One-Legged Chaturanga to Upward Facing Dog

When you actually breakdown the word Chaturanga Dandasana it means Four-Limbed Staff Pose. Chatur meaning the number four and Danda meaning staff as in a stick or rod. So next time you do Chaturanga, and any variation on it, consider the idea of a staff. Ideally when moving from high to low plank your spine stays in a neutral, long position. Not until you transition into Upward Facing Dog or Cobra does the body move into spinal extension, a backbend. 

This is even true when you add the flourish of lifting a leg in Chaturanga. When you elevate one leg in your high to low plank, your body has to work even harder to keep your ribs drawn in and your abdominals active. Your body naturally wants to compensate by moving into a slight backbend the moment one leg is lifted especially if your leg is lifted higher than hip height. 

Less than ideal One-Legged Chaturanga

The image above isn't as dramatic as it could be, but as you can see the spine and pelvis are quick to react once the leg is lifted. Eventually the leg elevation could affect the shoulder joints and cause the heads of the shoulders to drop and roll forward which makes the transition into Upward Facing Dog more strenuous than it needs to be. 

So how do you combat droopy ribs and spine in your Chaturanga Dandasana and its different variations? Draw your frontal hip points toward your ribs to active your abdominal core and glutes. Containing your abdominals and getting your glutes to fire will help balance the relationship between your pelvis and spine and keep you in that staff-like position. From there it's a smooth, efficient transition into your Upward Facing Dog. 

Remember Chaturanga is not a backbend. Upward Facing Dog IS a backbend. Let the two postures be their own thing. Once Chaturanga has had its moment to shine and settle, then transition into your backbend.

Happy practicing, yogis!

Pincha Mayurasana--Feathered Peacock/Forearm Balance

My all-time favorite inversion is Forearm Balance. Early in my practice I dedicated a lot of time to figuring out the posture. It was the first posture that showed me that time, patience, and commitment are essential in a yoga practice. Now it's a posture I feel light and stable in. It's a beautiful feeling. 

Pinch Mayurasana is challenging for many reasons. If you have limited range of motion in your shoulders or if you're lacking strength in your shoulders this can be a frustrating posture. Again, it's a posture that requires time and patience. There's a lot I can share about Pincha Mayurasana, but there's one little tip I'd like to share with you in this post. 

Using a block is a really helpful tool to when working on Forearm Balance. For the longest time I used the block between my thumb and index fingers with my palms down on my mat. The squeeze into the block with my hands forced the muscles around my shoulders to kick on and the block gave me a clear boundary on where to keep my hands and elbows. Then everything changed when my teacher told me to turn my hands around and place the backs of my hands on my mat and squeeze into the block with my pinkies. Game changer!!

Lots of shoulder activation with this variation. Don't mind that I favor my right side and I'm a bit lopsided. 

It's definitely a more challenging option, but it gave me more information about how to effectively use my shoulders. When your palms are down on your mat your hands will stay framed around the block, but it's very easy for your elbows to splay out which leaves room for lots of error. This approach limits the elbows from splaying apart giving you a more stable base. 

Full disclosure, when I first tried this approach I very loudly said, "This feels terrible!" It felt terrible because it just felt different. Why not give it a shot? Try it against the wall at first as it is much harder to balance without using your fingertips to grip your mat. Be sure to squeeze your pinkies into your block and press down through your forearms. 

Let me know how it works for you!

Skills & Drills: Pulling Locust

The next time you take a Vinyasa class you should count the number of Chaturangas you flow through. In a 60 minute class I teach probably a minimum of 12. Chaturanga and arm balancing postures like Crow are great postures to strengthen the front line of the body with their powerful pushing action, however, the opposing muscles of the body, the pulling muscles, are harder to target in a Vinyasa practice. Unfortunately this imbalance can lead to discomfort or potentially injury for some students.

Give yourself permission to Hulk out sometimes and use those strong pulling muscles!

For a while I was dealing with some shoulder pain while practicing. Of course I don't encourage anyone to self diagnose their own injuries, but I believe my pain was due to the muscles in my chest being a lot stronger than the muscles around my shoulder blades and back. Then I started to doing pull-ups and viola! The pain during my practice subsided. 

