Yoga For Stress Relief - Hastotanasana

Hastotanasana is an effective pranayama practice for stress relief. To practice this pranayam, one needs to hold hands with crossed thumbs and join feet. Body needs to be erect. Move your hands upwards steadily and exhale. The next step is spreading hands and taking them down to shoulder level, where they are held for a while. Thereafter, return to the initial position, where you need to breathe completely before repeating the process. 5 repetitions are recommended for beginners, but you can take it to 10 repetitions gradually. Among benefits rendered by hastotanasana are stress relief, relaxed shoulders/back and improved brain functioning with increased supply of oxygen.