Head to Knee Forward Bend supplementary video

Stress is related to 99% of all illness that occur with in the body. There are many asanas which can counter act the stress that accumulates with in us everyday. A pose to incorporate in your practice that has calming and stress relieving qualities is Head to Knee Forward Bend. This is an accessible pose for virtually anyone who can get on to the floor. The use of props make this pose ideal for people who lack a certain amount of flexibility but can certainly benefit from it’s healing properties.

Janu Sirsasana stretches the spine, shoulders, hamstrings and groin. The pose helps to calm the brain, relieve mild anxiety and depression. It helps to improve the digestive system and stimulates the liver and kidneys. There are many therapeutic benefits to this asana such as relieving symptoms of menopause, fatigue, headache and menstrual discomfort. This pose is also therapeutic for high blood pressure, insomnia and sinusitis. With all the healing benefits of this pose, it would be hard to argue why not to practice this asana.

Getting started:
To be certain to find alignment, movement, and energy flow; start with a mat, yoga strap and a firm blanket. You many need all, one or none of these props. Start with just your mat and add from there as needed.

Begin by coming into a seated position on your mat. Start by pulling the flesh away from the sits bones so you are firmly grounded into the earth. Bend your right knee and draw your foot in to the groin opening the knee to the side. Your foot should come up as high up into the inner thigh as comfortable. Extend your left leg and allow it to become active by pressing the leg towards the earth and flexing the foot by pulling the toes towards you. Start to square your torso towards the left leg. If you feel an intense pull in the low back or suffer from S.I. joint problems, allow for a more centered position with the spine between both legs.

Take a deep inhalation and lengthen the spine. On your exhalation, reach your torso towards your foot and fold forward. Watch for movement in the pelvis by hinging naturally from the hips rather than rounding in the low back. On each inhale lengthen the spine and on each exhale soften the heart towards the earth. Connect to your sinking breath and surrender into the space you are creating. Keep the natural curve of the low back but continue to lengthen forward with your spine. Stay here for at least 10 breaths and allow the calming effects of this pose sooth you while you retreat into your own personal cave.

Once you are ready to come out of the pose, take a deep breath in and come back to neutral postion. Exhale once you’ve arrived. Notice the length you’ve achieved through out the entire back side of your body. Repeat this pose on the opposite side.

Modifying the pose:
As I mentioned, when you begin to fold forward, notice where the movement in your spine is coming from. If you notice that your low back is caving and there is no movement from the pelvis, chances are your low back or hamstrings are tight or both. You can greatly benefit from using the addition of a folded blanket underneath your sits bones to release these areas to allow more movement. It’s important to note that when you are having this problem, you may be exacerbating a back issue by compressing the lumbar spine each time you fold forward this way and will not begin to see any real progress in this pose. You may find you need to use more than one blanket for some time until you gain more flexibility. Experiment with how many until you notice you are getting the optimum amount of movement in the pelvis.

Another way to gain more flexibility is by using a strap around your feet. If you have limited flexibility in the hamstrings, you may not be able to reach your feet when folding forward. This won’t create the same stretch out of the low back. You won’t be able to create the same dynamic tension as easily with out the leverage of being able to pull from your feet. Placing a strap around the feet will allow you to lengthen out of your back much more easily. Continue to use the strap until the hands reach your toes.

Head to Knee Pose is an excellent way to heal your self while calming the spirit. Use this pose create space in the mind and the body and to relax after a busy day.

Tags: head to knee forward bend, how to do yoga, janu sirsasana, yoga

This entry was posted on Monday, November 2nd, 2009 at 9:10 pm and is filed under Yoga Exercises, Yoga Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.