I came across a comic strip in the New Yorker in which two businessmen are walking down the street.  They notice people doing random headstands everywhere (!) and they wonder, “When did everybody stop jogging?”  This cracks me up:

"When did everybody stop jogging?"

I love this comic strip! 

Maybe the world should start doing random headstands anywhere, any time of the day!  As you read on below, you will see a myriad of reasons to do headstands daily.  You will also see some reasons why perhaps headstands are not for you.

If you have never done a headstand before, you should be spotted and guided by someone who can help you to come into the posture safely.  If you have a headstand bench, you are perfectly safe on your own, though I strongly advise being against a wall if you are a headstand novice.  You always want to use your abdominals and your triceps in getting up.  At first, you won’t want to hold very long.  A few seconds will do the trick.  Your eyes should be open and gaze fixed ahead of you.   And you always want to rest in child’s pose after a headstand.  Don’t pop up to standing or sitting upright (trust me, I have seen people do this and they suddenly feel dizzy or disoriented).  If you are a seasoned yogi, you can hold the headstand for one minute to 5 minutes, depending on your stamina.

Last December, I bought a headstand bench and have been enjoying both doing headstands daily and guiding my yoga retreat participants, if they like, into using the bench to do the safest headstands ever. The bench is fantastic because it allows for zero pressure on the neck.  In fact, it provides a great neck stretch, relieves the neck of all tension, and realigns the neck. If you love headstands, the bench is a must. If you dislike doing headstand or are frightened of headstand, the bench is a double must!  People get over their fear of being upside down very quickly when using the headstand bench.

Lisa Latchford in a headstand using the headstand bench. The bench automatically requires use of abdominal and arm muscles, so it is very toning. You get nearly immediate results in feeling toned in the arms and abdominals!

Lisa Latchford in a headstand using the headstand bench for the first time. Even upside down, you can tell she looks happy )or is that gravity putting a smile on her face?). The bench automatically requires use of abdominal and arm muscles, so it is very toning. You get nearly immediate results in feeling toned in the arms and abdominal muscles!

18 Reasons to Do a Headstand (Salamba Shirshasana) Every Day

    • Headstands, also known as “The King of Asanas” build strength in the neck and shoulders.  They also build strength in the abdominal muscles and in the upper spine.  Therefore, headstands increase stamina, strength, and promote good posture.
    • Headstand is an anti-gravity pose.  It improves cardiovascular functioning by reducing strain on the heart which normally works against gravity.  De-oxygenated blood flows more easily from the extremities to the heart.
    • Whenever I observe someone in a headstand, I notice that when they come out, it seems as if a certain detoxification has occurred.  There is a flush of warmth to the skin (sometimes-for those new to headstand- a bit of perspiration), and though I can only go by my observations of others and my experience of headstands, I venture to say headstands are a detox pose and that they are good for persons who suffer from depressed immune systems and help with allergies.  My allergies are not as bad since I have been doing headstands regularly.  A headstand encourages the drainage of lymphatic fluid so the whole body is regularly detoxified.
    • Headstands are great for the digestive system.  Inverting tones and cleans the digestive organs.  It cleanses congested blood and toxins from the digestive organs.  A fresh flow of blood invigorates cells and improves the function of the liver, kidneys, stomach, intestines, and reproductive system.  In fact, when I taught a course for people experiencing infertility issues, all of my research led to the importance of inverted poses to help the reproductive system function optimally, and so inversions (shoulderstands, legs up the wall pose) were a strong part of the yoga course.  Headstands increase digestive fire and increase overall body heat.
    • Headstands work to increase the function of the Endocrine Glands, especially the pineal and pituitary glands.  We know both these glands to be important in regulating growth hormone.  In addition, the pineal gland synthesizes the hormone melatonin and secretes it directly into the cerebrospinal fluid which takes it into the blood stream. Melatonin affects reproductive development (great for infertility issues) and daily physiologic cycles (reduces mood swings and helps with our emotional and mental well-being). The pituitary gland regulates all process having to do with primitive reactions such as stress, anger, fear, anxiety.  Given that headstands promote an increased function of the pituitary gland, the primitive reactions are calmed, making for a more stress free internal environment.
    • As a direct result of the increased function of the Pituitary Gland, a headstand has a calming effect,  helps to stabilize moods, and cultivates emotional stability.
Fountain of Youth: Ursula doing her headstand without the headstand bench.

