Yoga for period cramps: gentle shapes for heavy days
Many people find that gentle, supported yoga, such as Child's Pose, Reclined Butterfly and slow breathing with long exhales, makes the first days of a period more bearable. It is not a treatment for period pain, so see a doctor if your periods are very painful, stop you from doing your usual day, or change.
A yoga lesson is not medical care. Read the health disclaimer before you practise.
On the heavy days of a period, most of us want a hot water bottle more than a workout. That instinct is sound. But gentle movement has a place too: the NHS lists gentle exercise such as yoga, swimming, walking or cycling among the things that can help with period pain, next to warmth, massage and pain relief.
This page is about that gentle end of yoga: a handful of supported shapes, a slow breath, and what to leave out. It is the same unhurried, propped-up practice as restorative yoga for heavy days, at home, where cushions and blankets do the work.
Before anything else: yoga is not a treatment for period pain, and it does not replace pain relief your doctor has advised. If your periods are very painful, stop you from doing your usual day, come with very heavy bleeding, or have changed, please read the section on seeing a doctor below, and the health disclaimer for this site.
Can yoga ease period cramps?
Some people find it does, some find it makes little difference, and I will not promise either. What gentle yoga offers is a way to move without effort, to rest in shapes that let the belly soften, and to breathe slowly when cramps make you hold your breath. Many people also find it simply passes an uncomfortable evening more kindly than lying curled on the sofa.
Warmth pairs well with every shape below. A heat pad or a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel on the belly or lower back is on the NHS list for a reason.
Six supported shapes for heavy days
Stay in each for as long as it feels good. Skip anything that makes the cramps worse. Have a pillow, a blanket and a clear bit of wall nearby.
- Child’s Pose. Knees wide, fold forward over a pillow or bolster so your belly has space and your chest is supported. Turn your head to one side. Child’s Pose over a bolster has ideas for sore knees. Two minutes or more.
- Cat-Cow. On hands and knees, move slowly between a gentle arch and a gentle rounding, in time with the breath. Keep it small. The movement can feel good in the lower back. Six slow rounds.
- Reclined Butterfly. Lie on your back, bring the soles of your feet together and let the knees fall open onto pillows. Rest a warm hot water bottle on your belly if you have one. See Reclined Butterfly, supported under the knees. Three to five minutes.
- Legs Up the Wall. Lie with your legs resting up a wall, or with your calves on a chair seat if you would rather keep your hips low. Some people love this during a period and some prefer to skip it; see the FAQ below on inversions. Legs Up the Wall, step by step. Three minutes.
- A gentle supine twist. Lying on your back, knees bent, let both knees fall slowly to one side with a pillow underneath them. Keep the twist soft and stay only if it feels comfortable. One minute each side. The supine twist, set up step by step, shows where the pillows go.
- Savasana. Lie flat with a pillow under your knees and a blanket over you, hands on your belly. Rest for five minutes, or as long as you like. Savasana, the resting pose explains the setup.
If you only have energy for one, choose Reclined Butterfly with warmth on your belly.
Breathing for cramps: long, slow exhales
When a cramp comes, most of us tense up and hold the breath. Try the opposite. Lying in any of the shapes above, breathe in gently through the nose, then breathe out slowly, a little longer than the in-breath, as if through a straw. Let the belly soften on each out-breath. Keep it easy; there is nothing to count and nothing to hold.
If you like having counts to follow, the long exhale is written out in breathing exercises for stressful days, with its safety notes.
Should you skip anything during your period?
There is no rule you must follow, and traditions differ. On heavy days many people prefer to leave out:
- Strong core work, such as Boat Pose or long planks, which presses on a tender belly.
- Deep twists that squeeze the belly hard. Keep twists soft or skip them.
- Inversions such as Headstand and Shoulderstand. Some teachers advise leaving them out during a period and others do not; follow what feels right to you.
- Hot, fast classes, if you feel tired, light-headed or low on energy.
Listen to your body over any rule, including mine. If something makes the cramps worse, stop.
When period pain is a doctor’s question
Period pain is common, but it is not something you simply have to put up with. The NHS suggests seeing a doctor if your periods become more painful, heavier or irregular, if the pain stops you from doing your usual daily activities, if you bleed between periods, or if you have pain during sex. Seek urgent help if your pain is severe or worse than usual and painkillers have not helped.
Conditions such as endometriosis or fibroids can cause painful periods and are diagnosed by a doctor or OB-GYN, not on a mat. Yoga can sit alongside their care, never in place of it.
Lessons during your period
A lesson during your period simply becomes slower and softer, if you want it to. We can spend most of it lying down, with warmth and support, and leave out anything that presses on the belly. For a gentle lesson at home, a slow, propped lesson at home in Kapitolyo is one example of how this looks in practice. If cramps also keep you awake, the evening shapes in gentle yoga before sleep overlap with these, and a sore lower back is covered in careful yoga for back pain.