Clear Your Mind and Stretch Your Body with This Yoga Pose You Can Do Anywhere

Find this easy to follow yoga pose for a daily endorphin release.

Clear your mind and stretch your body with this yoga pose, Wheel Pose (Urdhva Dhanurasana), you can do anywhere, any time. You don't need a mat or any props. All you need is a few minutes, your body, and your Self. Try this asana in nature or in your backyard. It is grounding, empowering, and heart opening. It will open your chest, stretch your spine, and lift your spirits. When practiced in nature, Urdhva Dhanurasana will help you to connect to The Pancha Mahabhutas, the Five Master Elements, in Ayurveda - earth (prithvi); water (jal); fire (agni); air (ayu), and ether (akasha) - both on a physical level and an internal level. Each of these elements has specific characteristics and healing properties. By connecting to and awakening each of these elements in nature and also within, we become more balanced and living from our hearts.

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the ground, hips width apart. Bend your elbows and bring your hands by your ears, palms touching the ground. Feel the weight evenly in your hands and your feet. Using your feet and legs, lift your hips up. Bring your shoulder blades, one at a time, onto your back, feel the balance between your chest opening and your back body supporting you. Keep the weight even in both your feet and hands and lift up onto your head. Pause here for a few breaths. You can stay on your head or you can engage your calves, hamstrings and core and lift slowly up into Urdhva Dhanurasana. Continue to feel the weight evenly in your hands and your feet. This will help you to engage your legs, arms, and core more internally. To take it deeper engage your calves and hamstrings a little more. Be careful not to squeeze your glutes!!!! You can engage your lower glutes but don't squeeze beacause this can hurt you lower back. This will give you a surge of muscle energy and open your heart a little bit more.

Feel yourself rooting deeply down into the earth underneath you. And then feel the energy from the earth rising up through your feet and legs, hands and arms into your heart. Feel the warmth of the sun and fresh air on your body. Allow your heart to open up to meet the sky. Let breath fill up your heart and then flow the love from your heart back out. Stay here for a 3 to 10 breaths.

To come out of the pose, slowly and mindfully lower down, keeping the weight even in your hands and feet. Unfold, stretch your legs out, and take in warmth of the ground and sun and look up at the sky for a breaths. If you would like to do this again, wait until your breath has returned to normal, this will allow your nervous system to return to normal and the pose will be a calming and grounding pose.

I find that practicing Urdhva Dhanurasana in nature, connecting to the Five Master Elements both outside and inside is very healing, grounding, and connects more deeply to the Universe and to Oneness.

Let me know how it goes.:)

xx

Lindsay