Yoga for Immune Support for Cold & Flu Season
Yoga for Immune Support for Cold & Flu Season
By JJ Gormley, MS, C-IAYT, E-RYT, CN
Yoga can be valuable in supporting the immune system and helping the body stay resilient during cold and flu season. Specific yoga practices, including postures, breathwork, and relaxation techniques, can enhance immune function by reducing stress, improving circulation, and promoting detoxification. Yoga promotes better respiratory health and boosts overall vitality, which helps the body fend off infections more effectively.
Because our posture tends to hunch toward the fetal position when we don’t feel well, paying attention to your posture can help your body “think” it is better than it feels. So, psyche your body out by not hunching when you feel bad, sit straight, and breathe deeply. Yoga postures improve blood flow, which helps deliver oxygen and nutrients to the body's cells and remove toxins. This supports immune system function by promoting better circulation of white blood cells. Chronic stress weakens the immune system by increasing the production of cortisol, a stress hormone that suppresses immune function. Yoga helps reduce stress through physical movement, mindfulness, and breathwork.
For example, Standing Forward Bend (Uttanasana) helps promote circulation to the head and sinuses, which can help clear congestion. It also stimulates the nervous system, reducing stress. Moving in and out of the pose dynamically may be better than staying in the pose if the sinuses are blocked or clogged, so move dynamically if staying in the posture makes things feel worse.
Bring more mindfulness to a pose like the Cat-Cow Pose (Chakrasana). Most of us do this pose with little attention to our breath. Bringing awareness to the coordination of the breath with the movement can make the pose more mindful. If you already link movement with breath, try this breathing pattern to make it even more mindful. Inhale, expand the ribcage, then exhale from the belly area first. This gentle flow between spinal flexion and extension stimulates the lungs and improves mobility in the spine, promoting circulation and reducing stress. Start on hands and knees in a tabletop position. Inhale into the ribcage as you arch your back into a backbend (Cow Pose) and exhale from the belly as you round your spine (Cat Pose). Move fluidly with your breath for six to ten repetitions. While inhaling into the ribcage, keep the belly between the hip points toned so that the breath does not move the belly area and weaken the lower back.
Try a pose like Bridge Pose (Dwi Pada Pitham), which opens the chest, stimulates the lungs, and improves circulation. It also energizes the body and relieves stress, which supports immune function. Moving in and out of the pose dynamically with the breath makes the pose more mindful. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Start establishing this breath pattern: inhale, expand the ribcage, and exhale from the belly area first. Once the breath pattern is established begin to move in and out of the pose dynamically with the breath. Press into your feet and lift your hips toward the ceiling. Lift from the hip points on the front of the pelvis rather than the tailbone. Lift into the pose on an inhale in the ribcage and exhale from the belly when returning to the floor.
Yoga poses can help stimulate the lymphatic system. Many yoga poses promote the movement of lymph fluid, which helps detoxify the body and fight infections. The lymphatic system plays a crucial role in immune defense by carrying immune cells throughout the body. Quick movements help move lymph, shake your hands, shake a leg, or lie on your back and shake all your limbs in the air. You can also pound your hands or fists on the chest to help stimulate the thymus gland (part of the immune system).
An essential breath that helps the lymphatic system is called Kapalabhati (skull shining) because the breath heats the body to the point of gentle perspiration. I will describe the breath here, but it is essential to do this breath without the body shortening in height, so watch yourself in a mirror to ensure you do not compress your spine when doing this breath. This is one of the “breaths of fire” in yoga, which is quite popular as a cleanse or detoxification. Begin with ordinary inhales and exhales, explore not taking in a full inhalation but rather filling what feels like the halfway point, then exhaling with a force from the belly pulling in. Relax the belly and allow the inhale to come in gently, not pulled in. Repeat another belly pulling in, forcing the breath out, and another gentle inhale coming in. Start with about ten of these, then resume normal breathing. Consider this one cycle and repeat the cycle another two to three times, with normal breathing in between.
