Practicing Surya Namaskar: A Sequence of Yogic Postures for Overall Health and Wellness among Healthy Adults

Background. Yoga, an ancient practice rooted in Indian culture, has gained global recognition for its physical and mental health benefits. Among its practices, Surya Namaskar (SN) stands out as a holistic yogic Sun Salutation exercise combining postures, breathing, and mindfulness, offering physical vitality, mental calmness, and a practical solution to the challenges posed by modern sedentary lifestyles. Objectives. The objective of the present systematic review was to analyze the effect of SN on overall health and wellness of healthy adults. Materials and methods. A comprehensive search was conducted in five major databases, namely Scopus, PubMed, PubMed Central, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect, using the terms such as “Surya Namaskar”, “Sun Salutation”,“Surya Namaskar and physical fitness”, “Surya Namaskar for adults”, “Sun Salutation for overall health and wellness”,and “Surya Namaskar and sedentary lifestyle”. The articles published in English between 2011 and 2024 were considered in the current review. The systematic search and reporting adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies was used to analyze the methodological quality of the included articles. Results. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 117 articles were initially retrieved, out of which 11 were finally included, encompassing data from 445 healthy adults from three countries, aged between 18 and 65 years. The duration of the SN intervention varied from four to 24 weeks, with session frequency ranging from three days per week to daily, and a diverse number of cycles. The methodological quality analysis revealed that two articles were of strong, six of moderate, and the remaining three of weak quality. Conclusions. This systematic review concludes that the practice of the yogic Sun Salutation exercise (SN) is beneficial for improving and maintaining physical fitness, physiological health, and psychological well-being, which determine the overall health and wellness of healthy adults.