Now I'm not saying everyone should do pull-ups. They definitely are not the most enjoyable exercise. But I do think more Vinyasa students should spend time on strength work for the muscles around the shoulder blades to balance out all the pushing action that happens in practice. With that, I've got an exercises you can try that is very easy to incorporate into your practice:

Pulling Locust

Locust isn't the most satisfying backbend. The range of motion is low and the breath is often shallow due to it being a belly-down posture. It might not be satisfying, but Locust is a great posture for strengthening the backline of the body. You can also add a pulling action with the arms to up your strengthening game. 

To begin, lay on your belly with your arms stretched out overhead. I like to separate the feet hips-distance apart for extra stability. 

On an exhalation press into your feet, lift your chest a few inches, and simultaneously pull your elbows down to a 90 degree angle. As you pull down draw your shoulder blades toward your hips. Be sure to keep your abdominals active and avoid from pushing your belly into your mat. 

It seems so simple, and it is! But it's incredibly effective. Since I've started to focus more on strengthening the muscles around my shoulders, not only have I gotten past my shoulder pain in practice, but my arm balance and inversion practice feels a lot stronger and stable. This exercise is also very helpful for those who suffer from computer posture which is taking our culture by storm. 

A lot of yoga is about balance, right? Rather than just focusing on the balance of your mind and body or balancing on one foot, why not balance out the muscle groups you work in practice?

Forward Folds & Your Pelvis

There's a lot of forward folds in a Vinyasa practice. Take a typical Sun Salutation for example. It's simply a series of folding and unfolding the body. For some students forward folds feel great! The sensation of surrendering forward and the stretch of the hamstrings is why so many yogis carve out time for their practice. On the other hand, many practitioners feel discomfort when folding and feel inadequate when they're unable to touch their toes. No matter where you lie on the forward fold spectrum please remember that your ability or inability to touch your toes in a forward fold says nothing about who you are as a human being. It's simply a comment on the range of motion in your legs, hips, and low back. That's it!

When exploring forward folds it can be helpful to understand the movement of your pelvis over your femurs, thigh bones. When you move into a seated forward fold it is best to move your sitting bones back in space. Even if it's subtle, moving the sitting bones back initiates an anterior tilt of your pelvis and allows your pelvis to tip forward over your femur bones. When the pelvis tips forward the hamstrings lengthen and the quadriceps shorten. There you have a forward fold!

If you find that your lower spine is very rounded in your forward folds experiment with sticking your butt out way behind you. As you can see below, sticking the butt out helps the lower spine lengthen. When you do the opposite and you curl your butt under (posterior tilt) you cause the lower back to round. The position of the pelvis is everything as it informs the rest of the spine.

Top: Anterior tilt of pelvis. Good!

Bottom: Posterior tilt of the pelvis: Not so good

Forcing my pelvis to anteriorly tilt is quite easy. So what to do if your butt is stuck under you? You are not alone! For many it is hard to anteriorly tilt the pelvis and the lower spine is constantly in a state of roundness. Don't you worry! Sure you can experiment with bending your knees and then anteriorly tilting your pelvis. However, I've been encouraging a lot of my students with rounded spines to sit up on a block. When you sit forward on a block you are assisting your pelvis into an anterior tilt which could help you lengthen the rest of your spine. 

Your forward fold will probably never be featured on the cover of Yoga Journal if you're sitting on a block, but who cares?! Again, you are not more or less of a good person if you prop up your posture. We need to question our drive to put our face on our shins in deep forward folds. Yoga shouldn't make you feel inferior. Yoga shouldn't make you feel inadequate. Your yoga practice is there for you to be in your body and better understand who you are physically and mentally. 

I have so much more to say about forward folds and their relationship to the pelvis, but I'll add one last thing on alignment. I'm fairly mobile in my hamstrings. Due to my mobility I can get very lazy in forward folds. Unfortunately too many disengaged forward folds has caused me a lot of pain and I have developed a little something called Yoga Butt. Yoga Butt is where the attachment points of the hamstrings into the pelvis are overworked and irritated. For so long yoga teachers, including myself, would encourage students to bend their knees in forward folds if they were dealing with Yoga Butt. I am not ashamed to say I now know better and would not advise a student with hamstring attachment issues to bend their knees in forward folds. I'm actually moving in the direction of encouraging all students to move away from bending their knees in forward folds. In my own practice I used to bend my knees all the time in forward folds and the issues I was facing never got better. My teacher then pointed out to me that bending the knees actually increases the stretch at the top of the hamstrings which just aggravates my injury even more. I am very grateful I learned this piece of information. I now no longer deal with my Yoga Butt symptoms and I'm always happy to share this tip with my students who have similar issues. 

