Bridge Pose: Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

I’ve been writing for Hugger Mugger’s weblog for 14 years—exhausting to imagine. And it’s equally exhausting to imagine that in all these years, spanning greater than 900 posts, I’ve by no means written a fundamental weblog on easy methods to observe Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana). In my protection, I’ve written two articles about training Bridge on a Normal Yoga Bolster, right here and right here. I’ve additionally written about training Setu Bandha with a Yoga Block. However for some motive, Setu Bandha Sarvangasana sans props escaped my thoughts.

Bridge Pose Advantages

Bridge Pose is a star amongst yoga poses, and it’s been a staple in my courses for many years. Not solely is it a vital yoga pose, however it’s additionally an necessary pose in power coaching routines. Bridge Pose confers so many advantages. Listed below are a couple of:

• Stretches hip flexors, a obligatory motion for countering the unwell results of an excessive amount of sitting
• Strengthens again muscle groups, glutes and hamstrings
• Can relieve again rigidity
• Promotes improved posture
• Stretches the chest, neck and shoulders
• Calms the nervous system
• Might help digestion (so long as you observe two hours after a meal)

Cautions and Contraindications

Like all yoga poses, Bridge Pose will be contraindicated in sure instances. If you’re at present experiencing a neck and/or shoulder damage, it may be finest to keep away from Setu Bandha Sarvangasana till you’re healed. In a future submit, I’ll share a variation of Bridge Pose that may be okay to observe with a neck concern.

You may additionally wish to strategy Bridge Pose with warning in case you are within the early, heavy days of your menstrual interval. Many ladies expertise no unintended effects from training Bridge Pose on their interval. However there are some girls who expertise an interruption of their regular movement. This may result in cramping and subsequent “flooding.” (I used to be in a position to observe Setu Bandha on my interval for years. Then at some point, I skilled these signs, and it was extremely disagreeable!)

Find out how to Put together to Observe Bridge Pose

Earlier than training Setu Bandha, it may be useful to heat up the areas of the physique that shall be doing a lot of the stretching and strengthening work. These embrace: glutes, hip flexors, quadriceps, chest, shoulders, abdominals and neck.

Listed below are a couple of ideas for potential warm-up poses. After all, a pair rounds of Surya Namaskar (Solar Salutations) might work as effectively:

Find out how to Observe Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

1. Lie in your again on a nonskid Yoga Mat.
2. Bend your knees and place the soles of your ft on the ground.
3. Draw your arms shut in to your sides, then bend your elbows in order that your forearms are vertical.
4. Press your higher arms into the ground, and concurrently arch your low again away from the ground.
5. Prolong your arms alongside your physique.
6. Prolong your knees outward, away out of your pelvis to be able to start to raise your again off the ground. Maintain extending your knees outward away out of your pelvis as your pelvis lifts into Bridge Pose. Preserve this outward extension isometrically as you maintain the pose.
7. I favor extending outward by means of my legs to raise into the pose, fairly than merely pushing up with my glutes. I’ve discovered that after I push up with my glutes, I overextend my hip joints, which might, over time, put on down the cartilage and labrum. The opposite factor that occurs is that my knees are likely to splay out to the perimeters after I merely push up with my glutes. This doesn’t occur after I isometrically lengthen my knees outward from my pelvis. You most likely gained’t raise as excessive as you’ll by pushing into your hip joints, however lifting excessive isn’t the purpose! Practising sustainably is much extra necessary.
8. Rock aspect to aspect onto the tops of your shoulders and clasp your fingers beneath you. In case your elbows bend once you clasp your fingers, observe along with your arms parallel on the ground. You may also maintain a Yoga Strap between your fingers to create a stronger grounding in your arms.
9. Take 5 to 10 deep breaths, enjoyable your neck, throat, jaw and facial muscle groups.
10. To depart the pose, lengthen your arms out overhead, alongside the ground and slowly decrease your backbone down onto the ground, lengthening as you go. Repeat in the event you like.

About Charlotte Bell

Charlotte Bell found yoga in 1982 and started instructing in 1986. Charlotte is the creator of Aware Yoga, Aware Life: A Information for On a regular basis Observe and Yoga for Meditators, each revealed by Rodmell Press. Her third e-book is titled Hip-Wholesome Asana: The Yoga Practitioner’s Information to Defending the Hips and Avoiding SI Joint Ache (Shambhala Publications). She writes a month-to-month column for CATALYST Journal and serves as editor for Yoga U On-line. Charlotte is a founding board member for GreenTREE Yoga, a non-profit that brings yoga to underserved populations. A lifelong musician, Charlotte performs oboe and English horn within the Salt Lake Symphony and folks sextet Crimson Rock Rondo, whose DVD gained two Emmy awards in 2010.