Breathwork and specific poses can improve respiratory function and enhance the body's ability to fight off respiratory infections like colds and flu. Seek a qualified yoga therapist who can develop a breathwork plan with specific poses just for you. Get this started before you get a cold or flu, and you might stay strong enough to avoid getting it all this season.
A well-functioning digestive system is critical for immune health. Yoga poses that twist and compress the abdomen stimulate digestive organs, helping with detoxification and nutrient absorption. Combining this with eating a nutritious diet can help your immune system to be strong and more able to fight off an infection.
Get enough sleep and rest during the fall and winter months. This is the time of year when we are supposed to be slowing down and resting more. If you cannot find time to sleep longer, try a pose such as Legs Up the Wall (Viparita Karani). This restorative pose helps lymphatic fluid drain more efficiently and reduces stress. It also promotes relaxation and recovery, essential for maintaining a healthy immune system. Lie on your back with your legs resting vertically against a wall. Relax your arms by your sides and focus on deep breathing. Stay in this pose for 5-10 minutes. If your sinuses are too congested to lie flat on your back, consider propping yourself up so your body is at a slant, reclining with the head higher than the hips, with the legs up the wall. I like to do this pose on the floor by the bed and put my legs up on the side of the bed and out wide to open my hips. If my sinuses are clogged, I can prop my torso and head up with pillows (or a yoga bolster). The pose works wonders, and in just a few minutes, the body feels like it has gotten an extra hour of sleep.
Another restorative pose, Reclining Bound Angle Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana), opens the chest and hips, encourages deep breathing, and reduces tension in the body, making it ideal for supporting the immune system and relaxation. Try this one instead of a nap. Do this one with the support of cushions or blankets. Lie your back on a reclined slant using a bolster or pillows to prop yourself up on an incline (head higher than the hips), and bring the soles of your feet together with the knees out wide. Take a rolled blanket, place it over your feet, and bring it around the lower legs (your shins) as you lie back on your supported incline. Let your knees fall outward, supported by the rolled blanket. Breathe deeply for several minutes. Opening the hips is related to a freely moving diaphragm, so this pose helps the respiratory system.
Breathwork like Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breathing) is a calming and balancing technique that helps reduce stress, balance the nervous system, and enhance respiratory function. Sit comfortably and use your thumb to close one nostril and your ring finger to close the other (alternately). Begin by exhaling and then inhaling through the left nostril. Then switch and exhale and inhale through the right. Continue this pattern for several cycles. If one side feels more blocked, try only breathing in and out that side to see if it will begin to open up more. If it is too blocked to even attempt to breathe in, you might try a saline nasal wash. They now have these on the market, readily available in the pharmacy department, but traditionally, yogis made their own saline rinse and poured it in through one nostril, letting it drain out the other nostril. Hold your head over your sink with the forehead higher than the chin. Make a lightly salted, warm water concoction and use a paper cup that many keep on hand at the bathroom sink. The paper ones can be pinched to form a spout. Pour a little water at a time into one nostril (head tilted to one side, with one nostril up toward the ceiling and the other down toward the sink). Let the water go out the other side or down the throat and spit into the sink. Do both sides as needed; if any solution is left, use it to gargle.
Other cold and flu prevention tips include drinking plenty of water, herbal teas, and warm fluids to stay hydrated and support immune function. Consume fresh, nutrient-dense foods that support the immune system, including fruits, vegetables, and foods rich in vitamins C, D, and zinc. Rest is crucial for immune health. Incorporate restorative yoga practices to enhance sleep quality. Regular yoga practice, even in gentle or restorative forms, can keep the immune system strong throughout the year.
Yoga therapy, incorporating physical postures, breathwork, relaxation techniques, and mindful living, can offer significant immune support, especially during cold and flu season. By reducing stress, improving circulation, and enhancing respiratory health, yoga helps build a resilient immune system capable of warding off illness and promoting overall vitality.
As an herbalist, I can also recommend herbs and other supplements that are my “go-to” items when I feel sick. Feel free to email me to schedule an appointment to plan your breath and asana practice and learn other ways to prepare for cold and flu season.