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Restorative yoga poses and hatha yoga stretches

English name: Back Stretching Pose
Sanskrit name: Paschimottanasana

Difficulty level: Basic

Technique

1. Sit in Dandasana, back straight and extended, legs out in front of you.
2. Raise your arms above your head and lengthen your spine.
3. Keeping your spine long and straight, exhale as you bend forward and hold your toes.
4. Pulling your toes inwards, push your heals away to stretch your hamstrings and calf muscles.
5. Breathe normally. With each exhale, hollow your stomach and use your arm strength to pull yourself deeper into the pose, try to touch your abdomen and chest to your thighs, your elbows to the floor and your forehead or chin on your shins. Look forward to help keep your spine straight and extended.
6. Hold the pose for 15 to 30 seconds.
7. Inhale as you slowly return to an upright position. Take several deep breaths and repeat the pose.

Breathing

• Inhale to energise.
• Exhale as you forward bend.
• Breathe normally in the pose, alowing the breath to open the upper back rather than the chest and stomach. Hollow the stomach on the exhale and deepen the forward bend.

Benefits

• Anatomical - Stretches the calves, hamstrings and back muscles and opens the hip joints. Increased blood flow to the back muscles, nerves and soft tissue speeding damage repair and relieving back pain.
• Digestive system - Massages the abdominal organs to improve digestion.
• Respiratory - Paschimottanasana is used in the yogic treatment of bronchitis

Counter Pose

• Any back bend or back twisting asana

Notes

• Paschimottanasana should not be attempted by those with a slipped disk.
• Use your arm strength to pull yourself into the pose to open the lower back.