Regular practice can get rid of unwieldy weight and help you get a shapely form, says yoga expert Kamini Bobde
Nature is sensible but not necessarily in tune with the latest beauty trends. In preparation for women to be mothers, it increases the deposit of fat cells in their hips, thigh and chest area from the age of eight to adolescence through a manipulation of hormones in the body. Be that as it may, it’s not as if women have to live with fat thighs and hips.
A practical regime of diet and exercise can get these parts into better shape. Feeding babies during lactation also helps reduce fat in these areas as the body sources energy from the excess fat from here. And yoga has simple asanas which directly target the excess weight in the inside, outside of the thighs besides the hips area.
This asana and the variation given below directly impact the hip area and thighs. They help reduce excess weight in these areas, make them flexible and bring better gait and balance.
- Lie down on the right side of your body such that your left leg and left hand are directly over your right leg and right arm respectively and you are looking forward.
- Join the palms in prayer pose.
- Balance the body on the side.
- Inhale, raise your left leg, keeping your knee straight and simultaneously raising your left arm up so that you can hold your left toe with your left hand. Initially, if you are not able to do this, then just touch your left fingers at some point on the left leg.
- Exhale and come back to the starting position.
- This is one round.
- Do a minimum of five rounds and with gradual practice, you can build it to 10 rounds if a lot of fat needs to be worked on.
- Do the same lying down on your left side.
The above will address the excess weight on the outside of your thighs. The asana given below is quite similar and will address the excess fat in the inside of your thighs.
- You begin with lying down on your side, same as in the above asana.
- The only change is that you fold your right elbow and prop your head on the palms of your right hand. Left hand is at rest on the left thigh.
- This is the starting position.
- Inhale and raise your left leg to the maximum without bending your knees.
- Simultaneously stretch your left arm to hold your left leg’s toes or any point on the left leg to begin with.
- Exhale and come back to the starting position.
- This is one round.
- As above, do five rounds but if necessary, you can do up to 10 rounds if required after some initial practice.
These asanas, when done with leg rotation, cycling and suryanamaskar, help in metabolising the fat even better and faster. Stress can result in compulsive eating. Practise Shavasana to address this issue.
Assist this regime with a diet of nuts, chia, pumpkin, etc seeds, millets, lean protein, fat free milk and cut down drastically on sugar, salt, fried and fast foods.
