Yoga is known to add many positive benefits to people’s health and wellbeing, but how about adding it to your nighttime routine? If sleep doesn’t come easy to you, bedtime yoga could be your solution to a good night’s rest. 

Here are a few poses to promote better quality sleep. 

1. Child’s Pose

The child’s pose is a nice way to gently stretch your body including your back, hips, thighs, and ankles. To peform this pose you, start by kneeling on the floor with your toes together and hips shoulder-width apart. While seated in that position, push your hips back and rest your chest between your thighs. 

To really feel the stretch, rest your forehead on the ground and expand your arms forward. Take slow and steady breaths through your nose—this is a great way to practice for diaphragmatic or belly breathing. Child’s pose is helpful for relieving stress and anxiety, easing tension in the joints, and warding off symptoms of insomnia. Perform this for about 3-5 minutes. Make sure you have a comfortable pair of yoga leggings so you’re not restricted and you can allow your body to fully stretch. 

2. Standing Forward Bend 

This pose should be entered with care and intention as you extend your entire body. Standing forward bend is not about stretching your fingers out to see if you can touch your toes. It’s about stretching your entire makeup of muscles and connective tissue. 

Begin by standing with your feet hip-width apart, taking a deep inhale. Bend at your hips as you exhale, and drop your torso forward. Grab the back of your legs to elongate your spine. Do this pose for about 10 to 15 deep breaths. This position helps calm your nervous system and relax the spine, neck, and shoulders. To enhance the pose, shake your head like you are responding to a yes or no question, this will help relax your neck muscles. 

3. Corpse Pose 

While the corpse pose looks simple, it’s said to be one of the most difficult poses because it can be a challenge to remain in a complete state of relaxation. To begin this pose, lie on your back with your legs straight out. Place your arms relaxed beside you with your palms facing up. Close your eyes and allow your body to relax.  

Focus on deep belly breaths and remain in this position for 5-10 minutes or for as long as you’d like. Corpse pose can help lower your blood pressure and heart rate, relieve tension, and promote relaxation before bed. To enhance this pose, try meditating during and at the end of your session. 

Each time you perform this pose your body will be conditioned to release stress by relaxing one body part at a time. It can also help improve your sense of physical and emotional well-being. Try doing a few other poses, then ending with corpse pose so that your body can relax after releasing of tightness and tension. 

You’ll never have another restless night with these yoga poses to promote a night of better sleep. To learn more tips and tricks to improve sleep quality and relax your mind before bed, check out the infographic below.