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Veteran
Posts: 163
 
| Hi, I am new to these boards, have been practicing yoga for about 1.5 years and really love it. I realized that while I can see improvements in my practice in most all aspects, I am still really having trouble with balance postures. I can usually muscle through tree pose, but standing big toe pose.....YIKES! I wonder if anyone has any words of wisdom? What is the general feeling about practicing holding onto a wall? I use props for lots of things but my teacher discourages props for balance poses. Ideas? |
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| using the wall is fine.
if you fall out away from the wall, you pretty much have to start over, right?
but if you can use the wall to regain your balance, you can keep working from the point you were at...
try doing utittha hasta padangusthasana (standing big toe pose) with your foot against the wall, or resting on a ledge. then really focus on getting the standing leg properly aligned...
don't even worry about catching the toe, or you can use a belt around the ball of the extended foot.
...
an easy basic balancing pose is to just stand on one foot, with the other leg raised to ninety degrees, knee bent, standing straight up.
...
what do you practice, by the way?
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
  
| Welcome - practice supta padangustasana and see how much you can translate into the standing version. Also work on parsvottanasana, ardha chandrasana, and the eka pada and parsvaikapada versions of headstand and shoulderstand. They are all the same pose but with gravity working on you different ways. I am proud to say I have never fallen out of supta padangustasana.   |
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| Totally subjective opinion but based on experience, I see balancing is 90% focus and 5% breath with the remaining 5% being strength. Pick a spot for your dristhti and do not waiver. |
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| Are you referring Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana?
This posse is one of the most dangerous poses for the lower back so it is quite important it be done with integrity in the physical body. So I will agree with Tourist, Supta Padangusthasana first to properly open the hamstrings and find the proper alignment and action in the body before standing and adding the concept of balance.
Balance itself is three-fold:
Physiology, focus, and prana. In which of these three areas are you struggling with your balance?
Then there is the parallels to the actual life you are living. When your life is out of balance it is also likely that Vrksasana would be out of balance.
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| tourist - 2008-02-19 6:37 AM
practice supta padangustasana and see how much you can translate into the standing version
Yes, I agree.
Jonathon
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Veteran
Posts: 163
| Thanks to all of you for your comments. I study Hatha yoga with occasional Ashtanga classes. Interesting comments about the prana and the drishti. I think that I am focused so much on not falling that I am probably not really paying attention to my gaze and my breath. I will try to work on that in my practice. In response to the comment about working on the pose in a reclining position, I have been doing that and I am really pretty comfortable with it at this point. As soon as I stand up however, I feel like I can't fully straighten the leg or I'll fall over. But when I am on the ground, then I can fully extend the leg and keep the big toe very easily. So it is fear, breath, supporting leg strength, gaze, and probably some other stuff rather than physical inability to do the pose. I will try some of the thing that were suggested and thanks again.  |
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| Just for clarification, I did not mention drishti.
On the floor...
Are you able to fully contract both qudriceps beyond the belly of the muscle toward the origin and insertion?
Do you have lift in the bottom of the belly without drawing the belly toward the spine?
Is the inner thigh of your down leg moving toward the floor?
Is the outer hip of your up leg moving away from the armpit in such a way as to not disrupt the alignment of the kneecap?
Is the up leg past a 90º angle?
Do you have the proper energetics from the hip to the foot in the up leg (which varies based on the angle mentioned above)?
Edited by purnayoga 2008-02-19 1:26 PM
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
| One more question - are you honest enough with yourself to know when the pose would be better/safer/more accessible to you if you used a belt on the foot rather than holding the toe? |
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Help with balace poses
