Phase 2 · The Full Practice

Part of the 12 Week Yoga Program for Type 2 Diabetes

45 Minute Yoga Sequence for Blood Sugar and Strength

Weeks four to nine, and the main session of the program. Standing work, back bends and twists, at a dose that matches the trials.

This is the full version of what the effective protocols contained. Standing poses that make the legs work, prone back bends across the front of the body, and twists through the middle, which is a combination that recurs in almost every yoga trial in type 2 diabetes. In the most detailed of them, HbA1c fell from 8.17 to 6.95 percent over twelve weeks while the control group on medication alone barely moved. Forty-five minutes, four or five times a week.

45 min · Level 2

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When it helps

For weeks four to nine, four or five times a week. Forty-five minutes. A mat, a wall, two blocks and your meter. This runs alongside your diabetes treatment, not instead of it. If you take insulin or a sulfonylurea, check your blood glucose before you practise and keep fast acting carbohydrate within reach.

Metabolic effect

Sustained work in the largest muscle groups, which is what pulls glucose out of the blood without insulin.

Physical effect

Legs and back under real load, plus the twists and back bends that run through the protocols in this research.

Consistency

The effect of a single session on glucose handling fades within a day or two. Four or five times a week is what keeps it there.

Breath and warm up

Six minutes before the work starts.

Sukhasana

4 min

Easy Pose

Ujjayi breathing, sitting up. Keep it going for the whole session and use it to pace yourself.

A breath you can hear tells you when a pose has become too much. That is the gauge for this session.

Learn more about Sukhasana

Marjaryasana

1 min

Cat Pose

Hands and knees, rounding on the out breath.

Warms the middle of the body before the twists.

Learn more about Marjaryasana

Bitilasana

1 min

Cow Pose

Chest forward on the in breath. Eight rounds at the speed of the breath.

The same movement in the other direction, and a good check of how the back feels today.

Learn more about Bitilasana

Standing and loaded

Twenty minutes of work. This is the block that does the metabolic job, and it is meant to feel like effort.

Adhomukha Shvanasana

45 sec, twice

Downward-Facing Dog

Hands and feet down, hips back and up. Bend the knees as much as you like.

The first pose that asks for whole body effort, and a good bridge into standing.

Learn more about Adhomukha Shvanasana

Utkatasana

45 sec, three times

Chair Pose

Chair Pose in three sets with rest between them. Sit back until the thighs are working.

Sets with rest, not one long hold. That is how you get real work out of the largest muscles you have.

Learn more about Utkatasana

Utthita Parsvakonasana

1 min each side

Extended Side Angle Pose

Side Angle, forearm on the thigh or hand on a block.

A long, loaded hold with both legs doing different jobs.

Learn more about Utthita Parsvakonasana

Parshvottanasana

45 sec each side

Pyramid Pose

Pyramid, both hips facing forward, hands on blocks.

The back of the front leg under load, which is a direction the other standing poses miss.

Learn more about Parshvottanasana

Virabhadrasana 3

30 sec each side

Warrior III

Warrior III with the hands on a wall or a chair back. Use the support every time.

Single leg work, and the pose where the wall matters most. Reduced sensation in the feet makes balance harder in a way you cannot feel.

Learn more about Virabhadrasana 3

Across the front and the middle

Prone back bends and twists. This is the pattern that recurs through the protocols in this research.

Dhanurasana

30 sec, twice

Bow Pose

Face down, holding the ankles, lifting chest and thighs. If the back does not like it, do Cobra twice instead and skip this.

The strongest back bend in the program. It has an easier substitute for a reason.

Learn more about Dhanurasana

Bhujangasana

30 sec, twice

High Cobra Pose

Hands under the shoulders, chest lifting, breath moving throughout.

Cobra turns up in almost every protocol here, and it is the one to keep if you drop the rest.

Learn more about Bhujangasana

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

45 sec, three times

Bridge Pose

Hips lifted, feet pressing. Three sets.

The glutes and hamstrings in sets. More useful metabolically than one long hold.

Learn more about Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

Jathara Parivartanasana

1 min each side

Reclining Belly Twist

On your back, knees drawn in, then let them fall to one side.

A twist with the floor supporting everything, at the point where the work is done.

Learn more about Jathara Parivartanasana

Supta Kaptasana

1 min each side

Reclining Pigeon Pose

Ankle across the opposite thigh, drawing the back thigh in.

The hips after all that standing.

Learn more about Supta Kaptasana

Settle

Seven minutes to finish.

Viparita Karani

3 min

Legs Up the Wall

Legs up the wall. Skip it and lie flat if you have proliferative retinopathy or have had recent eye treatment.

The best three minutes of the session after twenty minutes of standing work.

Learn more about Viparita Karani

Savasana

4 min

Corpse Pose

Flat, quiet, and get up slowly afterwards.

Four minutes, and a good moment to check how you feel before standing up.

Learn more about Savasana

Phase 2 · Weeks 4 to 9

This practice is part of a program

It belongs to The Full Practice, the second phase of the 12 Week Yoga Program for Type 2 Diabetes. The program says how often to practise it, what comes before and after, and when to move on.

See the whole program →

Integration

Four or five times a week for weeks four to nine. Do the single leg balance near a wall, always. If you have reduced sensation in your feet, that instruction is not optional.

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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