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Benefits:
- Opens the hips, groin, and the back of thighs;
- Also provides a gentle opening to inner knees;
- Stimulates the ovaries.
Contra-indications:
- Seated forward bends are the hard on the pelvis and knees - they can aggravate sciatica.
If a student has this condition, elevate the hips so the knees are below the hips. Beware of
hips rotating backward while seated - we want the hips to rotate forward;
- If the student has any inner knee trauma or issues, she should bring the legs closer together
or tighten the top of the legs (the quadriceps) to engage the kneecaps.
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Alternatives & Options:
- Use bolster to raise hips;
- Could keep hands behind the back, or rest elbows on a bolster;
- Folding over one leg increases spinal and hamstring stretch. If knees feel bothered,
tighten quadriceps to close knee joint, or bring legs closer together;
- If hamstrings feel too tight, bend the knee and place a bolster under the thigh;
- Legs can be ninety degrees apart to one hundred and twenty degrees for advanced students. The full
split of one hundred and eighty degrees is not necessary;
- Advanced students can lie right down on stomach and rest arms to the sides;
- Use a bolster under the chest, if you are close to the floor;
- If head is too heavy for the neck, support the head in hands;
- For stiff students, bend the knees a lot! It is also okay to place the feet flat on the floor;
- Can come into a twist (like revolved Janusirsasana) by folding over one leg and rotating chest
skyward (advanced students may hold the foot with both hands);
- Can also do a sitting up twist (helps to stimulate the upper body meridians under the scapula).
Meridians & Organs Affected:
- Urinary Bladder on back of legs and on the back, and the Liver and Kidney lines through
the groin and the Spleen through the inner knees;
- The twisting version will stimulate the Gall Bladder along the side of the torso.
Joints Affected :
- Hips, lower back, and knees.
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Hold for how long?
- Three to five minutes;
- Often it is nice to spend half of the time in one variation, and then add the
twist (bottom picture) for the last half of the pose.
Counter poses?
- Lean back on the hands to release the hips, and slowly bring legs together. Groaning is allowed.[1]
Windshield Wipers are nice, or do a cross-legged, seated back bend;
- Tabletop (aka Hammock).
Similar to?
Other Notes:
- Very frustrating for beginners: the adductor muscles tug on sitting bones, just like the hamstrings do, which
causes the top of hips to tilt backward. Persistence is required! Sitting on a bolster helps;
- Keep weight forward on sitting bones - even tug the flesh away from the buttocks before folding forward.
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1 -- Groans coming out of Yin Yoga poses sound like "ommmm."
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