Strike a Yoga Pose: Half Hero Forward Bend

FitSugar — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:45:00 -0700

Since I'm a runner, I love yoga poses that stretch out my tight hamstrings, quads, and lower back. This pose stretches them all at the same time. If you love Hero pose and Seated Forward Bend, you're going to love this one.

Sanskrit Name: Trianga Mukha Eka Pada Paschimottanasana
English Translation: 3 Limbs Facing 1 Foot Western Intense Stretch Posture
Also Called: Half Hero Forward Bend

Want to know how to get into it? Then read more

Begin sitting on the ground with your feet straight out in front of you. Pull the fleshy part of your tush back so you are sitting directly on your sit bones (the bottom of your pelvis).
Bend your right knee and pull your right foot close to your hip, with the top of your foot touching the floor. If your calf feels squished, reach underneath it (in the space between your calf and your thigh) with your right hand and pull your calf muscle up. If you can, try and wrap the arch of your foot around your bum cheek. If bending your knee this way is painful, straighten your leg out and do Head to Knee pose instead.
If this is feeling pretty good, you can fold forward over your left leg and reach your hands toward your foot. Try and keep your spine long. If you're loving it, you can work on touching your forehead or chin to your leg.
Stay here for 5 breaths or more, than sit up, slowly straighten out your right leg in front of you and then switch to the other side.

Fit's Tips: If doing this pose bothers your bent knee, but you still want to try and work on it, place a yoga block underneath your bum. Raising your hips will take pressure off of your knee.

A Little Sanskrit Lesson: Body Parts

FitSugar — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 15:45:00 -0700

When you take a yoga class (especially Ashtanga, Vinyasa, and Jivamukti classes), sometimes the instructor will call out the names of the poses in their original language, Sanskrit. Here's a list of some body parts in Sanskrit, so you can get familiar with them. Knowing these Sanskrit words really helped me to remember the names of certain yoga poses.

Pada - foot or leg, as in Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana A (Extended Hand to Big Toe pose or Standing Hand to Big Toe A)
Angustha - big toe, as in Supta Padangustasana (Sleeping Big Toe pose)
Hasta - hand, as in Padahasthasana (Foot to Hand pose)
Sirsa - head, as in Sirsasana (Headstand)
Janu - knee, as in Janu Sirsasana (Head to Knee pose)
Karna - ear, as in Karnapidasana (Ear Pressure Pose)
Anga - limb, as in Trianga Mukha Eka Pada Paschimottanasana (3 Limbs Facing 1 Foot Western Intense Stretch Posture or Half Hero Forward Bend)
Pincha - chin, as in Pincha Mayurasana (Forearm Stand)
Sava - a corpse, dead body, as in Savasana (Corpse pose)

If you're lucky, your instructor will only use the Sanskrit names of poses, so after hearing them over and over again, they'll become ingrained in your brain. It's still okay to call poses by their English name too - it doesn't matter what you call them, just as long as you're doing them, right?