Shoulderstand Part I

Who Should – And Shouldn’t

I love shoulderstand. I wish everyone did. It has a cooling aspect to the mind and the nervous system. It has many physiological aspects and can be very therapeutic. However, it can also cause severe injury if not done properly.

Even the supported shoulderstand done with a chair and bolster is not the perfectly safe posture that some lineages want you to believe it is. You still must have the basics of certain preparatory postures in your body before moving into this healing posture.

Know Your Limits

If you have tight shoulders you must first learn how to open and relax the tightness before shoulderstand. If you have a head forward position you must correct your daily standing posture before shoulderstand. If you have weak abdominal muscles these must be strengthened because weak abdominals shows up as weakness in the back. Weakness in the legs? Inner and outer thighs must be strong and steady.

Do you have cervical neck issues? Why would you want to do this posture at all? There are similar postures that will give you the same benefits without the risk of serious injury.

Is your spine stiff? Have you lost the natural curves or do you have kyphosis, excessive lordosis, bulging or herniated discs?

This is where the basic yoga postures prepare you for other postures. Yes there is a wonderful magic in shoulderstand but only when there is a steady ease within the posture.

Preparing For Shoulderstand

How do you know when you are ready to try shoulderstand under the guidance of a skillful yoga teacher? When you can do these postures with complete ease:

  • eagle arms
  • full cow faced posture (arms & legs)
  • cobra
  • locust
  • bridge pose prep
  • bridge pose with hands clasped
  • bridge pose with shoulder stand arms

Notice the difference in the two bridge postures below:

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If this is what your bridge pose looks like with or without hands clasped, you have a lot more work to do!

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If this is what your bridge pose looks like with shoulder stand arms and you can hold this for five minutes you are ready. (I would like to see this posture with some blankets under the shoulders.) Get some blankets, find a skillful instructor, and start working on shoulder stand.

Next: Shoulderstand: Who Should – And Shouldn’t Part II