When your body is under stress, it physically “armors” itself by tightening the jaw, shrugging the shoulders, and clenching the hips. To release this, you need poses that utilize long holds and gravity to melt that tension away.
Here are the top 11 poses to physically and mentally decompress.
1. Wide-Legged Child’s Pose (Balasana)
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The Target: Lower back and inner hips.
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How: Take your knees wide to the edges of your mat. Let your belly sink between your thighs and rest your forehead heavily on the floor.
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Tension Release: It creates a “cocoon” effect that immediately lowers cortisol levels.
2. Ragdoll Pose (Uttanasana variation)
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The Target: Neck, shoulders, and hamstrings.
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How: Stand with feet wide, bend your knees deeply, and grab opposite elbows. Let your head hang like a heavy bowling ball.
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Tension Release: Gravity pulls the vertebrae apart, releasing “weight” from the upper back.
3. Thread the Needle (Parsva Balasana)
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The Target: Between the shoulder blades (the “stress knots”).
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How: From all fours, slide one arm under the other until your shoulder rests on the mat.
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Tension Release: It releases the rhomboids and upper traps where most people carry their “to-do list” stress.
4. Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana)
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The Target: Deep glutes and psoas (the “emotional storage” muscles).
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How: Bring one knee forward behind your wrist and extend the other leg back. Fold forward over the front shin.
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Tension Release: Hips are chemically linked to the “fight or flight” response; opening them signals the body to relax.
5. Sphinx Pose (Salamba Bhujangasana)
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The Target: Chest and lower spine.
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How: Lie on your stomach, propped up on your forearms. Gently pull your chest forward through your arms.
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Tension Release: Counteracts the “crunched” posture from looking at phones or laptops.
6. Puppy Pose (Anahatasana)
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The Target: Heart, chest, and armpits.
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How: Keep your hips over your knees but walk your hands far forward until your chest or chin touches the mat.
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Tension Release: Known as “Heart Melting Pose,” it opens the front body which we often “close off” when feeling defensive or stressed.
7. Supine Spinal Twist (Supta Matsyendrasana)
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The Target: The entire spinal column and obliques.
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How: Lying on your back, hug one knee in and drop it across your body to the opposite side.
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Tension Release: It “neutralizes” the spine and helps release tension in the mid-back and ribs.
8. Cow Face Arms (Gomukhasana arms)
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The Target: Rotator cuffs and triceps.
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How: Reach one arm up and over, the other down and back, trying to clasp hands behind your back (use a towel if you can’t reach).
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Tension Release: Flushes out tension from the small muscles around the shoulder joints.
9. Reclined Butterfly (Supta Baddha Konasana)
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The Target: Inner thighs and pelvic floor.
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How: Lie on your back, bring soles of feet together, and let your knees fall open like a book.
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Tension Release: This is a “vulnerable” pose that teaches the body to release the habit of clenching the inner thighs.
10. Legs-Up-The-Wall (Viparita Karani)
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The Target: Nervous system and circulatory system.
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How: Scoot your sit-bones to a wall and rest your legs vertically.
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Tension Release: The “anti-gravity” effect allows the heart to rest and the brain to receive fresh, oxygenated blood.
11. Savasana with an Eye Pillow (Corpse Pose)
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The Target: The mind and facial muscles.
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How: Lie flat. Place a weighted eye pillow (or a folded t-shirt) over your eyes.
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Tension Release: Light pressure on the eyelids stimulates the Vagus nerve, which slows the heart rate and induces deep calm.
💡 The “Tension Release” Pro-Tip:
The secret to these poses isn’t how deep you go, but how long you stay.
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To truly release muscle fascia (tension), you must hold a pose for at least 90 seconds to 3 minutes.
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If you feel yourself “fighting” the stretch, back off slightly. You cannot release tension by adding more stress.
Would you like me to create a 15-minute “Anti-Stress” sequence using these 11 poses?