Warrior iii Pose

Sanskrit Name: Virabhadrasana III

Good for: Ankle, legs, shoulders & back

Benefits

•     Builds up strength in the ankles and legs
•     Builds up strength of the shoulders and muscles of the back
•     Tones down the abdomen
•     Enhances your balance and posture

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guidelines

•     Stand in Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
•     Exhale and fold foward to Uttanasana
•     From Uttanasana, exhale and step your left foot back into a high lunge position.
•     Your right knee should be more or less at a right angle
•     Lay the midline of your torso (from the pubis to the sternum) down on the midline of the right thigh (from the knee to the hip crease)
•     Bring your hands to your right knee, right hand to the outer knee, left hand to the inner
•     Squeeze the knee with your hands
•     Lift your torso slightly
•     Turn it slightly to the right with an exhalation
•     From the lunge position, stretch your arms forward, parallel to the floor and parallel to each other, palms facing each other
•     Exhale and press the head of the right thighbone back and press the heel actively into the floor
•     Synchronize the straightening of the front leg and the lifting of the back leg
•     Resist by pressing the tailbone into the pelvis as you lift the back leg
•     As you straighten the front knee, think of pressing the head of the thighbone back
•     Release the hip [of the raised leg] toward the floor until the two hip points are even and parallel to the floor
•      Energize the back leg and extend it strongly toward the wall behind you
•     Reach just as actively in the opposite direction with the arms
•     Bring the head up slightly and look forward, but be sure not to compress the back of your neck
•     Stay in this position for 30 seconds to a minute
•     Release back to the lunge on an exhalation
•     Bring your hands to the floor on either side of the right foot
•     On an exhalation, step your left foot forward to meet your right
•     Stay in this forward bend for a few breaths
•     Repeat for the same length of time on the other side

Good to know

•     Harmonizing in this pose can get really challenging for beginners
•     Get ready for the pose with a chair placed in front of you (Should be in front of your mat facing the back towards your face)
•     In step where you stretch your arms forward hold the top of the chair
•     When you rise for full pose, push on and slither the chair away from you
•     Use the chair to support your arms
•     Try to hold the chair lightly so that it doesn’t slip further and disturbs your position

By : Natural Health News