Partner Yoga: Flying Whale

FitSugar — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:27:32 -0700

If you tried Forward Flying with a partner and loved it, then give this a try. It's a version of backwards flying called Flying Whale. The key is to move slowly to help the person on top stay balanced.

To learn how to do this partner yoga pose, read more.

The person on the bottom is called the base, and the person on the top is called the flyer. In this video, the base happens to be a guy and the flyer is a woman, but both men and women are strong enough to be the base and lift their partner. So if you're practicing this pose with a guy, make sure you have a chance to lift him up too.
The base begins on his back on the floor with his legs in the air. The flyer stands with her heels touching his shoulders. The base holds onto the flyer's ankles and as she arches back, the base shifts his legs forward and gently places his feet on her upper back.
Once the base feels stable, he pushes the flyer's ankles up and lifts her feet off the ground. They stay like this for a few breaths so the flyer can feel the amazing stretch in her spine.
To release, the base can lower the flyer's feet back toward the ground, or he can help her dismount by doing a supported back walkover. He does this by bending his knees so the flyer's hands can lower to the ground. He walks his feet to her bum as she brings her legs in split position. Then he gives her a gentle push to help her kick over.