Navasana: Modify Your Boat Pose

A powerful core is important to so many elements of our every day lives. Tending to our core muscle mass—the abdominals and again muscle mass—is core (so to talk) to our yoga asana observe. Yoga’s most iconic stomach strengthener, Boat Pose (Navasana), may be extraordinarily difficult, and sometimes contraindicated for individuals simply beginning out in asana observe. For that motive, a modified model of Navasana may be an effective way to wade into core strengthening.

Advantages of Core Strengthening

Listed below are among the advantages of strengthening your core:

• Promotes wholesome posture
• Improves stability and coordination
• Stabilizes the physique, in order that accidents equivalent to sprains and strains are much less seemingly
• Reduces again ache
• Promotes deeper respiratory
• Makes on a regular basis actions equivalent to lifting, rising up from the ground extra easy

After we consider the core, our minds usually go proper to the abdominals. Nonetheless, our again muscle mass are additionally important gamers in core energy. Whereas Navasana is especially an abdominal-strengthening pose, it additionally has a secondary advantage of strengthening the again muscle mass as effectively. As well as, as a balancing pose, it helps us construct our balancing expertise.

Why Modify Navasana?

In contrast to the picture on the prime of this publish, the normal type of Navasana is practiced with straight legs. This model of the pose poses a number of challenges. First, straightening the legs in Navasana requires stretchy hamstrings. A practitioner with tight hamstrings will invariably must flex their lumbar backbone to an excessive. Second, the additional leverage straight legs exert on the physique may cause pressure.

The third problem applies principally to males. The middle of gravity for a feminine physique is decrease than it’s for a male physique. For most ladies, the middle of gravity is within the pelvis; for males it’s within the low again. Which means that the leverage straight legs exert on the physique will make it actually troublesome for males to search out stability in Navasana, particularly if it’s coupled with tight hamstrings.

A pair paragraphs in the past, I discussed lumbar spinal flexion (convex curve) in Navasana. Whereas it’s not wholesome to flex the backbone to an excessive in Navasana, a bit of little bit of flexion, in order that the lumbar backbone is straight, is okay. In reality, that small little bit of flexion will allow the abdominals to interact a bit greater than if we’re attempting to take care of our lumbar (concave) curve. With the intention to preserve a concave curve, we’ve got to stability on the entrance edges of our ischial tuberosities (aka “sitting bones”). Have you ever ever tried that? In my expertise, it’s in no way conducive to balancing.

Methods to Follow Navasana

1. Collect your props: a Yoga Mat is all that’s needed.
2. Begin in a seated place within the heart of your mat.
3. Bend your knees and place the soles of your ft in your mat.
4. Place your arms behind you on the ground in order that your torso leans again at a diagonal.
5. Together with your arms nonetheless on the ground, carry your legs. Bend your knees in order that your shins are parallel to the ground. Your weight must be in your glutes. Keep away from attempting to balancing on the ahead fringe of your ischial tuberosities.
6. Take a breath or two on this place. This pose generally is a useful prelude to practising Navasana. It engages the abdominals with out producing any again pressure.
7. If you happen to really feel prepared, carry your arms up and lengthen them straight ahead at shoulder stage. Your palms can face your legs, or face up or down, relying on what feels finest for you.
8. Take 3 to five, or extra, deep breaths right here.
9. Then launch the pose and relaxation together with your ft on the ground, arms behind you on the ground. Repeat should you like.

About Charlotte Bell

Charlotte Bell found yoga in 1982 and started instructing in 1986. Charlotte is the writer of Aware Yoga, Aware Life: A Information for On a regular basis Follow and Yoga for Meditators, each printed by Rodmell Press. Her third guide is titled Hip-Wholesome Asana: The Yoga Practitioner’s Information to Defending the Hips and Avoiding SI Joint Ache (Shambhala Publications). She writes a month-to-month column for CATALYST Journal and serves as editor for Yoga U On-line. Charlotte is a founding board member for GreenTREE Yoga, a non-profit that brings yoga to underserved populations. A lifelong musician, Charlotte performs oboe and English horn within the Salt Lake Symphony and people sextet Purple Rock Rondo, whose DVD gained two Emmy awards.