The bane of western society, in the opinion of some yogis, is the chair. We spend a good deal of our formative years seated with our legs together, removed from the earth and ever struggling for a comfortable and restful position, compromising our postures and torturing our spines.
We would all be more limber had no one raised us off the carpet in kindergarten and stuck us behind a school desk. New yoga students often point to their tight hips and inhibited pelvic regions as the source of their limitations and pains. Patience and practice, as with all things in yoga, will open up this area of the body.
With flexibility of movement, flexibility of mind follows. When our energy is open and flowing in our hips, dancing becomes more joyful, a picnic on a blanket in the park sounds more romantic, and playtime with our children and grandchildren is more rewarding.
The two hip opening poses below can be approached passively or aggressively, gently or intensely. No yoga practitioner ever outgrows these postures and once the body becomes familiar with them, they are always enjoyable!
Pigeon (Kapotasana)
The pigeon pose can be approached in several ways. From the downward facing dog position, swing the right leg out behind you and then under the torso with knee bent, resting the knee in between the hands or by the right hand. Depending on your level of flexibility, the right foot may be close to the left hip (if the hip is tight) or the left hand (if the hip is very open).
Come into this position carefully and gently, as it can strain the connective tissues of the knee. Lift the chest as you press down through the hands, as in cobra. You may also lean forward on an exhalation and let the spine round and relax and bring the forehead to the floor to focus your energy on the hip.
If this pose is particularly challenging or causes your right hip too much strain, place a yoga block or a rolled/folded blanket under the hip to support it. Relax and breathe.
You may also enter this pose more passively from the lightning bolt position (vajrasana). Begin by leaning forward onto your hands and rising off the heels to a kneeling position. Slide the left leg back behind you as you bring the torso back down over the bent right leg. Elongate the spine and rest the forehead on the floor with arms stretched out in front of you. Let the hips fall where they may.
With either approach, the more acutely the leg is bent, the less intense the stretch. To intensify the stretch, bring the right foot forward. Repeat on the opposite side.
The Square Pose
Also called the Fire Log Pose (Agnistambhasana), this intense hip opener is a wonderful preparation for the lotus posture, which is the ideal meditation seat for many yogis.
If your hips are very tight, don’t be alarmed by the initial challenge of this pose. You will be amazed how quickly you progress with practice and patience! Like the pigeon pose, this position is intense for the knee joints; stay at the edge of your current range of movement and enjoy the stretch, but do not push beyond it.
Begin in an easy cross legged seated position. Place the right lower leg on the floor in front of the body. Imagine a straight line across your pelvis. Try to make your leg parallel to this line from knee to ankle. Flex your foot so that it is at a ninety-degree angle with your shin. Your right knee should be resting on the floor.
Next, take your left foot, flexed like the right one, and place it on top of the right knee. Ideally, your left knee will rest on top of your right foot, but this may not happen initially. If the knee is raised, simply stay where you are and focus on breathing into the tight spaces of the hips and maintaining a straight and aligned spine by rooting through the sit bones and lifting the heart by rolling the shoulder blades together and down the back to open the chest. You might even want to put your palms on the floor behind you and use your arms for support.
If the left knee comes to meet the right foot, place your hands on the left knee and foot and rise up, straightening the spine and opening the chest; breathe slowly and fully.
To deepen the stretch in the hip and also release the low back, bend forward as far as is comfortable. Round the back and stretch your hands forward if you like, even resting the forehead on a block, your fists, or the floor.
Hold this posture on both sides for at least a minute, gradually increasing up to five minutes.