Fountain of Youth: Ursula doing her headstand without the headstand bench. (she is going to send me an even better photo sometime soon!)

    • From a yoga spiritual perspective, headstands are said to stimulate the Pineal Gland, also known as the Eye of Shiva, the spiritual eye, or the organ of spiritual and psychic insight.  Research has shown that when someone has a hunch, the Pineal Gland will vibrate gently.  Again, under the same research, it has been noted that when someone has a hit of intuition, an inspiration, or a sudden flash of understanding, the Pineal Gland vibrates strongly.
    • Headstands help us to grown smarter!  There is an increased flow of blood to the brain, a fresh flow of oxygen.  Thoughts are clear.  When we go upside down, the brain’s system of spatial orientation is challenged and so the brain has to make sense of what it perceives which helps the brain to grow in plasticity.  Headstands increase your thinking power, clarity, memory, concentration, and the sensory faculties. Brain tissues do not degenerate with regular practice.
    • Headstands strengthen and massage the lungs. In a regular standing position, the lower lungs receive more fluids.  By inverting, blood moves to the upper part of the lungs allowing for a more efficient oxygen-blood exchange. The weight of the internal organs massages the lungs, increasing vital capacity as the lungs have to breathe against the added weight.  Headstands help to cultivate deeper breathing and healthier lung tissue.  Both of my parents died of lung disease and so, believe me, for this benefit alone, I will do my headstands daily!
    • Headstands give us a sense of rebirth, a fresh start.  You come out of the pose and realize you have just experienced your world upside down, from a completely new perspective! Coming out of the pose, it is as if you see the world again for the first time!
    • Headstands stimulate the function of the digestive system by increasing digestive fire boosting energy and increasing body heat.  Internal organs, particularly the intestines, are cleansed by reversing the pull of gravity.
    • Headstands give better overall health by working directly with the immune system.  Imagine going through a winter, a year for that matter, without having a cold!  Headstands help improve the circulation and drainage of lymphatic fluid. The lymphatic system is composed of one-way valves that keep the lymph fluid moving towards the heart. Turning upside down helps to stimulate the entire system and facilitate the movement of lymphatic fluid from the lower extremities.
    • Headstands improve concentration and balance! While in a headstand, fresh oxygenated blood flows more freely from the heart to the brain. There is an increased blood flow to the brain for a fixed period of time.  This helps rejuvenate the neurons and guard against atrophy. People often report a sense of clarity after doing headstand.  I certainly do!
    • Headstands provide decompression of the lower back when done correctly!  If you use your abdominal muscles and do a slight pelvic tilt, there is no collapsing in the lumbar and the back feels wonderful!  Along the same lines, headstands are great for those with scoliosis, or spinal curvature because of both the weightlessness of the spine and how both the right side and left side have to work evenly in this symmetrical pose.  Left or Right side dominance goes by the wayside.  Both sides of the spine must work evenly. We can all benefit from the amazing balance the spine attains.
    • A word on beauty and youthful appearance: A headstand can reduce facial wrinkles, and if practiced regularly, is a natural ‘face-lift’. This is because it reverses the effects of gravity and allows the skin to rest in the other direction.  In addition, headstands (and all inversions) are great for skin care in that they increase circulation to the face, which brings much needed nutrients and oxygen to rejuvenate and remove wrinkle causing toxins. The result is smoother, clearer, brighter and glowing skin.
    • Well, I will write this one in because my teacher, Yogi Vikashananda, swore by this: A headstand can actually convert gray hair back to its natural color.  It will definitely delay the onset of gray hair.  This delay and possible reversal is due to the increase in blood supply and nutrients to the hair follicles in the scalp. According to Vikashananda, balding can also be prevented or slowed and the promise of healthier, thicker hair is yours!  You will see that what Vikashananda swears to, is also written in every yoga book written by Indian yogis I have come across.  To be perfectly honest, I am a little doubtful with this point because I do headstands daily and I certainly have some gray hairs coming in!  Imagine all the hair dressers who would lose  half their business if headstands reversed graying hair.
    • Here is something I found on line, though (except for the “senile changes in the brain are prevented”  and “helps relieve stress and depression” which I am aware of and believe) this is new for me and I would like to see the research on these claims:
      Research has shown that an ischemic stroke never results for those who consistently do headstands! It can also prevent the occurrence of atherosclerotic disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other diseases of the nervous system. Senile changes in the brain are prevented.  It calms the brain and helps relieve stress and depression. It is a centering, calming and soothing pose.
    • Headstands help with leg circulation: any fluid that is retained in the feet (edema) is able to drain, therefore reducing the onset and prevalence of varicose veins and the reduction or prevention of spider veins.
      At one time, the pituitary gland, also called the hypophysis, was once thought to be the “master gland” that controlled all the other endocrine glands. But, as mentioned above, we have since learned that the hypothalamus actually controls the pituitary gland; and it integrates many messages from parts of the brain based on feedback from all over the body and tells the pituitary what to do. In any case, the two glands are tightly integrated. Together, they regulate all processes having to do with primitive reactions, such as stress, rage, flight, body temperature, thirst, hunger, sexual activity, and survival in general. And between them, they secrete 16 hormones. – See more at: http://www.jonbarron.org/article/endocrine-system-hypothalamus-pituitary-pineal-glands#sthash.U50V6ctZ.dpuf
    • At one time, the pituitary gland, also called the hypophysis, was once thought to be the “master gland” that controlled all the other endocrine glands. But, as mentioned above, we have since learned that the hypothalamus actually controls the pituitary gland; and it integrates many messages from parts of the brain based on feedback from all over the body and tells the pituitary what to do. In any case, the two glands are tightly integrated. Together, they regulate all processes having to do with primitive reactions, such as stress, rage, flight, body temperature, thirst, hunger, sexual activity, and survival in general. – See more at: http://www.jonbarron.org/article/endocrine-system-hypothalamus-pituitary-pineal-glands#sthash.0r7yknv4.dpuf
      At one time, the pituitary gland, also called the hypophysis, was once thought to be the “master gland” that controlled all the other endocrine glands. But, as mentioned above, we have since learned that the hypothalamus actually controls the pituitary gland; and it integrates many messages from parts of the brain based on feedback from all over the body and tells the pituitary what to do. In any case, the two glands are tightly integrated. Together, they regulate all processes having to do with primitive reactions, such as stress, rage, flight, body temperature, thirst, hunger, sexual activity, and survival in general. – See more at: http://www.jonbarron.org/article/endocrine-system-hypothalamus-pituitary-pineal-glands#sthash.0r7yknv4.dpuf
Fran in an inverted pose (pair work)

