Get Your Asana To Bed - The Yoga of Sleeping - by Mehtab, Yoga Yoga's Founder

If you have been practicing yoga for very long, you already know that it helps you sleep better at night. There are dozen of scientific research papers published on the effectiveness of yoga in reducing insomnia and aiding in other sleep disorders.

But did you know that there is also a yogic way to go to sleep?

The preparation for sleeping begins before sunset for the yogi. Ideally, all large meals are consumed before the sun sets and at least 3 to 4 hours before bedtime. Eating late at night disturbs the deep rest of sleep and also makes it more difficult to wake up early in the morning (the best time of day for a yoga practice!).

Another benefit of eating before sunset is that the body's metabolism is more effective while digesting and using food so less gets stored as fat reserves. So a simple yogic way to normalize your weight is to just not eat after dark - you will often lose unneeded weight by just this simple practice!

In the hours immediately before bedtime, yoga practices will tend toward the relaxing and soothing postures of forward bends or inversions and less on the energizing standing and back bending postures. Breathing exercises that emphasize long exhales, or alternate nostril breathing, will also tend to help produce a restful sleep. A before bedtime meditation practice is very effective in clearing the subconscious so less energy (yes, energy!) is expended on dreaming.

(I was astonished to discover that my teacher, Yogi Bhajan, the master teacher of Kundalini Yoga, never recalled dreaming in his life because of his developed meditation practice.)

Cleaning the body of the day's energies with a shower or bath and maybe the application of naturally scented oil helps prepare the body for sleep. Yogis often favor Sandalwood Oil for its fragrant abilities to soothe and elevate the mind. If a shower or bath is not possible, then at least washing the feet is essential for clearing the nervous system. Combing or brushing the hair out also rebalances the body's electromagnetic field before bedtime.

Typically, yoga practitioners will go to bed as much as possible before midnight (and ideally before 10 PM) as this is the natural time for the body to shift into relaxation. Staying up after 10 or 11 PM will tend to give the body its "second wind" and the mind may become too active to sleep easily. Sleeping before midnight is more restorative than the hours slept after midnight.

Resting on the right side of the body before going to sleep will create a natural stage of relaxation as the left nostril will open and become dominant in that position. (The opposite nostril to the side you lie on will open more deeply due to the acupressure points being massaged.)

Scientists discovered what the yogis already knew: When you breathe predominantly through the left nostril, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system for deep relaxation.

The other way to use yoga to trigger your natural sleep cycle is to consciously lengthen your exhalations while resting in bed. If you listen to a sleeping person, you will hear a longer exhale than inhale as this sends a signal to the body to relax.

The body also has a natural awakening cycle, ideally sometime before sunrise when it shifts from a relaxation to an elimination phase. Sleeping much after sunrise will make the mind less alert and the body more toxic.

Interestingly enough, the pituitary gland is instrumental in the awakening process and it also becomes more active as your meditation practice deepens. Long time mediators will begin to naturally awaken between 3:30 to 4:30 AM for meditation as the activated pituitary gland releases its secretions into the bloodstream.

So sleeping like a yogi is actually pretty simple - it's just like your momma said: Eat your dinner (early), take your bath, and get to bed.