[Pose Of the Week] Standing Head-to-Knee Pose (Advanced)
Stretch, strengthen, and improve your balance in Standing Head-to-Knee Pose…
Standing Head-to-Knee Pose (Dandayamana Janushirasana) is a challenging balance pose that improves flexibility, strength, focus, and balance. This poses stretches the legs, arms, shoulders, back, and hips, while strengthening the back, core, and legs. It is also thought to improve digestion, build mental focus, and stimulate the digestive and reproductive organs.
This intermediate-to-advanced pose is commonly done in Bikram yoga sequences, as it is thought to be a heating posture. If you are not able to hold your foot with your hands, you can also hold under your calf or ankle, or use a yoga strap to wrap around the ball of the foot and hold both ends in your hands as you fold forward over the leg.
To hold your balance in the pose, lock the knee of your standing leg, and pull your abdominal muscles in towards your spine. Breathe deeply and evenly, and try to balance your weight over all four corners of your standing foot. (Watch this video for more tips.)
How to Do Standing Head-to-Knee Pose:
Step 1: Starting with your feet together and your core strong, ground your weight on your right leg. Raise your left knee to hip height, keeping your foot flexed.
Step 2: Interlock your fingers around your left foot.
Step 3: Keeping the right leg straight and strong, extend your left leg until it is fully straightened out.
Step 4: Bend your elbows and fold over your spine to touch your forehead to your knee. Hold the stretch for several breaths, then release and repeat on the other side.
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