I once took a workshop with Bryan Kest. He had so many inspiring things to share, but I took away one important nugget. He was discussing how yoga asana can be looked at as simple shapes. Sure the shapes are powerful and you can go as deep as you want with the practice, but the shapes alone can keep you healthier, longer. He took Pyramid Pose as an example. Rather than calling the big hamstring stretching posture by the name we all know it as, he called it Tying Your Shoe Pose. I liked that. You aren't just stretching your hamstrings in a forward fold. You're keeping your body mobile and agile. Age will slow us all down, but a consistent yoga practice will probably make things like tying our shoes easier to tackle. The ability to perform basic tasks unassisted will most likely help us stay happier and more fulfilled. 

Skills & Drills: Sphinx Roll-Ups

I actually enjoy working my abdominals. However, I don't enjoy crunches. The repetitive motion of my spine is uncomfortable, my neck usually ends up working my than my abdominals, and the exercise is useless. I'd much rather work my midsection in a functional way that supports my asana practice. Luckily we have Sphinx Roll-Ups!

I first experienced this drill when I took my teacher's inversion workshop back in 2012. I loved and hated it all at the same time and knew it was something I needed to integrate into my own practice and teaching. Over the years my students have also grown to love and hate Sphinx Roll-Ups. It's a very effective way to get your core to fire in preparation for inversions and arm balances and it's a powerful way to work your abdominals without putting pressure on your spine. 

Check it out! 

Floating Forward from Downward Facing Dog into Standing Forward Fold

Now it's not a posture, but it's a transition that I get a lot of questions on. 

How do I float forward from Down Dog?

I was originally drawn to vinyasa yoga because of the big beautiful postures and the flowing transitions. Of course my preferences have shifted throughout the years, but I still see value in the energetic, almost acrobatic aspects of vinyasa yoga. Floating or jumping forward from Downward Facing Dog into a Standing Forward Fold was always something I wanted to master, but it felt clunky for so long. Understanding the relationship between my hands and my shoulders in the transition are what have transformed the transition for me into something that feels effortless and very freeing. 

Here's some tips that have helped me:

First, the hands. I have relatively tight shoulders and lifting heavy weights isn't exactly helping the causing. I have found that turning my hands slightly outward in Downward Facing Dog allows for me to easily laterally rotate my shoulders so that they're in an ideal place to support my body when floating forward. You might be able to see in the video below that I'm screwing my hands into my mat to get my shoulders to wrap forward toward my my ribs. Also, your hands are your brakes when you're upside down. Use them! Use your fingers to grip your mat to slow you down and give you more control. (I apologize for the giant videos, but I'm a yoga teacher and not a web designer for a reason.)

Second, consider how you take off from Downward Facing Dog. I typically go through the following checklist before I jump forward:

• Step your feet a little closer to your hands. It's a pretty long distance between the hands and feet in Down Dog. Why not make your life easier and shorten up that distance?

• Bring your feet all the way together. With your feet together you're more compact and you'll have more control.

• Bend your knees enough to touch your belly to your thighs. Again, the more compact you are the more control you'll have.

• Look where you're going. Want your feet to land between your hands? Look there!

• Hop up on an exhalation. Use your inhalation to bend your knees and when you've completed your exhalation that's when you find the most success.

Give it shot! And if you crash and burn, who cares? Just have fun with it! Happy floating, yogis!

Bhujangasana--Cobra Pose

The deeper I've gotten into my practice and teaching I've come to realize that yoga isn't just about range of motion and flexibility. It's also incredibly important to work low range of motion postures and emphasize strength. Although it's sometimes seen as a modification for Upward Facing Dog, Bhujangasana--Cobra Pose is a posture that stands on its own. It might seem like a fairly straightforward posture, but there's a lot of subtlety to this backbend. 

Start Small

Something I appreciate about Cobra is that it's one posture with a lot of range options. Early in practice I like to throw in a very low Cobra to get the back of the body warm. No need to push too far, keep it mild. Press down through the tops of your feet, engage your legs, place a tiny bit of weight in your hands, and lift your head, neck, and shoulders. Be mindful to keep the abdominals engaged. It's easy to simply push your belly into your mat to create leverage, but in order to maintain a happy lower back pull your navel away from the floor. 

