Try This: Yoga for Better Digestion

‘Tis the season for holiday eating, everybody. When you’re stuffed to the brim with turkey, pie, and wine, move the meal through your system with these five detoxifying, gentle yoga poses.

All you need to do is roll off the dining room chair and onto the floor. Grab a yoga block or plush pillow from the couch, and find a spot where you have enough space to lay flat on the ground.

Start the flow with a forward fold, with knees bent generously and feet wide enough that your belly rests between your thighs. Take 20 deep breaths to get in the zone.

Extended puppy pose

This pose can help relieve stomach cramps after a big meal.

Come onto your hands and knees. Leave your hips where they are as you walk your hands forward. Rest your forehead on the ground, a block, or a pillow, and let gravity open your heart. If you’ve got a flexible back and no neck programs, rest your chin on the ground. Take 20 deep breaths.

Wide squat with extended arms

This pose can help relieve uncomfortable intestinal gas.

Come into malasana, or a wide squat, with hands at heart center. If it’s uncomfortable to rest there, sit on your yoga block or pillow. Release your hands to the ground and walk them forward. Bow your head and let your belly rest between your legs. Keep your heels planted and press your palms into the floor. Take 20 deep breaths.

Twist from low lunge

A twist can help kickstart your digestive track.

Come into a low lunge, with your right foot forward. Rest your left knee on the ground. Press your left hand into the ground, inside your right foot, and open your right arm to the sky. Turn your gaze up to your right hand. On your breath in, lengthen your spine. On your breath out, twist from your waist. Stay for 10 breaths, then switch sides.

Supine twist

Supine twist stimulates the colon and aids digestion. This pose is often referred to as gas- or wind-release pose—seriously.

Lie flat and hug your right knee into your chest. Use your left hand to guide your knee over to the left, across your body. Extend your right arm out into a “T” position and turn your head to the right. Stay for 20 breaths on each side.

Reclined baddha konasana

This pose lengthens the torso and helps stimulate digestive organs.

Lie back, hug the knees into the chest, then come into baddha konasana, or butterfly pose. Place your right hand on your belly and your left hand on your heart. Breathe into your hips and sides for 20 breaths.