STANDING SPLIT POSE INSTRUCTIONS
1. Start in mountain pose, bend at the hips and place both hands on the floor.
2. Shift your weight onto the left foot and slowly straighten your right leg up and back.
3. Grab the back of your left leg with your left hand and lay your torso on the left thigh.
4. Stay in standing split pose for 30 seconds, return to standing forward bend, reverse leg positions and repeat.
MINDFULNESS PRACTICE
Exhale as you bend at the hips and extend your raised leg up and back. Keep the knee and hip of the standing leg facing front and deepen the stretch as you exhale.
URDHVA PRASARITA EKA PADASANA BENEFITS
The standing split pose stretches the back of the legs, strengthens the thighs and increases the flexibility of the spine. This is a very soothing pose that helps to calm the brain and relieves accumulated stress and tension.
CONTRAINDICATIONS
Ankle, knee, hip or back injury.
PREPARATORY, COMPLEMENTARY AND FOLLOW-UP POSES
Start with standing forward bend, wide legged forward bend or head to knee forward bend and then progress to standing split pose. Follow-up with upward dog pose or cobra pose.
RELATED YOGA POSES
Try these other yoga poses to relax and relieve stress and tension:
Thread the needle pose
Tortoise pose
Heron pose
Cow face pose with eagle arms
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