Yoga May Help Improve Sleep

Quick Win

Doing a few yoga poses before bed may calm your mind and relax your body.

Try This Today

• Poses that encourage the body to relax and sleep include bridge, supported fish, spinal twist and legs up the wall.
• Add breathing exercises​ ​to your yoga routine. These breathing techniques can calm the mind and lower your heart rate and blood pressure, which is ideal for sleep.
• If you have any mobility restrictions, try adaptive yoga, which you do sitting in a chair.

Why

Research shows a link between yoga and better sleep. In a study comparing 38 people who did daily yoga with 37 people who did no yoga, all ages 18 to 45, yoga practice reduced stress and improved sleep, cognitive function and quality of life, according to the 2023 report in the Journal of Education and Health Promotion. And a 2022 report in Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice found that in 200 people over 65, half who did two months of online ​h​atha yoga practice and half who did not, those who did yoga had lower depression, anxiety and stress and improved quality of sleep. Yoga may assist with sleep because mindfulness and breathing can help the mind and body relax.