For many of you, yoga is the art of\nstretching and assuming the diverse body shapes. Well, the Eka Pada Sirasana\nmakes this statement comes alive. The Eka Pada Sirasana (One Leg Behind Head\nPosture) is an advanced yoga asana demanding a certain combination of strength\nand flexibility along with patience and perseverance to getting the leg behind\nthe head. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before making an attempt to perform Eka Pada Sirasana, warm up your body, especially the posterior, hamstrings and core with well-rounded yoga practice. Perform diverse yoga poses like Sirsasana (Headstand), Supta Padhungusthasana (Hand-To-Big-Toe Pose), Sarvangasana (Shoulderstand) for getting strength and suppleness. And Fire Log Pose, Happy Baby Pose for opening the hips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, while performing the pose, respect your body needs and do not push yourself into the pose. By overdoing, you can harm yourself, instead of reaping the health benefits of Eka Pada Sirasana. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Steps\nof the pose for safe and healthy practice: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Sit tall on a yoga mat with legs\nstraight in front of you and palms near your hips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Fold the right leg at the knee and\nlocate the sole of the right foot on the ground. The sole should be in line\nwith the left knee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. Lower the right knee on the ground to\nthe right (Make this movement look like a preparation for seated Tree Pose or\nJanu Sirsasana). The external rotation of the hips in the pose is done for\nalignment purposes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 4. Hold the right ankle with the left\nhand and bring the right shin towards the chest. Now, knee and ankle should be\naligned with each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 5. With the right ankle in left hand,\ndraw the right knee to the right side and allow the right shoulder to fit\nbeneath. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 6. Firmly plant the sitting bones on the\nfloor. Begin to move the right shoulder further and right leg back on top the\nshoulder. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 7. Tuck the right foot behind the head. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 8. Unfold the hands and bring them in\nfront of the heart center. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 9. Hold the pose for 10-15 seconds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 10. Gently, come out of the pose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Focus\nPoints: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In the final One Leg Behind Head Pose,\nbring your focus on breathing, make it smooth and relaxed. Keep the spine\nupright in the pose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Contraindications:\n<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Hip opening is one of the important benefits of One Leg behind Head Pose. Practicing it without attention to alignment can cause strain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Perform the pose after consultation\nwith a doctor if you have neck, hip or back problems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. As it is an advanced yoga asana\ninvolving intensity, it is recommended to perform ustrasana, supine spinal\ntwist as they are restorative and counter the flexion aspect of this pose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nHealth Benefits of Eka Pada Sirasana: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Hip Opener:<\/strong> One Leg behind Head Pose is an excellent hip opener. The strong engagement of the legs along with the external rotation of the posterior results in the opening of the hips. So, advanced practitioners can take up the practice of this pose for healthy hips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Increases Blood Flow: <\/strong>The Eka Pada Sirasana increases blood flow in the body, especially in the back region. With the enhanced supply of blood, the tissues, muscles and organs of the body get nourished resulting in health and wellness. The increase in blood flow also helps in correcting hemoglobin levels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. Healthy Body: <\/strong>When you practice Eka Pada Sirasana, the body movement increases oxygen and blood circulation within the body. The enhanced supply of these two aids in purification of the body from toxic matter, higher cell growth and optimal function of the organs. Also, the practice allows the heart to pump with full force which lowers heart rate, relaxes heart muscles and ensures balanced blood pressure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 4.\nStrong Core: <\/strong>The Eka Pada Sirasana tones the core\nregion. As you hold your torso in an upright stance and put a steady effort to\nmaintain it while raising your leg in the pose, you allow the posture to work\nits magic. And, as a result, you get a strong and toned core naturally. 6.\nNourishes Nervous System:<\/strong> The practice of\ndeep breathing in the posture assists in nourishing the brain nerves. Both the\nasana and the breathing facilitate in the decrease of stress hormones thus\nhelping your mind to become calm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 7.\nReleases Stiffness:<\/strong> The Eka Pada\nSirasana lengthens the hamstrings, glutes and psoas. The stretch experienced by\nthem results in flexibility. As flexibility enhances, you can practice yoga\nwith more ease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Escalate your health and wellbeing in the\nadvanced Eka Pada Sirasana. Happy Practicing! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For many of you, yoga is the art of stretching and assuming the diverse body shapes. Well, the Eka Pada Sirasana makes this statement comes alive. The Eka Pada Sirasana (One Leg Behind Head Posture) is an advanced yoga asana demanding a certain combination of strength and flexibility along with patience and perseverance to getting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13576,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9566"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9566"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9566\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13575,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9566\/revisions\/13575"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rishikulyogshala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\n5. Stretches the Back: <\/strong>Owing to the\nnatural push and pull of the leg and neck, your back experiences a stretch. The\nstretching effect keeps the muscles of the back strong and flexible while\nprotecting it from pain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n