Should stomach be empty to do yoga? How many hours before and later should we do asanas?

Yes your stomach should preferably be empty while doing yoga so that you do not face a problem or get uncomfortable while doing the inversions like the Sirshasana or the head stand and the Sarvangasana or the shoulder stand and the Paschimottanasana or the forward bend pose or any other asana or pose that requires you to bend. You should ideally eat 1 to 2 hours prior to your yoga practice so that your body has enough time to digest the food and create energy required for doing the yoga asanas or postures and you should wait at least for half an hour after your yoga practice and then eat(Yogis recommend, 4 Hrs wait to eat after yoga).


It does not matter when you practice yoga as long as you make sure that your body has had enough time to digest the food you ate and it has gone far away from your stomach into your intestines. This will also ensure that you have lots of energy for your yoga practice.

Neglecting this simple rule and eating just before your yoga practice or not allowing enough time for digestion will create several problems. For example you might get stomach upsets and acidity as the digestive acids are pushed back in the opposite direction instead of being allowed to go to the intestines. Or you might feel really uneasy and might throw up all your food if you do inversions immediately after eating. That would make you feel more uneasy and weak and ill as your body has not had a chance to digest your food and absorb the energy from the food that it needs for the practice of yoga asanas or postures.

What you can do if you practice yoga in the evening is eat your lunch by 12 PM so you have enough time to digest and assimilate your food. Eat food that is easily digested by your body and does not require lot of time for digestion like meats. But make sure that you do eat something two hours before practicing yoga or you will not have much energy to do any of the yoga asanas or poses. You can eat soups, fruits and vegetables instead. After practicing your yoga asanas or poses do not eat immediately. Wait for some time and eat only if you feel really very hungry. Normally it is absolutely safe to eat after two hour of practicing yoga as this gives your body enough time to relax.