PYRAMID POSE AND ITS BENEFITS:
Parsvottanasana is derived from the Sanskrit words “Parsva,” which means “side,” “Uttana,” which means “intense extend-stretch-lengthening,” and “Asana,” which means seat or pose. In this pose, the legs are wide and open, approximately 3-312 feet, the upper body is folded over the front leg, the chin rests on the knee, and the hands are bound back in.
STEPS FOR PARSVOTTANASANA:
- Start in Mountain Pose (Tadasana), standing at the top of your mat with your arms by your sides. Turn to the left, stepping the feet 3 to 4 feet apart. Place your hands on the hips. Align your heels. Turn the right foot 90 degrees so that the toes point to the mat’s top. Turn your left foot about 60 degrees, so the toes point at the top-left corner of your mat.
- Maintaining your feet in place, spin your entire body to face the same way as your front foot, and equally distribute your weight between the big toe of your front foot and the outside border of your rear foot.
- Draw your shoulder blades firmly into your back, but do not allow your low ribs to puff out. Draw your left hip forward, squaring your hips to the top of the mat.
- If your shoulders are more flexible, put your hands into reverse prayer position, pushing your palms together and raising your fingers toward your head. As you exhale, pull your arms behind your back and clasp each elbow with the opposing hand.
- On an inhale, lengthen your torso; on an exhale, fold at the hips and extend your torso over your front leg; keep your shoulders drawing back, but do not over-arch the low back; keep the crown of your head extending forward and your tailbone reaching behind you; and, finally, make sure to fold from the hip, not the waist.
- Look at your front big toe and press through the heel of your rear foot.
- Maintain the posture for up to a minute. To release, slowly rise your body off the floor, release your arms, rest your hands on the hips, switch the position of your feet, and repeat on the opposite side.