Hand Placement

I believe in experimentation in a yoga practice and Cobra is no exception. Play with where you place your hands in relationship to your shoulders. With time I've settled on placing my hands fairly low, closer to the middle of my ribs. How do you know if your hands are in the "right" place? Find a place where you're able to easily draw the shoulders down toward your hips. If the hands are placed too close to the shoulders the shoulders often start rounded forward and they'll probably stay there as you progress further. Last note on the hands, use them! In order to fire more muscles on the backside get a little grippy with your hands. Without moving the hands pull back and drag your chest forward. 

Take it Higher

Once you're a bit warmed, play with taking Cobra a little higher. No need to rush it, of course, but there's value in experimenting with a bigger backbend. Be mindful that your elbows stay bent. You're not transitioning into Upward Facing Dog. Firm your legs, engage your abdominals, and use your hands and arms to pull the chest forward. You'll quickly start to feel the muscles around your shoulders and spine. 

Although this is one of the least satisfying postures in my body, I know it's one to keep working into my practice. The muscles that fire in Cobra are muscles that often stay dormant in a Vinyasa practice due to the emphasis on pushing over pulling. In my own practice I've noticed a lot more strength and control in Chaturanga and various arm balances and I believe it's due to working Cobra and other prone backbends with more regularity. 

Give it a shot and let me know what you think! 

Parsva Bakasana - Side Crow

*Originally posted June 2017. Updated November 2018.

I do love me some hand balances and Side Crow is up there as one of my favorites. However, it's a fairly deceiving posture. It's often attempted after a student feels like they've figured out traditional Crow, but there's an incredible amount of preparation required for most practitioners to get into an easeful Side Crow. Broken down it's a huge twist on Chaturanga arms. 

There's two ways that I see the posture done: Two Elbow Approach and One Elbow Approach. Let's take a look at both.

Two Elbow Approach:

I was originally taught to rest my leg across both of my elbows in Side Crow. Of course balancing on two elbows makes way more sense than trying to balance on one! Sure two elbows offers a higher likelihood of balancing in the posture, however, using both elbows is rather limiting. As you can see in the picture below on the left, my shoulders are rounded forward and my right shoulder is actually dipping down quite a bit in comparison to my left. The shape becomes very boxed in, restricted, and the lifting of the shin bones away from the floor becomes more challenging. When using both elbows Side Crow starts to lose it's length and it becomes less about the twist in the body and just more about getting into the shape. 

One Elbow Approach:

When I was first told to only balance my body on one elbow in Side Crow I'm sure I threw a mini mental temper tantrum. Why change a posture that I'm already good at?!? Turns out, with time, the one elbow approach became way more accessible for me. The one elbow approach allows for more space--more space to lengthen the spine, more space to work the twist, and more space to breathe. The free arm, my right arm in the pictures below, is then able to push down since my leg isn't resting on it. That push is everything. The push keeps the chest elevated and keeps the posture feeling light. And although I'm only resting on one arm, I'm able to lift my legs even farther away from my mat compared to when I'm balancing on two elbows. 

As much as I don't want to say that one approach is better than the other, it's hard not to. At least in my own body the one elbow option feels more stable and sustainable. Once I was able to fine tune the one elbow approach in my body I never went back to balancing on two elbows for Side Crow. I do think there's tremendous value in just trying to find the shape of the posture, however, with time that second elbow just becomes a limiting crutch. Just as so many of us rely on the wall for Handstand, sometimes you have to take a leap and eliminate that crutch. Why not give it a shot? You just might surprise yourself. 

Want more insight? Here’s a video for your viewing pleasure!

Lots of gabbing, but also lots of good information!

Side note, check out Iyengar rocking his Side Crow in Light on Yoga. Pretty amazing!

Crescent/High Lunge

I don't believe I have ever enjoyed Crescent Lunge. I think my lumbar spine is too arched, I never feel like my hips are on the same page, and I always sense that I'm one second away from toppling over. I've played with this posture for years to find some sense of ease. Even with all the experimentation I still don't feel comfortable while holding the shape. I've just come to terms with the idea that I may never feel great in the posture and that's okay. 

For the majority of my practice and teaching I emphasized the drive of the back heel toward the back of the mat. The energetic press of the heel back gives the calf a great stretch and helps me feel more stable in a fairly unstable posture. Last year I was taking a class in LA from a teacher who was new to me. During practice the teacher came around and pushed my heel up in Crescent Lunge. Full disclosure, before the adjustment even happened I was instantly turned off by some statements made by this teacher in the first couple minutes of class. I instantly established a terrible attitude toward this teacher and let that attitude bleed into how I received her adjustment. "I do this posture this way and I don't like how this teacher wants me to do it."