Fran in an inverted pose (pair work with Mishel)

Of course, there are reasons why you should not practice a headstand or other forms of inversions.  As you read the list below, and if you fit into one of these categories, do not despair!  You can always take your legs up the wall (Viparita Karani Asana).  You can also practice Standing Wide-Legged Forward Bend (Prasarita Padottanasana), where there is zero pressure on your hands and your neck can just hang.

  • Neck injuries
  • Prone to seizures
  • Just had a chiropractic adjustment (though you are probably quite safe using the headstand bench because there is zero pressure on the neck when using the bench)
  • Severe Vertigo
  • Glaucoma, and other ear and eye problems
  • Recent eye surgeries (to be avoided for at least a week after Lasik surgery)
  • Brain Tumors
  • Anyone undergoing radiation near or at the brain site.
  • People who suffer from extremely high blood pressure
  • Avoid if you suffer from Acid Reflux
  • There is the question of inverting during menstruation.  In traditional Hatha Yoga, the answer is no inversions during menstruation.  My take on this is different from the ancient rules of advice.  I say that if a woman has menstrual cramps, or is flowing heavily and not feeling very well, then by all means, do Legs up the Wall in lieu of any inverted pose, including headstand.  However, if a woman is menstruating and feels fine, then I have no problem with having her come into an inversion.  I have been given two main reasons for not inverting during menstruation.  Quite a few yogis told me it is about energy…the body is trying to flow in a certain way and when inverting, the flow goes the opposite way.  This doesn’t make sense to me, because the flow is not stopped for the short period of time in a headstand.  It isn’t like the body reabsorbs the blood it is shedding.  And it certainly isn’t bad energy that is exiting that goes back in, as one yogi described it.  Another reason given to me, which gave rise to concern, was that headstands or inversions while menstruating, can cause endometriosis!  So, I did some internet research and found nothing to support that theory.  I also spoke to a few doctors who all agreed that endometriosis is not caused by inverting the body while menstruating.  My advice to women is to use common sense and go according to how you feel energy-wise.