Phase 1 · Two Weeks of Almost Nothing

Part of the 8-Week Supportive Yoga Program After Cancer Treatment

10-Minute Evening Yoga Sequence After Cancer Treatment

Ten minutes before bed, for the whole program and afterwards. Nothing standing.

The short one, and it is aimed at sleep because sleep is what the trial behind this program measured first. Ten minutes, all of it seated or lying down, nothing on your arms. It works on a bed, and using it instead of a longer session on a difficult day is pacing rather than skipping.

10 min · Level 1

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When it helps

Any evening, throughout the program and afterwards. About an hour before bed. Ten minutes, on a bed or the floor. For after your primary treatment has finished, not during chemotherapy or radiotherapy. This is supportive care alongside your follow-up, and it is not a cancer treatment: anything new or unexplained goes to your oncology team first. Never in a heated room. If you have lymphoedema or had lymph nodes removed, keep weight off the arms and hands in the poses, and raise the affected arm on cushions during the final rest. Bone metastases, active treatment, immunosuppression, recent surgery or an unclear lymphoedema all need medical clearance before you start.

Sleep

In the trial this program follows, sleep quality improved and the use of sleeping medication fell more than in the standard care group.

Fatigue

The same components as the long session, in the shortest form that still counts.

Effort

None. Every position here is held rather than worked.

Ten minutes

Sit, open the hips, one leg at a time, then the wall and a rest.

Sukhasana

2 min

Easy Pose

Sitting on a cushion, lights low, breathing out a little longer than you breathe in.

The same opening as the long session, so nothing about this needs learning.

Learn more about Sukhasana

Baddha Konasana

2 min

Butterfly Pose

Soles together, knees on cushions. Or simply sit with the knees a little wider.

A comfortable seat, with nothing held open by effort.

Learn more about Baddha Konasana

Supta Hasta Padangusthasana

90 sec each side

Reclining Hand-to-Big-Toe Pose

A strap around one foot, the other leg heavy on the bed. Hands loose.

One leg at a time, with the strap keeping the work out of your shoulders.

Learn more about Supta Hasta Padangusthasana

Viparita Karani

3 min

Legs Up the Wall

Legs up a wall or a headboard, or knees bent with the feet down and a cushion under the hips.

Three minutes with nothing to hold. If you do only one thing tonight, do this.

Learn more about Viparita Karani

Savasana

2 min

Corpse Pose

Flat and covered, affected arm raised on cushions if you have lymphoedema. Then go to bed rather than back to a screen.

What happens after the session is part of it. Going straight to bed from here is the sequence.

Learn more about Savasana

Phase 1 · Weeks 1 to 2

This practice is part of a program

It belongs to Two Weeks of Almost Nothing, the first phase of the 8-Week Supportive Yoga Program After Cancer Treatment. The program says how often to practise it, what comes before and after, and when to move on.

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Integration

Whenever it is needed, throughout the eight weeks and afterwards. The evidence in this area is tied to practice that continues, so this is the one worth keeping.

The teacher behind this sequence

Gründer & Autor

Manish Rana

Gründer von Asanaverse.de. Manish schreibt über Yoga, Ayurveda und Meditation und verdankt seine tiefe Verbindung zum Yoga seinen indischen Wurzeln. Mit über 1000 Stunden Yoga Alliance Teacher Training gibt er sein Wissen an die Community weiter.

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Go deeper into the poses

Every asana in this practice has a page of its own. You will find alignment cues, what the shape actually works on, and the energetics behind it.

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Make it yours

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