Poses >> Salabhasana

Salabhasana
Salabha (locust)
This pose was named as such because it resembles a locust resting on the ground.

1. To begin, lay full length on your stomach and allow the arms to stretch down by your side. Make sure that your toes don’t stick out to the side by pointing your big toes a bit toward each other.

2. On a large exhale, lift the head, ribcage, arms and legs off the floor, attempting to rest only on your belly and front pelvis. Reach back strongly through the legs and pull forward with the chest and head as they lift. The arms can be parallel with the floor or pressed even a bit higher to exercise the shoulders and upper back.

3. Send your gaze only a few inches forward of your face and keep the neck long by not lifting the chin too high.

4. Most importantly, don’t hyperventilate or hold your breath. Take deep, rich breaths through your nose without straining. Notice that your mind is calm and peaceful, not reacting to the challenge of the pose.

5. To release the pose, gently set yourself back down without a thud. Either press back into Child’s Pose or go for another round.

This pose strengthens the muscles of your back that support the spine—the core of your physical existence. As a result, it improves posture and in your practice will warm you up for deeper backbends. This asana also stretches the chest and shoulders and stimulates your abdominal organs, relieving gastric troubles.

If you want a different variation that challenges the back and shoulders a little bit more, then interlace your fingers at the base of your skull and lift the elbows high out to the side. There are many other ways to modify the pose so feel free to get creative and play around with it. Remember that there is no one specific way to do any pose; always make sure to work with what you’re feeling in the moment.

Text and Video by Featured Yogamates Teacher: Vytas Baskauskas