Begginers & the LOTUS Position ...How?

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi.
I’ve just started Yoga.
I can’t seem to sit in the Lotus position no matter what I do. I can’t find any good instruction for Learning, or a step by step “VISUAL” guide on what stretching I could try practicing.
I see a lot of people demonstrating how THEY can do it, but with no helpful instruction to do so.

I run a fair bit and sometimes wonder if this is stopping me, however I am finding that the more yoga I do, the more it this helps to counteract the tightness.

Surely someone out there has a straight forward Visual guide that shows step by step some moves we can practice to make this position doable for those of us wanting to put the effort in.

A simple bullet point list just does not cut it, as often the words used go over my head.

So please…if anyone knows of a useful link depicting clearly & in step by step HOW beginners can start practicing this sitting position, we would all be very grateful.

Thank You :wink:

#2

Dear friend,

Safety first!

I would advise not to do lotus pose. It torques the knee and you wont feel it right away:( It is one of most dangerous poses you can do. There are so many beneficial poses in yoga practice. Set you ego aside (which is another yoga pose if you wish:) and ask yourself why do you want to to yoga pose and why do you want to do it now?

Lotus pose is an advanced pose and requires diligence in practice. It requires knowledge about knee-hip alignment and years of practice and self-study.

#3

Hi, Davekyn! Welcome to the forums. Yep, Lotus isn’t a “just do it” pose, so hold that in context. Have you seen ‘Cobbler Pose’? If that’s part of your practice, how far away from the floor are your knees?

#4

Just so that others know…I did not put that pic in that post I previously made??? LOL I kind of feel violated…I guess I should click on it:rolleyes: (weird now its gone???)

MMMM…perhaps I should apologize for making out that anyone can just rock up and do the LOTUS pose…however that was not my intention at all. EGO…strong words…In my own way I strive to be humble and avoid vanity…Bad choice of word for me…none the less I guess you meant it in some other context…Thank God I’ve been meditating before practicing Yoga.
PEACE!

YEP…Despite my apparent EGO…I am a DO IT kind of guy, however I do RESPECT what it takes and have the discipline needed to practice. I was just after some instruction was all.

Nope…never seen cobbler pose…what is it…I’ll go Google and come back;-)
my knees are high I guess…not sure sure without a ruler. Let’s just say I can only get one foot into position and the other just sits on the floor, making my feel off balance as one of my sitting bones is higher than the other.

I’ll just stick with crossing my feet as normal…or Indian style if that’s what you call it. I could not care less trying to look the part as far as the pose goes…I was just interested in the possible physiological effects the pose might of brought on; that was all!

Back later…maybe:p (guess I’m just a sensitive guy)

#5

Sorry Monk, don’t mind me…I know you were just trying to help me :frowning:
ARRRRRRRRR…so that’s the cobbler pose…thx Techne. Looks like a good starting place. I can see that will help. I go start my baby steps now…I think this will be good as I’ve seen some running stretches include something similar, and I do run. Thanx

#6

Holly Smokes! Just tried it and yes I do RESPECT what it takes…OUCH.
I used a folded blanket for a little prop and have to admit my knees are high up. I remember now that the running stretching one would have me use my elbows to push my knees down. Instead I just followed the nice your ladie’s instruction from Ehow on moving my heart and head (not slouching/crunching) & I can hardly move…Embarrassing as that is to say.

Should I practice Head to knee pose first then try cobbler pose?
I shut up now & go practice :slight_smile:

#7

OK, I clicked on the pic you put in my post…I even signed up.
I am so sore and I guess I am not suppose to be right? I have change my computer chair and will try to watch a few other things. As for the nutrition that guys goes on about…I am pleased to say that I have cut out 98% of packaged foods…I read all my labels, not so much for calories but more for Nutrient and preservative and additives. I grow my own vegetables, have just build a chicken coup and get up to 7 eggs a day for the family. I have a cold press I spent a small fortune on for my veggies & use a food the Excalibur food dryer as well. We make all out own foods at home like almond milk,almond cheese and so on…I hydrate well all the time.
I fear that my weight routines might be impeding on my yoga, however don’t wish to give that up, nor do I wish to give up my running. I’ll just have to persist I guess. See what happens after trying this 7 day stretching course.

Time to go out and have a run when I get back…look forward to hearing your responses! Good News is I have lost 25KG/55 Pounds since embarking on my new healthy living…that’s a PLUS! Must be my EGO…LOL, just kidding.

#8

[QUOTE=CityMonk;44626]Dear friend,

Safety first!

I would advise not to do lotus pose. It torques the knee and you wont feel it right away:( It is one of most dangerous poses you can do. There are so many beneficial poses in yoga practice. Set you ego aside (which is another yoga pose if you wish:) and ask yourself why do you want to to yoga pose and why do you want to do it now?[/QUOTE]

1000 times this!

I was able to do the full lotus, but only after about 8 months of continual practice.

Just start off with Ardha-Padmasana until you are ready:

http://www.ehow.com/video_2346709_yoga-half-lotus-pose.html

Some 'warm-up' exercises...

Sit on your bottom, extend both legs out in front of you...then rest your left ankle on your right thigh and try to push your left knee down to the floor with your hands and elbows...don't force this.....try it for about 30 seconds....

Then, do the same with the opposite side....placing your right ankle on your left thigh and pushing your right knee down to the floor...for about 30 seconds..

Do this 2-3 times daily....

