Watch on YouTube: Bound Angle Yoga Pose
Cue music and LeVar!
“Butterfly in the Sky…” It’s true I had butterflies on the mind when I sat down to write this. (Better there than in my belly.) And, yes, it is true that I went to YouTube and listened to the Reading Rainbow theme song before I could settle in to write this. OKAY? ITS GOOD! IT WARMS MY HEART AND REALLY DOES MAKE ME WANT TO READ OUTSIDE ON A BLANKET.
Whew, now to business! It’s a beautiful day here in Austin, TX. I woke up like a yogi today. At dawn. Such. A. Beautiful. Time of day. So quiet and still. I practiced our foundational pose for the week. It was a nice check in for me and my body. I noticed one of my butt cheeks was sore from rehearsal and that my hips were feeling tight. I checked in with my head and neck noticing that the cider I drank last night sure did give me a headache this morning. I dove into the pose to stretch out my back. It felt awesome. After that, I rocked back for just a few breaths reclined in the pose. Then I got on my feet to open the windows and start my day!
It was the only pose I did, (okay, I did a little forward fold before I sat down) and it was all I needed to check in with my body and stretch out before I sat at my computer with a cup of coffee. Yes, yogis drink coffee too.
Bound Angle pose is both soothing and grounding to me. It can have both the Yin and the Yang. I love that in my practice. Finding -and then balancing those two qualities. (More on this later, I promise.)
Yoga can be so dang therapeutic. Marry a full breath practice to your asana practice and you are on the path to a happy healthy you. Don’t forget to breathe in your butterfly. Concentrate on the sound of your breath to keep you out of your head and in tune with the sensations in your body. This pose has a diverse list of therapeutic benefits (see below) as well as a slew of ways to recline it for a more restorative practice (see my video). I read that in the sacred texts it says that BK (Baddha Konasana ya’ll, not Burger King) is practiced to destroy disease and rid fatigue in the body. It can really take the edge off. It is even said that this pose can relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety as well as sooth particular lady discomforts. If you are preggers, incorporate this pose into your pre-natal practice regularly as it is said that a regular practice of this asana well into pregnancy can help ease child birth.
Practice it at home or maybe before your cardio. Practice it in your bed or while you watch your stories. Pregnant ladies- practice this! So yummy and plenty of belly room! If you have a toddler pick them up and practice this pose with them in your lap, flap your leg wings and sing, “Fly like a butterfly, Fly like a butterfly, Fly like a butterfly, in the sky!”
Note to parents: I have a TON of butterfly related games and exercises for toddlers and for elementary age kids. Have you ever played Butterfly Bowling? You should.
Macho men, practice this too.
Benefits:
Modifications:
Did this in my living room this morning. Felt a couple of good pops as I think I've not taken the time to open my groin lately. As a new preggers and never yoga-ers, this stretch felt so good on mah bodeh. Gonna start slowly wading into the others. Yay!
Yay! Yes, so many yogic gifts for pregnant women that should not be kept secret! This is one of them. We would already stand to create more space in the hips and groin but especially as your baby moves through the pelvis- we need to make some space, stretch and release all of the muscles/ligaments/tendons in this area of the body. This way you will take pressure out of the hips and be happily prepared for child birth. (OMG-You are going to have a baby!!!Wheeee!!!) Do a butterfly or a variation each day. Sit on a blanket (or two) to lift your hips high and as your belly grows larger come to sit on the edge of the blanket- to really let the knees drop, create space for baby and give those hips a break. Love you. <3
oh i love reading about what the sacred texts say...and all the benefits! thank you A.
Yes! Me too! Fascinating and important. Lets share our findings!
Hey Adriene,
I've been doing your yoga videos for a couple of weeks now and I love them, I get on so well with them. I've also been working my way through your foundations of yoga series which is helpful when you don't have a teacher on hand to talk you through poses.
When I do this bound angle pose though I end up with a sore back, sort of lower middle and centre - is this because I'm doing it wrong?
Thanks
Kerry
Hey, I have the same problem. Mid to lower back is really tight and sore when I do this. It's more comfortable when I bring my feet (way) further out, but then I feel like I'm bringing my shoulders too far forward to be able to reach around my toes. I'm guessing this is from years of bad posture, any suggestions to poses that will enable me to regain my long lost flexibility?
Hey Adriene
Just wondering if you had considered putting together a pre-natal yoga video? I've struggled to find many online and as a result have really neglected my practice throughout my first trimester. Now I'm into my second trimester and childbirth is looming ever closer I really want to prepare my body so a selection of poses to incorporate and ones to avoid would be so helpful.
Thanks Lizzie
Enjoyed your teaching and your videos while working a solid foundation on and off throughout the day. I must say my spirit/mind has appreciated the relaxing breathing and my body feels great. (We don't touch ourselves enough...smirk...in yoga. You crack me up!) Seriously, the spine feels great after cat/cow and I am happy and stress free. Now we're destroying disease, ditching depression, and annihilating anxiety with bound angle. BOOM. On a lighter note, I enjoyed the goal post arms twice today as I received my Saints season tickets in the mail 🙂 After that groin stretch I'm ready for the big game...and Saturday night in Louisiana!
Hi Adriene,
I haven't watched your vids for a couple years but now that I'm more advanced in my practice, and doing a lot of strengthwork, it's an absolute dream to go back to your foundational series and really spend time absorbing, working and relaxing in a single pose - such a change of pace, I'm using them to set me up for busy mornings! Amazing how sometimes you can engage your whole body with a pose rather than a sequence! Thank you 🙂
5 months ago, I really struggled with this pose. Today, as
I revisited your Foundations of Yoga, I am super happy to notice that that my hips have become more flexible...YOU are really a great teacher!