Bhujangasana “Cobra Pose”
Some benefits:
- increases health and flexibility of the spine
- Opens the heart
- The lungs gain elasticity
- Extends the psoas to alleviate the effects of extended sitting
- Stimulates the organs of digestion
Contraindications:
- acute back injury
- shoulder injury
Entering the pose:
Come to lie face down on the mat, legs hip distance apart. It may help to walk the legs back to their full extension. Press the tops of the feet into the mat and all ten toes. As you do this, you will feel the knee caps lift off of the mat and the legs activate. Roll the inner thighs towards the ceiling and press the hip points into the mat. Place the hands on either sides of the shoulders, palms down and fingers forward. Imagine drawing the hands backward without actually moving them. Exhale and on an inhale counter the drawing back of the hands with a reaching forward and then up of the crown of the head as you lift the forehead, chin and sternum up and away from the mat. Go only as far as feels appropriate and breathe here for 4-5 cycles.
Within the pose:
As you breathe, feel the front of the heart blossom as you inhale, as you exhale, draw the shoulders down and back, culminating in the shoulder blades kissing at the midback. Breathe directly into the heart. Lengthen the low back as you continue to reach down through the hip pointers and back through the toes. Relish this dynamic feeling of strength and release.
Exiting the pose:
On an exhale, slowly release the forehead down to the mat and relax the whole body.