Our Blog
Visit our blog for all the latest news in complementary therapy and a more in depth look at all our therapies and therapists
Yoga Posture of the Month For March – The Dancer King – Natarajasana
March 07th, 2017
The Dancer King – Natarajasana
With spring on it’s way and our energy levels improving, now is the time to develop poise and balance! And what better way than practising the Dancer King asana?
Benefits
- Improves co-ordination
- Quietens the breath
- Improves flexibility in the spine
- Develops mobility in the pelvis
- Strengthens and tones the feet, ankles and legs
How to do it?
I always begin standing postures from Tadasana, the mountain pose, as this gives you physical steadiness and mental stillness.
- Stand in Tadasana and allow your breath to settle
- Set your gaze gently on something at eye level which will hold your attention while you practise
- Gently move your weight onto your right foot, then bend the left leg and raise your left foot behind you
- Reach back and grasp your left ankle with your left hand
- Steady yourself and bring the knees into line (don’t have the left knee sticking forward!)
- Extend your right out straight in front of you, parallel to the floor
- Breathe gently and hold
- If you want to extend yourself further, you can gently push your left foot against your hand and feel the leg lifting up and away behind you
- Try and keep your body upright so that the stretch works into your raised leg and your back
- By practising in this way you will improve mobility in the pelvis and you will lengthen the front of the left thigh
- To finish, bring your left knee into line with your right knee, gently release the hold on your left ankle and return your left foot to the floor
- Repeat on the other side
Things to watch
- Work gently and develop a sensitive approach to the posture
- Remain focussed so that you can balance well
- Keep facing forward and avoid twisting, even if it means you can raise your leg higher!
Here is a link for more info about the posture including contra-indications:
http://www.yogajournal.com/pose/lord-of-the-dance-pose/
Izzy Ixer
British Wheel of Yoga Dip Yoga Tutor and Coach
You can find out more about Izzy here and about yoga at the Centre here
Twitter @IzzyIxer or @IzzyYoga