Ardha means half, Badha bound, Padma is lotus, uttanasana is intense stretch. This pose is a deep hip opener and hamstring balancing pose.
Organising the Pose:-
1. Stand in Tadasana with your arms to your side.
2. Shift your weight to your left foot and ground firmly by spreading your toes.
3. Slowly put your right knee towards your chest. Raise your right foot and gently bring your right heel to rest as high as you can on the front of your left thigh or hip in half lotus.
4. Raise the arms above the head and interlock the fingers, palms down keeping straight elbows. Relax and steady the whole body.
5. Slowly bend down keeping straight arms. Keep the interlocked fingers down to the left foot or place the palms of the hands on the floor. Bring the forehead to the left knee.
6. Hold the final position for as long as is comfortable.
7. Slowly raise the torso and arms to the starting position with the hands above the head. Lower the arms beside the body and release the right leg. Close the eyes and relax in Tadasana then repeat on the other side.
DOs:
-Do try to keep the supporting leg straight in the standing forward fold.
DON’Ts:
-Don’t practice this pose if you have sciatica, slipped disc, hernia, weak legs or high blood pressure. Cautions for inverted poses apply.
BENEFITS:
-The pose stimulates digestion, removes constipation, improves blood circulation and strengthens the legs.
Namaste!
Neelanjana Bharadwaj– Yoga Expert