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The original 2010 version of this post suggested inverted yoga poses, where the legs and hips are raised above the heart, as a way to control high blood pressure. Current medical guidance points the other way: inversions are among the poses people with high blood pressure are usually advised to approach with caution. This rewrite looks at what the evidence says about yoga and blood pressure, and how to practice more safely if your readings are high.

Start with your numbers

High blood pressure usually causes no symptoms, so the NHS says the only way to know whether you have it is to get it checked. In the UK, you are usually considered to have high blood pressure if your reading is 140/90 or higher when measured by a health professional, or 135/85 or higher at home. Lifestyle changes and blood pressure medicines can both help. Yoga can be one part of that lifestyle picture, but it is not a replacement for treatment your doctor recommends.

Can yoga lower blood pressure?

The evidence is encouraging but not settled.

• Harvard Health Publishing describes a 2019 review and analysis of earlier studies, published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. People who did yoga for about an hour, around five times a week for 13 weeks, had significant reductions in blood pressure. Most of them were overweight, middle-aged adults with high blood pressure. The improvements were greater when the practice included breathing techniques and meditation.
• An earlier 2013 scientific statement from the American Heart Association found too few high-quality trials to recommend yoga specifically for lowering blood pressure. The same statement gave its strongest rating to aerobic exercise such as brisk walking, cycling and swimming, followed by dynamic resistance training.

In practice, yoga may help, especially a regular practice that includes slow breathing and relaxation. It works best alongside regular aerobic activity, not instead of it.

Poses and habits to be careful with

Blood pressure rises during any exercise, including yoga. Harvard Health notes that it rises more when you move quickly or hold poses for a long time. Its advice for people with high blood pressure includes:

• Choose a beginner or gentle class and move slowly from one pose to the next.
• Take short breaks from long holds. If a teacher holds a pose for longer than about 10 seconds, you can come out briefly and go back in. Child’s pose is a restful position between moves.
• Keep breathing. Holding your breath can raise blood pressure. Lengthening your breaths is fine, but do not strain.
• Be cautious with inversions. Advanced inversions such as shoulder stand, headstand and handstand are probably not a good idea. Downward-facing dog is generally considered fine for people whose high blood pressure is well controlled.
• Finish lying down. Ending with relaxation on your back (savasana) lets breathing and blood pressure settle.

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) lists severe high blood pressure among the conditions that may call for changing or avoiding some poses. It also advises beginners to avoid headstands, shoulder stands, the lotus position and forceful breathing. The AHA statement notes that existing guidelines advise against exercise programs, particularly resistance training, for people with uncontrolled severe hypertension (180/110 mm Hg or higher). If your readings are in that range, get them under control with your doctor before starting any new exercise.

A sensible way to begin

Tell your doctor you plan to start yoga, and tell your teacher about your blood pressure and any medicines you take. Keep taking your medication as prescribed. NCCIH warns against using yoga to put off seeing a health care provider about a medical problem. If you mainly want to practice slow breathing, our five-minute Breath Break explains a simple method and what the research shows.

Sources

• Harvard Health Publishing: Yoga and high blood pressure
• American Heart Association (2013): Beyond Medications and Diet: Alternative Approaches to Lowering Blood Pressure
• NCCIH (NIH): Yoga: Effectiveness and Safety
• NHS: High blood pressure

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have high blood pressure or heart disease, ask your doctor which kinds of exercise are right for you.

The featured image is an AI-generated illustration, not a photo of a real person.