‘Ek Pada Asana’ which means ‘one foot pose’, is classified as a balancing posture. In this pose the upper and lower body counter balance each other in a horizontal plane.
Organising the Pose:-
1. Stand in Tadasana. Inhale and raise arms, pressing palms together above head.
2. While exhaling ,start to lean forward, transferring the weight onto the left leg, at the same time lift the right leg behind you, keeping it in line with your body.
3. Exhaling more, lean forward continuing to raise the leg, until the trunk, legs and arms are all in one horizontal line.
4. Hold the final posture for upto 30 -40 counts.
5. Inhaling slowly return to the starting position. Repeat with the other leg. Come back to Tadasana.
DO’S:
- Fix your eye gaze to a point below for focus so that you can mainatain your balance.
- Breathe normally while holding the pose.
DONT’S:
- Don’t practice if you have high blood pressure or heart problems.
- Don’t practice in the later stages of pregnancy.
BENEFITS:
- Improves concentration.
- Balances the nervous system, develops control of the body and makes the legs supple.
- Strengthens the arms, wrists, back, hips and leg muscles.
Thus Ek Padasana is a balancing pose and gives a sense of control of bodily movements to the practitioner. It is useful to improve the neuro muscular co- ordination of the body.
Namaste!
Neelanjana Bharadwaj– Yoga Expert