“Yoga is not about touching your toes, it’s about what you learn on the way down.” — Jigar Gor.

Padahastana is one of the 12 basic yoga postures. It is practiced during Surya Namaskar. The word is derived from the Sanskrit words Pada means foot, hasta means hand and asana means posture. Another name of this pose is the hand under foot pose. This asana involves the bending of the body, standing erect, and further bending on the forward position, without putting force on the body to place the arms under the toes. This stretching yoga is considered to reduce the heaviness of the body.

How would it benefit the practitioners??

Are you feeling sluggish?? Or have any kind of indigestion-related problems?? Then this yoga has come up with a solution for you. By stretching the entire body, this yoga helps in strengthening the abdominal muscles and massaging the internal abdominal organs. The improvement of the abdominal organs helps in the betterment of the digestive organs and helps in curing the diseases related to indigestion, constipation, and flatulence (Hipparagi & Gangadhar, 2019). The regular practice of this yoga helps in toning the muscles of the spinal cord region and stimulates them. It improves the vitality of the body. The functionalities of the internal organs of the body get improved with the regular practice of this yoga. Hence, padahastana helps in improving the metabolism process of the body and boosting up the blood flow within the body and flushing the toxins away (Femina, 2021). The boosted blood flow in turns baths the nerves and the bodily organs, ensuring the enhancement of their functionalities. Besides, the efficient practice of this yoga on a regular basis helps in getting cured of the throat and nasal diseases (Hipparagi & Gangadhar, 2019). It helps in reducing ‘Tamas’, which means the heaviness of the body, making it light. By slowing down the heartbeat, it helps in comforting the body and reducing the exhaustion level. Holding the pose for 30 seconds helps in eliminating the stress and fatigue from the body and helps to start the day with fresh energy and happiness.

Prerequisites of Padahastana!!

The yoga instructors suggest that before practicing this yoga, the practitioners should perform 10 minutes of warm-up. This warm-up session helps to get the entire body to prepare for practicing yoga (Femina, 2021). This warm-up session helps in removing the stiffness of the body, increasing the flexibility, and smoothening all the joints of the body, so that the practitioner can perform the asanas well (Hipparagi & Gangadhar, 2019). Sometimes, people do not give importance to the warm-up sessions and end up with serious kinds of injuries. Hence, the instructors suggest both the beginners and the experts perform warm-up sessions before practicing yoga.

Safety and precautions that you shouldn’t avoid!

People suffering from lower back pain, should not practice this asana, as it involves the bending of the entire body (Hipparagi & Gangadhar, 2019). The instructors also suggest that individuals having ulcers not perform this yoga. People having heart problems are strictly not allowed to practice this yoga. Besides, pregnant women and individuals having high blood pressure should consult their physician before practicing this yoga.

References

Femina. (2021, September 27). Femina. in. Retrieved from Through Padahastasana: Stay Youthful, Happy and Healthy: https://www.femina.in/wellness/fitness/padahastasana-stay-youthful-happy-and-healthy-206151.html

Hipparagi, M., & Gangadhar, P. (2019). Suryanamaskar for human wellness. Retrieved from https://www.kheljournal.com/archives/2019/vol6issue4/PartB/6-4-7-230.pdf