Crescent Lunge with the back heel pressing back. 

Fast forward to this year, my teacher expressed his experimentation with lifting the back heel high in Crescent Lunge. Wait a second... no... Ugh. I respect his knowledge and perspective so I gave it a shot. Okay. The LA teacher and my teacher have a point. (Side note: The comparison between the LA teacher and my teacher has been a huge learning process for me. I'm a self described yoga snob and I need to constantly check myself in practice with teachers I don't know well. All teachers have something to teach me and I need to respect that process.)

Crescent Lunge with the back heel lifted over the toes. 

For the last few months I've encouraged my students to lift their back heel over their toes in Crescent Lunge. For many it makes the posture less stable, however, it forces more muscles in the legs to fire which in turn creates stability. I have a lot of highly mobile students in my classes and the lift of the back heel forces them to engage the legs and glutes and not dump into their flexibility. Also, since so many students, myself included, have been programmed to drive the back heel back, a tiny shift of alignment forces them to stay forced and mentally engaged. 

I'm not saying one is right and one is wrong. I'm saying it's worth experimenting. Try out the two variations. Does one feel better for you? What differences do you feel between the two options? Yoga is all about exploration. Give yourself permission to explore and go from there. 

Utthita Trikonasana--Triangle Pose

Like most yoga practitioners I have had a love/hate relationship with Triangle Pose ever since I started practicing over ten years ago. The journey went as follows:

Year 1: "Oh, I get this Triangle thing. My legs create a triangle shape so I must be doing the posture."

Year 2: "What? It's not all about the triangle formed by my legs? Is anything real?"

Year 5: "Blocks are pretty cool. Why didn't I use a block five years ago?"

Year 7: "I refuse to do Triangle without a block. Those suckers without blocks don't realize what they're missing."

Year 10: "I never want to stop learning about Triangle!"

With that, let's dissect all that is Trikonasana. Full disclosure, most of these tricks are straight from my teacher, Jason Crandell. He often reminisces on when he used to teach a beginner level series and how his students' Triangles blew all other beginner yogis' Triangles out of the water. Of course, there's no competition in yoga, but dude knows his stuff and I'm happy to share his knowledge with you since it's made a huge difference in my practice and how I teach Trikonasana. 

Prop It Up!

I encourage about 95% of my students to prop up their bottom hand either with a block or by lightly putting weight into the front shin. I get it. There's a lot of ego wrapped up with using props. Yes, you are strong. No, using a prop doesn't show signs of weakness. Using a prop just allows for you to settle into the shape with more ease. Who wouldn't want that?

By placing some weight in your bottom hand you're able to use leverage to lengthen the sides of the torso and feel the true expansion of the posture. I prefer the block along the small toe side of the front foot. In my practice I've noticed that placing the block along the big toe side causes my pelvis to push too far behind me and out of alignment with my spine. 

Deflated Triangle

Here we've got a sad Trikonasana. The right side of my ribs are collapsed and the triangle between my front thigh, bottom ribs, and bottom arm is almost nonexistent. Usually a simple propping of the bottom hand and reaching up with the top hand helps a deflated Triangle, but there's other adjustments that can help too.

Yoga teachers often assist with manual adjustments throughout class, but I find that I'm frequently giving myself adjustments in my own practice. To help with a very rounded Trikonasana play with assisting yourself. Take your top hand to your top ribs. Use your hand to cinch the top ribs and waist together. By drawing those two points closer together you'll automatically lengthen the bottom ribs and spine while minimizing roundness. 

To Rotate or Not to Rotate? And What Direction?

Have you ever been told you should turn the top hip open in Triangle? Something about two panes of glass may have also been thrown in there. I have zero intention of disrespecting any teacher who uses these cues, but I encourage you to explore something a little different. These next steps changed Trikonasana for me forever and I can now happily say that I feel very free in the posture. Since slowing down and taking the time to really break down this posture isn't typical in a Vinyasa practice, but I encourage you to explore some of these tips in your own practice. 

First, let's tackle the hips. Start with your feet where you'd place them for Triangle, but turn your chest down and hinge over the front leg like you're doing a modified Parsvottanasana--Pyramid Pose allowing the hips to naturally follow along.

Place your bottom hand on your shine or a block and place your top hand on your top hip point. Without cranking on the top hip, allow your top hip to roll open only as much as it will naturally and then just stop. For most people the top hip will stop while it's still rotated slightly downward. 

Lastly, to create the open and expansive feeling of Triangle, place your top hand on your chest and just allow the rest of the rotation to happen from there without forcing the hips to open any further. From there reach the top hand straight up and feel all the glory that is your Trikonasana. 

Triangle Pose will look different on everyone, however, I've been working with a few students on some of these tips over the last couple of months and they, just like me, have experienced more freedom in the posture. I could go on about the SI joint and why it's not best to force the top hip to rotate away from the floor, but I won't. The easy feeling of the posture when done without forcing the top hip open will speak for itself. 

Yogis, I hope you take the time to explore Trikonasana in your own practice. What works? What doesn't? Don't get too wrapped up with it, but it's worth it to experiment and find where you feel the most ease. 

Chaturanga Dandasana--High to Low Plank

Oh, Chaturanga. My favorite misunderstood yoga posture. It's also my favorite posture to hear us Minnesotans with thick accents pronounce. It always makes me chuckle. 

Chaturanga is used so frequently in the Vinyasa style of yoga, but I often find that its frequency causes students to become less mindful of their alignment and just whip through it on a quick exhalation. The most common injuries I hear about from yoga students are shoulder injuries. Not that Chaturanga is the main culprit, however, I do think it has a lot of influence on shoulder injuries. 

Although there are many styles of yoga and different perspectives on alignment and form within the various yoga postures, I like to look at postures from an anatomically sustainable place. What I have to share may be very different from another teacher, but I believe that the longer yoga is around the more we get to learn about the human body and how it moves in space. We know more about the body now than we did 50, 100, 150 years ago. We also can't ignore the fact that our bodies are used every day in a very different way than they were 50, 100, 150 years ago.

With that, let's talk about Chaturanga Dandasana:

Shoulder and Elbow Relationship:

As much I as love inversions and hand balancing postures, I have to acknowledge that the anatomical structure of the shoulder joint isn't exactly ideal for hand and arm weight bearing. In brief the shoulders are mobile, weak joints. If compared to the hips they are the complete opposite. As humans we were designed to walk on our feet and use our legs hence our strong, less mobile hips. In some yoga postures we have to educate our body to now bear the weight of our body on our hands and arms. Of course it's totally possible to hold your entire bodyweight in your hands in a safe manner, but it has to be done in a way that is supportive of the structure of your shoulder joints. 

In order to keep the shoulder joints happy in Chaturanga it's important to keep the heads of the shoulders in line with or higher than the elbows, especially when transitioning to Upward Facing Dog. It's quite efficient for the shoulder joints to move to Upward Facing Dog if the shoulders stay slightly higher than the elbows in Chaturanga. Continuous dropping of the shoulders below the elbows causes the shoulders to be less stable and could lead to rotator issues or injuries. No bueño. 

A lot of yoga practitioners have no idea how low they're going in Chaturanga unless they're looking at their profile in a mirror or someone points it out to them. From time to time I have my students put a yoga block under their torso or shoulders and ask them to hover above the block. A reference point can make a big difference. 

Elbow and Torso Relationship:

Not only do you want to keep your shoulders in line with or above your elbows, but in Chaturanga you want the elbows to hug into your torso. When the elbows wing out it, again, leads to less stability in the shoulder joints. 

To get students to feel the hug of the elbows into the torso I often have them place a strap just above their elbows. The loop in the strap should be pulled tight enough so that the elbows are just outside the ribcage. When lowering into Chaturanga students get to feel the draw of the elbows inwards PLUS the strap will catch their chest and stop them from dropping too low. Bonus! Students are usually amazed when they try this trick. 

If someone is unable to keep the heads of the shoulders above their elbows I just encourage them to drop to their knees. Taking some of the pressure out of the hands and into the legs will allow students to refine their alignment in a sustainable way. Same goes for students who become fatigued throughout practice. As a student gets tired alignment often becomes an afterthought. After your 50th Chaturanga it's okay to take a knee or even skip it entirely. Knowing when to modify and back off in a yoga practice will allow for you to maintain a happy and healthy practice for a long time. 

Vasisthasana B--Side Plank Variation

I wouldn't say that I love Vasisthasana, Side Plank, but I do think the posture has a lot of value. Especially in a Vinyasa class where Chaturanga is very prevalent, Side Plank teaches students to engage all parts of the body while balancing on one hand. I use this posture frequently as a gateway to many hand balancing postures to get students aware of the importance of shoulder alignment and stability.

