3-4 minutes.
To exit, roll into a fetal pose on the right side and slowly press yourself up to sitting.
Note: For those experiencing perimenopause, this pose (and all inversions, according to Ayurveda) are contraindicated during your period. Opt for Savasana.
Dynamic Bridge Pose
Start flat on your back with a block close by. Bend your knees and place the soles of your feet on the earth, hip-distance apart. Place your block between your inner thighs on the narrowest or middle setting, close to your pelvic floor.
On your inhalation, lift your hips, squeezing the glutes and the block. Breathe here. On your next inhalation, bring your arms overhead, palms facing the sky, and reach to the back of the room. On your exhalation, bring your arms back to your sides and your hips back to the earth.
Repeat 4 more times, moving dynamically with your breath.
Cow Pose
Start in Tabletop Pose with your wrists underneath your shoulders and your knees under your hips. Take a moment and look between your knees—you shouldn’t be able to see your shins or your feet. Press into the tops of your feet and spread your fingers wide.
On your inhalation, lift your sit bones, drawing your navel toward your spine as you arch your back. Drop your ribs and lengthen your chest forward, moving your shoulder blades down your back in Cow Pose. The last thing to lift is your chin.
Cat Pose
Exhale into Cat. Lengthen your tailbone toward the backs of your knees and round your back. Spread your shoulder blades apart. Let your chin come toward your chest as you press the mat away.
Move through 2-3 cycles with your breath.
Child’s Pose Side Bends
Take your knees wide and bring your big toes to touch. Bring your forehead to the mat and extend your arms straight in front of you. Spread your fingers wide. Pull your navel in and lengthen your sit bones toward your heels.
On your inhalation, walk your hands over to the left of your mat. Keep your hands shoulder distance apart and take a micro bend in your right elbow, sitting into your hips even more deeply. Take 4 full rounds of breath here. On your exhalation, walk your hands back to center. Take a full round of breath.
With an inhalation, walk your hands over to the right of your mat. Take 4 full rounds of breath here. On an exhalation, come back to center and take another round of breath.
Supported Bridge
Return to your Bridge Pose. Bend your knees and place the soles of your feet flat on the ground. Grab your block. On your inhalation, lift your hips and slide the block, either at the lowest or middle setting, beneath the sacrum. Settle onto the block. Allow your arms to come away from the torso, palms facing up or down. Stay here for at least 5 cycles of breath—or for several minutes, if you feel so inclined.