By Bipin Dani

When the ‘ first lady’ of Indian cricket and mom-to-be Anushka Sharma shared a photo of herself performing the Shirshasana — a Yoga asana involving a headstand — with the help of her husband and Team India skipper Virat Kohli, her tutor and Fitness and Lifestyle Expert Eefa Shrof gave her a thumbs up, saying “Perfectly aligned”. 

Eefa, whose celebrity clients include Hrithik Roshan, had earlier named the Shirshasana as a favourite asana.

However, not everyone should try and ape what Anushka did. 

Yoga exponent S. N. Omkar, known for introducing yoga in sports fitness regimes, said, “Shirshasana is good but it needs care regarding alignment. Also, while getting into position and descending, the movement should be smooth. Jerks can cause neck pain. Healthy women who have been practicing yoga, for a long term, can adopt Shirshasana during pregnancy, though of course with a lot of care. Or else it is safer to avoid this kind of inverting posture.”

Suman Bhat, another yoga teacher who has worked with cricketers, agrees yoga during pregnancy is helpful but stresses that it’s very important to take the right guidance and practice these asanas only under the supervision of an experienced yoga instructor. 

“Practicing yoga during this phase is really helpful for muscles and nerves to stretch, which is a key to painless delivery. If you were practicing yoga before pregnancy it’s completely safe and extremely beneficial during pregnancy till the due date. Doctors too suggest some asanas in the delivery room for normal and painless delivery,” Suman Bhat says.