Although I might not love Vasisthasana, I do love the expansive feeling of Vasisthasana B. Here's some tips on general alignment and form in traditional Vasisthasana and how to explore variation B.

Hand Placement in Vasisthasana:

When I first started to practice yoga I always moved my hand to the middle of my yoga mat the moment I heard the instructor say, "Side Plank". I would grimace and move my hand a few inches closer to my other hand and I was miserable for every breath I took while holding that godforsaken pose. Light bulbs went off once an instructor told me to keep my hand in the same place as High Plank when I transitioned to Side Plank. It now seems so intuitive! I gained more ease and strength in Side Plank with this revelation.

Notice the difference in the body alignment with the shift of the hand to center verses keeping the hand in place. When the hand is moved to center the body is forced into an angle and the hand has to be readjusted to transition back to High Plank. When the hand doesn't move the body is in a straight line and the joints align in a supportive manner with the shoulder stacked directly over the wrist. For some students a slight shift of the hand forward can be helpful. The body is still in one strong line with the shoulder over the hand and wrist. 

When I started to break down this transition in my classes, even with well seasoned practitioners, I had a lot of students thank me for pointing out this subtle yet important difference. One student said he voluntarily stayed away from Side Plank due to some shoulder issues, but he said that once he stopped moving his hand to the middle of his mat he was able to hold Side Plank without pain. Try it out!

A strong and stable Vasisthasana is essential before variations are added. Once you feel confident with traditional Side Plank, start to play with lifting the top foot. Eventually you may move towards Vasistasana B, however, there's quite a bit of prep work that needs to be done before you reach down, grab your big toe, and extend your leg up. 

Upavistha Konasana--Wide-Angle Seated Forward Bend

When attempting to lift the top leg in Side Plank, it's essential that the inner thighs, groin, and hamstrings are warm and ready. This seated forward fold variation does just that. Be mindful that the knees don't drop too far forward in the fold. Use your abductors and rotate the things slightly back to keep some engagement in the legs during the stretch.

Trikonasana--Triangle Pose

Triangle Pose is  really just Vasisthasana B  without balancing on your hand. In Triangle focus on simultaneously stretching and engaging the legs while lengthening both sides of the torso and rotating the top shoulder away from the floor. These same concepts translate into the big Side Plank variation.

Uttitha Padangustasana--Hand to Big Toe Pose

Similar to Triangle Pose, Extended Hand to Big Toe Pose is Vasisthasana B in a different dimension. Stretch your standing leg and extend out through your lifted heel. Be sure to engage your abdominals to help with balance. The same muscles, and more, will have to be engaged when balancing on one hand with the big toe hold. 

Anantasana--Side Reclining Leg Lift (Vishnu's Couch)

I believe it's absolutely impossible to not grin in this posture. Try it out! Once you're able to balance I dare you not to smile! Vishnu's Couch is simply a lower risk Vasisthasana B. You're able to figure out the mechanics of grabbing your big toe without having to balance on one hand. Don't let this cute posture deceive you though. It's quite hard to balance on your side with one leg in the air. Engage your abdominals and extend up fully through your top heel and the balance will come. 

Vasisthasana--Side Plank

Of course the basic level of Side Plank is essential before you grab your big toe and extend your top leg. As pointed out in the video play with either keeping your hand in place or moving your hand a few inches forward when transitioning from High Plank. Engage your legs and abdominals, turn your top shoulder away from the floor, reach up through your top hand, and push down and slightly forward through your bottom hand. If you're still working on your balance in this one simply lower down to your bottom knee. 

Vasisthasana B

If you're ready to add on to your Side Plank start with your solid traditional variation. Actively push through your bottom hand and hug your abdominals in toward your spine. To add the big toe hold lift your hips away from the floor, bend your top knee and draw your heel toward your groin. Reach down with your top hand and grab your big toe. Although it seems like it'll topple you over, the extension of your top leg will help to balance you out. Broaden your chest and maybe even look upward. Revel in your ability to balance on one hand, kick your top leg up, and smile all at the same time. Enjoy! 

Eka Pada Galavasana--Flying Pigeon

For my first posture breakdown I'm going to tackle my least favorite arm balance of all time: Eka Pada Galavasana--Flying Pigeon Pose. Why start with my least favorite? Because it's important to do things you don't always enjoy!