When you are able to push both knees down to the floor and keep them there, you are ready to try the full lotus

After this, do the Cobbler Pose and then a pose called 'rocking the baby'...where you lift up your leg and cradle it in your arms, twisting from side to side from your waist and hips..

After a few months of doing all the above, you should be ready to ease into Padmasana gradually.

Good luck with it.

#9

Sit on your bottom, extend both legs out in front of you…then rest your left ankle on your right thigh and try to push your left knee down to the floor with your hands and elbows…don’t force this…try it for about 30 seconds…

I tried this. I’ve got a long way to go. I’m a good six inches away on both sides.

Once you attained this position, was it worth the effort?

Maybe I could work on it for eight months too, but maybe I could also work on something else. Just trying to set some priorities.

#10

[QUOTE=thomas;44657]I tried this. I’ve got a long way to go. I’m a good six inches away on both sides.

Once you attained this position, was it worth the effort?

Maybe I could work on it for eight months too, but maybe I could also work on something else. Just trying to set some priorities.[/QUOTE]

It definitely was!

Of course you should incorporate these exercises into your daily regime and not just focus on doing this one thing or only trying to achieve full-lotus and that’s it.

#11

Don’t force anything… there are 72,000 (or more?) asanas…they will come with patience. For many lotus is far too hard on the knees and hips. may take many moons to get there, don’t be in a rush or get fixated with one asana alone.

#12

No one is rushing here…Far from it. Thank you all for your input. Much appreciated.

#13

Hey Davekyn,

So many suggestions came out to help you.
Great!

But do you know where to start Yoga from scratch. You should be prepared first to do postures.

So my vote would be different from all here and mind it, it works.
Many can be different from what I suggest but I stand by what I say.

I will suggest to you to practice Sun Salutation or Surya Namaskar first to get your muscles and joints to be flexed.

Hope this helps

Thanks

Kindest to you,

Manidip

#14

Hello Dave,

Welcome to the community.

On your original post let me reply in this way:
Beginning students are best served over the life of their practice by developing the proper foundations in asana (postures). By “appropriate” I mean the correct balance on the continuum between safety and effect.

In my tenure I have NOT found that books, forums, and dvds are sound ways to develop foundation. However I also realize not everyone can access a teacher. The importance of having such direction cannot be emphasized enough. If the student is obstructed by geography, that is one thing. If the student is obstructed by finance or stubbornness, that is malleable.

Padmasana, otherwise known as “lotus”, requires opening in the hip joint of which there are eight movements. Specifically it is external rotation and abduction that are required. Note that it can take students a decade to get enough opening in the hips to do padmasana with a balance of safety and effect. Obviously such things depend on nutrition, thoughts, lifestyle, commitment, and the work in preparatory asana.

As pointed out, Baddha Konasana (bound angle or cobbler’s pose) is a prerequisite. In doing that pose your shin bones should NOT be above 45? to the floor. Ergo the heels move ONLY close enough to the pubic bone so that this may be true. Otherwise no opening in the groins can be facilitated effectively. The full pose DOES have the heels at the perineum, however when the shins thus rise above the line I mention, it is unproductive. And, of course there are three basic actions in that pose with two critical others once the first three can be maintained. And this is the reason for a teacher.

gordon

#15

I did not have any knee problems. I used to sit in padmasana for hours (which also was a mistake). Few years ago I was pushed by the yoga instructor "come’on you can do it! you are flexible! put your shin parallel! you can go deeper! and now I have knee problems. AND IT FELT JUST SOO GOOD WHILE IN THE pigeon! it DID NOT HURT AT ALL!!! But the problem usually hits later and you have no clue why this is happening…

Knee ligaments: the lcl and acl, do not stretch that way. and as you know twisting the body parts in the way they not suppose to twist is NOT GOOD The pose requires strict alignment of tibia and shin bone, plus breath and ability to listen to the sensations and be fair and kind to yourself. I think all padmasa-like knee position should be taught in the advanced yoga practice. This is just my opinion based on the research, personal practice and practice of others.

SAFETY FIRST!

#16

Thanks Heaps Everyone…like the name inner Athlete…& thanks for the wise words indeed.
Being down minus 15 posts I am unable to link the free Beginners Yoga DVD I downloaded. It consists of about 20 odd poses for beginners and is just a little over 1 hour to do with a 20 minute relaxation session afterwards.

I have done 3 sessions so far and am looking forward to one tomorrow. I enjoying starting with the breathing sessions and although find some of the moves hard to do, I also enjoy how my body starts to open up after persisting with it. I take the whole thing seriously and will keep it routine.

I might in the mean time just practice the cobbler…but at the end of the day…for meditating I might just use the basic Indian sitting style and even just mountain pose to center myself.

I’m probably not ready to get too technical…just yet…I have been fine tuning an exercise program that has led me to loose 25Kg/55lbs to this point. I enjoy the feeling I get from my weight sessions as well as my hard treadmill workouts…I get technical enough with those. On another note…as already mentioned my nutrition is very important to me as is too the exposure I get outdoors. I am very sensitive to changes both in body and mind. So much so that Not only am I beating of the effects of obesity, but having to deal with a life long suffering of Depression, anxiety and some difficult learning disabilities…to this end I have made much progress opening my mind to a few meditative practices. So the biggest thing I have so far connected with in Yoga is the emphasis on breathing…this is where I am at…from this point on I shall take it slowly as I continue with the my current beginners DVD…after I have made 15 posts…perhaps I can link the course so you may better understand what it is that I am practicing.
Thanks again to everyone…you have all been very kind & make good ambassadors to the practice of Yoga.:smiley: