Namita Nayyar:
You have been a victim of PCOS & gained a lot of weight along with hormonal imbalance. PCOS is becoming increasingly predominant. How did you go about shedding that extra weight?
5 tips for a female dealing with hormonal issues.
Aditi Nandy:
- Food – Reduce Your Carb Intake, include Enough Protein at Every Meal, get plenty of fiber, fermented food and limit processed food and added sugar… Adding more fermented foods, greens, nuts, and seeds to my diet. Our gut health affects our hormonal health so much. So fermented foods like homemade pickle, sauerkraut, idli/dosa, yogurt/buttermilk, kaanji, etc are great additions for a happy gut.
- Engage yourself in the mindful practice of yoga and conscious breathing exercise. Full 360° breathing and pranayama – Breath is medicine. It aids in rest & recovery, improves energy, regulates our nervous system, builds stress resilience, and so much.
- Learn to manage stress.
- Being out in the sun every day for at least an hour (either during sunrise or sunset) – vitamin D is an essential nutrient for hormonal health and soaking the sun helps in better sleep as well
- Improving sleep habits – Getting at least 8 hours of sleep every night. Sleep is so important for ALL systems of our body, not just the menstrual cycle. No number of pills or kombuchas or deadlifts or savasana can replace the work that sleep does for our body and health.
Namita Nayyar:
Can you attribute the reasons that led to your PCOS & why young girls need to be well informed about the same? Asanas for hormonal balance.
Aditi Nandy:
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) or Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD) is common among members of the younger generation, with almost 10 million people affected globally. PCOS is definitely a lifestyle disorder. It is commonly on the rise with young girls because of the modern-day lifestyle of youngsters which includes faulty dietary habits and no regular physical activity, spending more time on gadgets, and a lot of stress.
Yes, it’s very important for young females to be aware of it because nowadays, there is a rush to be good at everything and this has probably made young kids forget how important it is to eat right, exercise, sleep well, and have a good emotional balance. The increasing prevalence of PCOS in young girls can straightaway be correlated to a sedentary lifestyle and lack of nutritional food. Lack of exercise, weight gain, and obesity lead to metabolic imbalances, such as insulin resistance. Which can lead to deranged hormones and increase the chances of diabetes and other metabolic disorders in the future.
Yoga has proved to be beneficial and helps in managing hormonal imbalance. Yoga for PCOS can help open up the pelvic area and also release deeply stored stress and promote relaxation of the mind and body.
By practicing these asanas regularly, women can de-stress and facilitate detoxification of their bodies.
- Anulom vilom pranayama – It is a controlled breathing exercise that can help in deep relaxation and eliminate certain harmful toxins from your body. It enables your mind, de-stress your body and ensures improved functioning of your heart.
- Suptabadhakonasana -This is the reclining butterfly pose that has proven beneficial as yoga for PCOS. It opens up the pelvic area and promotes relaxation of your system.
- Bhujangasana – Also known as the cobra pose, this asana helps you promote flexibility in your body and de-stress your system.
- Surya Namaskar – Known for improving the functioning of your system,
- Bow Pose (Dhanurasana) – This asana helps in reducing your stress levels and anxiety. Repeating this asana three times will increase circulation to the pelvic region and help stretch various body parts at once- neck, back, shoulders, legs.