To oversimplify Eka Pada Galavasana, it's equal parts Pigeon and Chaturanga. This posture requires very open hips, active arms, and a rounded spine. Hand balances come pretty easily for me due to my strength, however, my tight hips typically hold me back on this one. Here's a few postures that are essential when preparing for Eka Pada Galavasana.

Modified Eka Pada Rajakapotasana--Crooked Pigeon

Begin in Half Pigeon Pose but rather than folding forward over the front shin walk your hands about 45 degrees away from the front knee (i.e. if the right shin is forward walk your hands left). Your palms can stay down, but if available release your forearms down. Let this be an active posture. Press your palms or forearms into the floor, round through your spine, and press your hips in the opposite direction of your arms (i.e. if right shin is forward press your hips back and right). The movement of the hips back and to the side will intensify the stretch in your outer hip. Stay here for at least ten breaths. 

                                                                                                                                                   Eka Pada Utkatasana--Figure Four with Hand Press

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Start in Utkatasana and cross one ankle over the opposite thigh to set up Figure Four. Once in the posture sink your hips down and back and actively push through your standing heel. Begin to hinge forward a bit to intensify the hip stretch. To get even deeper press your hand into the lifted foot (i.e. press your left hand into your right foot). Let the pressure be equal parts foot into hand and hand into foot. To help stabilize yourself it can be helpful to place one hand on the floor if accessible or on a block as pictured. Hold for ten breaths. 

Gomukhasana--Cow Face Pose

From a seated position cross your legs at your knees, draw your feet just to the outside of your hips, and connect your sitting bones onto your mat. This posture is not always the most accessible for all students so it can be helpful to sit on the front edge of a yoga block to get the knees closer. The posture can be done upright or you can hinge forward from your hips. Press both sitting bones equally into your mat or block. To take it one step further, if you're hinged forward, actively press your palms into the floor and dome your spine as you push back. Indulge and hold for a few minutes. 

                                                                                                                                                     Modified Ardha Pawanmuktasana--Half Wind Relieving Pose

This variation helps to stretch and lengthen the hip flexors and psoas while engaging the glutes and hamstrings of the extended leg. Place a block under your sacrum at its lowest height. Extend your left leg long on your mat and pull your right knee toward your right armpit. There's a good chance the extended leg will lift off your mat, but push through your heel and try to get your heel to your mat. Keep the leg active. You want the same length and engagement with the extension of the back leg in Eka Pada Galavasana. Hold for a few breaths on each side. 

Chaturanga--High to Low Plank

Since Eka Pada Galavasana is one part Pigeon and one part Chaturanga, it's important to work Chaturanga into the prep process. When working this pose focus specifically on the heads of your shoulders in relationship to your elbows. Depth isn't the goal here. Keep the heads of your shoulders slightly higher than the tips of your elbows. As you lower down draw your navel toward your spine and energize your heels back to engage the muscles in your legs. To alleviate pressure in the shoulders or wrists simply lower to your knees.

Time to Fly!

Two blocks can be extremely helpful when trying Eka Pada Galavasana, especially if you're a fellow member of the Short Arm Club or if you have tight hips. But heads up that the blocks bring you farther away from the ground and that can amp up the fear factor. 

• From Figure Four hinge forward until you can place your hands on your mat or on your blocks.

• Once you have a solid foundation bend your elbows straight back a la Chaturanga.

• It seems like a minor detail, but hook your lifted toes around the outside of your opposite tricep (i.e. hook right toes around your left tricep).

• With your shin resting on your arm, begin to tip weight forward into your hands.

• Keep your gaze in front of you.

• Round through your upper spine.

• If you feel stable there try to pick up your back foot and pull your heel up to your hips.

• When you're ready to take it further extend your back leg up and back. This final part is typically the trickiest.

• Hug your abdominals toward your spine, continue to gaze forward, and do your best to keep equal pressure in both hands.

• Do all of those things and remember to breathe! There's a lot going on in this posture, but help yourself out and continue to breathe.

Remember, your practice and you are more than just your ability or inability to move into a specific shape. Be patient with yourself and enjoy the journey of your practice. Never take yourself too serious and remember to laugh a little. A stumble or fall will probably bruise your ego more than your body. Also, face plants are an essential part of the practice. Enjoy it!! 

Looking for a more in-depth breakdown of Flying Pigeon? Perhaps a full practice that will prepare you for the hand balance?

Check out Level 2/3: Flying Pigeon Flow on Erin Jorich Yoga On Demand. Monthly subscribers will have access to unlimited content. You can also rent individual videos for up to 24 hours.