Inversions

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

I am having a particularly tough time telling what “position” my legs are in when I am doing headstands (both classic and tripod). By this I mean, when I get into the headstands I feel like my legs are shooting straight up and I am in complete alignment, but in reality my legs are always tilted at a small angle from straight. I’ve tried practicing against the wall as a guide, but it doesn’t seem to be helping much. I can hold the headstands for a decent amount of time, but the problem is I just can’t seem to get the alignment. I feel like it’s right and my legs are where they should be while I’m in the pose, but in reality I’m just a little misaligned.

Any suggestions to help correct this? :slight_smile:

#2

I think I had the very same issue when I was learning my headstands. There are a few alignment points that might help you over some practice. First, try to bring awareness to your lower ribs - are they puffing out once you get into the stand? This should be corrected by drawing them in gently. Then shift your awareness to your pelvis, you should actively tilt your frontal hip bones towards your navel (this will activate core as well, so it’s extra useful). After that keep in mind that your tailbone should be pointing straight to the sky, so chances are that you need to curl it a bit to make that happen and protect your back. Finally, remember that during all this your shoulders should not be your earrings, so draw your shoulder blades down your back and make sure your shoulders are not collapsing towards your head and compressing the neck. Another small tip that sometimes works for me in inversions also, is trying to flex my feet so that they look like I’m standing on the air (instead of pointing the toes to the sky). Try it out - I hope these tips will help with your headstand! :slight_smile: but remember that sometimes you might not be doing much (or anything) wrong… sometimes all you need is just some time and practice, so enjoy the journey :slight_smile:

Namaste!

#3

To add to sushumna tips,

I would say I’m classic headstand really staying strong in shoulder girdle, like sushumna said draw shoulder blades back and down without squeezing. Top of head only lightly touching. I believe if you set a good strong foundation here the legs will follow.

Another tip i have… Is your legs not straight meaning its pointing little bit towards where you are looking? If so, maybe you are afraid of falling into your back which is why you wont straighten legs… I am guessing you only fall one way where your legs can easily catch the fall.

So i suggest you practice falling and remove the fear from the asana.

Om shanti

#4

This is the point at which a teacher is immeasurably helpful. The more we practice on our own (home practice) the more we reinforce things in our poses. Therefore the student with a profound home practice may need more adjustment in class than a student not practicing enough to etch the pattern(s).

Once you are adjusted in class (I’m presuming the teacher is one who is doing their own work and can therefore see clearly AND knows the alignments in postures) it is to you to feel the adjustment and remember it in your body. It is for this reason that discernment through feeling should be encouraged (read: instructed) in classes labeled as “yoga”.

#5

Awareness is a good thing. when you lie down in shavasana you lift your head and double check so that you are straight- do this always. After some time you dont need to look you will know.

If your spine has some weakness this can also result in misalignment.

#6

Your body should feel the same way as when you are standing in Tadasana (or Samasthitihi). I can usually feel the difference in my hips and legs. practice standing straight first, then do the same upside down!

#7

You can not practice standing straight if your muscles are uneven you need to stretch them as well as strengthen the weak/tensed muscles that allowed you to become unbalanced in the first place. By simply standing straight will not make your unbalanced body become balanced. The muscles are the root of the problem and must be balanced for you to have a balanced standing posture.
Unless someone has scoliosis i.e.

#8

You are right of course, fakeyogis, I just did not see that angelicag indicated any problems with that kind of imbalance. I suppose lack of practice and body awareness might also be the culprit?

#9

Absolutely wonderful addition to the thread; the alignment one refines in Tadasana is imperative for Sirsasana. However this presumes the student knows the alignment points in Tadasana. Frankly, I’ve been to many, many classes here in Seattle - perhaps 50 or more different teachers over a five year period, and from that slice of the scene there were perhaps five teachers that instructed anything at all in Tadasana.

But, if you’re fortunate enough to have been taught the alignments and energetics as well as the process of feeling and replication/retention then Tadasana is a fine starting point for working Sirsasana.

#10

I agree once again, plus, good instruction in Tadasana can really help practitioners with postural problems become aware of how to hold their bodies in general - day in and day out. So correct alignment in Tadasana is a starting point not only for inversions, but proper posture in general. :slight_smile: