Leg Drain Exercise Where You Lift Your Legs Up

By Sarah Stachnik
July 21, 2016

How This Helps

Leg Drains are a simple rejuvenation technique that has many benefits: increases circulation and lymphatic stimulation decreases inflammation in the feet, legs & hips, reduces chances of developing varicose veins, stimulates the digestive tract, as well as increases energy and vitality.

Science and Research

Leg Drains can be performed after a workout cool down, or whenever your legs need a little kick start. Leg drains should also be implemented if you stand for work or long periods of time.

How to position into a leg drain:

Find a spot on a wall that is obstacle-free from hip height to the floor. Sit facing the wall then lay on your back and place your feet on the wall. Scoot and swivel yourself closer to the wall until your legs are flush against the wall. Remain in this position for 3-5 minutes. Tingling in the toes and feet are common. Once complete, slowly return your legs to the floor and slowly sit up. Standing too quickly can cause light-headedness. This is an easy exercise for legs for women that can be done at home as well.

What are leg drains?

Leg drains use Legs Up the Wall position is precisely what it states. You have to lie on your back with your sit-bones as near the wall as is comfortable for you. From there, you stretch your legs up the wall, so the backs of your legs are resting completely against it. In more curative variations of the posture, you might have blocks below your hips to lift them, creating a small inversion on your lower abdomen, and a strap securing your legs together so you could fully relax and release to the pose, without needing to apply effort to hold up your legs.

Benefits of leg drains

The advantages are enormous for a simple exercise. With yogic roots, leg drains are known as Viparita Karani, which literally means “inverted in action” in Sanskrit. The present helps reverse the normal actions that occur in our lower bodies as we sit and sit all day. And it’s especially handy right after you move about for a workout.

It’s ideal to do this move when possible after a workout because your legs warmed up and your veins dilated will make flow to the rest of your body easier. Essentially, this inverted pose helps your general recovery by draining fluids that are pooling in your legs. At the same time, it helps in stretching your hamstrings and relieving a worn-out lower body. For the most benefit, practice this pose for 15 minutes. It’ll help you to get started and become more comfortable as you hang out in the Legs Up the Wall pose. Some health benefits of the calming yoga posture are listed below.

– Relieves tired leg muscles.

Exercising with your legs up the wall is among the best ways to help drain strain in the legs, feet, and even the hips if you’ve got them raised on cubes. If you give yourself an elongated period of time to permit your body to unwind in the posture, you’ll realize that tired, sore legs will feel a good deal better when you come out of your posture. It provides you all of the benefits of inversion, without the skill or practice needed for the pose.

You probably know how great inversions are for you now –they can help reverse the effects of gravity on the entire system, help regulate blood pressure, help move stuck fluids, and help to enhance your digestion. However, at times the lively expressions of inversions such as Handstand are too much. When you want an easy posture, that’s where Legs Up the Wall comes in. You will still be getting lots of the benefits of having an active inversion, while also fully resting and surrendering.

– Calm the nervous system.

This posture is meant to be a profoundly relaxing pose. When you combine a longer grasp of Legs Up the Wall with slow, rhythmic breathing, then you’ll be tapping into your “rest and digest” nervous reaction. In this condition, your body will be actively digesting whatever you’ve eaten, in addition to working to heal and repair your body. When you do poses such as Legs Up the Wall consistently for a time period, you might realize that your body feels healthy overall and that you’re better able to discover a calm frame of mind.

– Reduces edema.

By providing negative gravity on your feet and legs, you can really help move any stagnant fluids build up in case you’ve got low blood pressure, or invest plenty of time on your feet throughout daily. In this posture, you’ll use gravity to your benefit.

– Calms the mind.

As stated in the point above, this posture may help you cultivate a calm mind if you practice it for a time period. By completely releasing and relaxing your body and by focusing on deep breathing, you may evoke a meditative state.

Possessing the body feel secure and supported is just one of those tools that we as yogis use to help reach this calm state.

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