Bakasana or Crane Pose is considered to be one the most vital of all arm balances. Practicing this pose will assist you to strengthen your arms and wrists and strengthen the abdominal muscles and the upper back which could assist with posture. It will also help with toning your abdominal muscles and opening up the groin muscles . In general, it can be very helpful in the back and help in good back health in the future. This is a pose that should not be carried out by pregnant mothers or those who suffer from repetitive strain injuries, such as carpel tunnel syndrome.
How to do the Crane Pose
- To begin, sit down on your heels, keeping your inner feet a few inches apart. If you are not capable of keeping your heels on the mat, you can support them on folded Yoga blanket. Then part your knees wider than your hips and lean your upper body between your inner thighs while forward.
- Stretch the arms forward and bend both elbows. Now, place palms flat on the floor, forearms perpendicular to the floor and the backs of upper arms against your shins.
- Rise up on the balls of your feet and then lean forward somehow and take the weight of your body onto the backs of upper arms. In the Crane Pose make a conscious effort to tighten your front torso and totally arch your back. You will assist yourself even more, if you to pull your heels as close as possible to your tailbone.
- While breathing out a deeply, bend even more forward onto the back of upper arms. Go up to the position where the balls of the feet heave off the mat. Now your body and legs will be balancing above your upper elbows. Beginners might wish to stop here, steadily perched on their bent arms.
- Nevertheless, if you are ready to go extra mile, squeeze both legs against the arms, press your inner hands strongly into the mat and, breathing in deeply, and straighten both elbows. Seen from the side your arms will be inclined slightly forward, relative to the floor. Inner knees should stick to outer arms, high up near armpits. Keep your head in a neutral position and look, calmly, at the floor.
- Hold the pose for thirty to sixty seconds. To exit the pose, while breathing in deeply, gradually drop your feet to the mat and go back into a squat.
