Question

Gagan wants to prevent himself from asthma and hypertension. Identify the asanas to prevent him from these life style diseases.

• A. Uttan Mandukasana, Vakrasana
• B. Supta Vajarasana, Vakrasana
• C. Chakrasana, Uttan Mandukasana
• D. Vakrasana, Chakrasana

Hint:

For Asthma, always look for asanas that involve "Thoracic Expansion" (opening the chest), as they help in increasing the vital capacity of the lungs.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Asthma requires asanas that improve lung capacity and chest expansion. Hypertension (high blood pressure) requires asanas that improve circulation and reduce stress through deep stretches.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:

1. Chakrasana is effective for Asthma as it fully expands the ribcage and lungs, improving respiratory efficiency.

2. Uttan Mandukasana (Stretched Frog Pose) is highly beneficial for both. It helps in respiratory disorders by expanding the diaphragm and aids in relieving stress and improving circulation, which helps manage Hypertension.

3. Vakrasana is more specific to Diabetes management as it focuses on abdominal twisting.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct asanas are Chakrasana and Uttan Mandukasana.

Answer 2

Since Gagan needs protection against two different conditions, asthma and hypertension, the clearest way to solve this is to first identify what each condition specifically needs from an asana, and then check which pair of poses satisfies both needs.

What asthma needs: Asthma involves narrowed airways and reduced lung capacity, so a helpful asana must expand the chest cavity and rib cage and encourage deep, controlled breathing.
What hypertension needs: High blood pressure responds well to poses that calm the nervous system, improve circulation, and reduce physical and mental stress, rather than poses that involve intense strain or inverted positions.

1. Uttan Mandukasana, Vakrasana: Uttan Mandukasana meets the asthma requirement well through chest and diaphragm expansion, but Vakrasana is a spinal-twisting pose mainly aimed at digestion and abdominal organs, offering little direct benefit for blood pressure regulation.
2. Supta Vajrasana, Vakrasana: Supta Vajrasana is more about flexibility of the thighs, knees, and digestive function than about the lungs or the calming, circulatory effect hypertension management needs, and Vakrasana again is digestion-focused rather than blood-pressure-focused.
3. Chakrasana, Uttan Mandukasana: Chakrasana opens and expands the chest while also improving circulation and easing stress through its deep backward stretch, and Uttan Mandukasana further expands the lungs and diaphragm while calming the body, so together this pair addresses both the chest-expansion need of asthma and the circulation and stress-relief need of hypertension.
4. Vakrasana, Chakrasana: Chakrasana alone would help with both, but Vakrasana's twisting action is targeted at the abdomen and spine, not the lungs, leaving the asthma requirement only partly met.

Only the pairing of Chakrasana and Uttan Mandukasana fully covers both the chest-expansion needed for asthma and the calming, circulatory benefit needed for hypertension.

Therefore, the correct answer is Chakrasana, Uttan Mandukasana.