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Yoga is about the alignment of your body, mind, and soul in general. Several poses focus on one aspect of the same more than others, giving the desired results that the Yogi aspires to get. However, certain Yoga poses promote holistic physical and mental health benefits all at once in reasonable quantities, and today we will talk about one of them. This pose is known as the Paschimottanasana.
Let's embark on a journey into the depths of this elegant posture, exploring the benefits of Paschimottanasana, unraveling a step-by-step guide on how to perform the Seated Forward Bend, delving into the anatomy of Paschimottanasana, addressing important considerations regarding when to practice the Seated Forward Bend, and finally, addressing common questions and doubts that may arise along the yogic journey.
Paschimottanasana also known as forward seated bend yoga pose, is a type of Hatha yoga pose that requires the practitioner to give their legs as well as upper back a good stretch, which almost directly positively impacts the nervous system and subsequently promotes good health and blood circulation throughout the body. This position is known as the cure for nearly all physical ailments due to the kind of effect it has on the overall body.
On the surface, this seemingly simple stretching asana looks like a piece of cake in terms of execution, but it is anything but easy. Paschimottanasana requires a certain degree of agility, endurance, and internal strength to execute. However, given the kind of benefits that it has, the struggle to get this position right during a Yoga asana section will seem worth it.
Since Paschimottanasana also known as forward seated bend is a yoga pose that puts almost the entirety of your body to work, one can safely say that there are a multitude of benefits to executing this Yoga asana. Some of those are as follows:
Paschimottanasana Can Help You Sleep Better: If you are someone who suffers from erratic sleep patterns and sometimes goes one or several nights in a row without any shut-eye, you should do this pose. This asana helps with the stimulation of blood flow and circulation across the body. In addition to the same, it will engage several energy centers of your body, aiding melatonin production and therefore promoting sleep.
Paschimottanasana Helps You Burn Belly Fat: Obesity is one of the most common ailments found across territories and geographies. Another unfortunate characteristic of having the same is that you tend to open doors for a myriad of ailments as someone who is suffering from it. Therefore, you should consider doing this position as the very simple act of bending forward to come close to your toes, thereby toning your skin and burning the fat that is resting under your gut.
Paschimottanasana Can Help You Lead A Healthy Love Life: One of the many benefits that this pose is known for is the fact that it improves your blood circulation across the body, including your pelvic region and genitals. Increase of blood flow in the genital areas usually and eventually translates to a healthier intimate life with your partner, thereby improving your overall quality of life.
Paschimottanasana Can Make You Broader: Perhaps the biggest muscle group that the Paschimottanasana engages are the back and the shoulder muscles. This engagement causes micro tears in the concerned muscles, which facilitates their growth and strengthening and thus giving way for a wider body frame, which is a very desirable trait for some.
Paschimottanasana Alleviates Hamstring Pain: This Yoga asana might just be the best possible cure for one of the most common type of discomfort arising out of living a life in the modern times, that is hamstring pain. Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk job can make the legs weaker, including the hamstring muscles, which get affected the most. In Paschimottanasana, you are required to extend your legs fully, causing your hamstrings to stretch, strengthen and relax, thereby alleviating the resultant hamstring pain.
While doing the Paschimottanasana also known as forward seated bend, you will be required to do two variations of the same. While the first is known as the dynamic variation, which is a practiced pose, the second is known as the static pose, which is the main Paschimottanasana pose. A step-by-step guide for the execution of the same is as follows.
Paschimottanasana Step 1: Sit firmly on the ground along the length of your mat with your back erect, legs extended straight, and in a seated position.
Paschimottanasana Step 2: Take a deep breath while simultaneously raising your palms to your chest level. Ensure that your elbows are facing backward and are softly bent in a wing formation.
Paschimottanasana Step 3: Press your toes in and then push your body forward in a seated position while extending your arms. Maintain this motion until you manage to place the midpoint of your palm right over your toes.
Paschimottanasana Step 4: Retreat to the original position while taking a deep breath in.
Now is the time to do the static pose, which is the real Paschimottasana. For the same, repeat Steps 1 to 3 until you extend your arms to the tee.
Paschimottanasana Step 6: When you reach nearer to the toes, take your index finger as well as the middle finger and wrap them around the toe of your corresponding foot to hold on to them.
Paschimottanasana Step 7: Relax your elbows and help them descend softly towards the quadriceps of the corresponding knee. Finally, stop when your elbows make contact with the thigh.
Paschimottanasana Step 8: Bend your head in order to touch your knees. Stay in that position for as long as you are comfortable doing it.
Paschimottanasana Step 9: Retreat to the original position in the exact same manner as you went into the final position to complete one repetition of the same.
Paschimottanasana also known as forward seated bend can be performed either in the morning or the evening, although many Yogis prefer to do it in the morning as it is supposed to be done per the Sun’s movement. It should preferably be done during the final phase of your Yoga routine since it requires the student to be all warmed up before executing the same. It is also recommended that you do the same on a stomach and a bladder that has been empty for anywhere between 4 to 6 hours.
You should not perform the Paschimottanasana also known as forward seated bend under the following circumstances.
An anatomical exploration of the Paschimottanasana reveals that this asana is a great workout for the upper body. The same is as follows:
When in the starting position, all you are doing is lying on the mat with your legs extended, which means that the first muscle group to be impacted by this pose resides in the legs. The specific leg-based muscles that feel the impact the most are your quadriceps, hamstrings, tibialis, calves, and buttocks.
When bringing your hands close to your chest, you are engaging your biceps, triceps, shoulders, upper back, and middle back. In these body parts, you are likely to feel a contracting sensation. On top of that, you are bound to feel an expansion of your chest area, which puts your pectoral muscles into motion and looks to activate the heart chakra.
Coming to the main pose, wherein resides most of the proverbial action. As you bend forward, slowly and steadily, your larger muscle groups in the back begin to feel the expansion. Not only that, but your spine feels the impact as well. As you move your hands ahead, you will begin to engage your trapezius as well as other muscles that fall under the latissimus group.
As far as the anterior portion of the body goes, the pressure starts to build up from the quadriceps, then the hip flexors, the pelvic region, the obliques, the lower abdomen, the middle abdomen and the upper abdomen, all the way to the chest. Simultaneously, you will also be engaging your neck
Why Is It Called Paschimottanasana?
Paschimottanasana is a Sanskrit term that translates to “West-side forward seating pose”. This Yoga asana gets this name because the Yogi is supposed to bend their body forward to do this pose.
Additionally, this pose is supposed to be done per the Sun's rising and setting position, where the celestial body rises from the East and settles in the West.
What Are The Techniques Of Paschimottanasana?
Some of the alternative techniques of the Paschimottanasana are as follows:
Dynamic seated forward bend pose: In this variation, the Yogi are only required to place their palms above their feet in a way that it looks like the palm is hovering over them. This position is done to ease into the main Paschimottanasana
One leg folded forward bend pose: This variation allows the Yogis to focus on one leg at a time as it requires the practitioner to fold one foot inwards.
Forward bend pose with strap: This variation sees the practitioner wrap stretchable straps around their feet to support the torso.
Rowing boat seated forward bend pose: In this variation, the student rocks their upper body as if they are rowing a boat and then slips into the main forward bend pose.
Seated forward bend with bolster: In this variation, the student keeps a pillow where the head is supposed to come and rest during the final pose to provide the neck with some support.
How Can One Get Better At Paschimottanasana?
One can get better at the forward seated bend with practice and experimentation. If you would like a refresher on how the Paschimottanasana is done, you can always take a look at the step-by-step guide for executing the same at BalanceGurus.
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