Bob’s buddy is using his winch to pull Bob’s car out of the mud hole.
Bob can’t believe how easy it was to get stuck. What really surprised him was how thoroughly his car is stuck in the mud. The mud hole looked like he should have been able to get across it with ease.
His buddy is using the winch on the front of his Jeep to pull Bob’s car out of the mud.
The yoga pose, Virabhadrasana, is very similar to that mud hole. Bob expected that he could get his leg into the lunge with ease, but his foot got stuck part way.
What is Virabhadrasana
Virabhadrasana is a standing yoga pose that can be done on its own or it can be done as part of the sun salute sequence Surya Namaskar B.
As part of Surya Namaskar B you enter the pose from Downward Facing dog and this is where Bob gets stuck in the mud. Doing the pose on its own from standing is not a problem for him.
How to do Virabhadrasana as part of the Sun Salute
Bob’s foot gets stuck part way forward in this pose.
You start in Downward Facing Dog, with your hands and feet on the floor and your hips up in the air. You look like a pyramid from the side.
Next you setup your legs by turning your left foot out to the side about 45 degrees. Move your left foot forward slightly and bring your heel to the floor beside the big toe of your right foot. Your left knee will be slightly bent at this point
Now lift the heel of your right foot and straighten your left leg. This should bring your hips a little further from the floor.
Next, bend the knee of your right leg, bring the knee up towards your chest and bring your right foot forward and put it on the floor beside the wrist of your right hand.
Your right leg is in the correct position when the foot is on the floor by your right hand and your right knee is above your right ankle. Your right foot is pointing straight ahead.
From here you lift your torso up to vertical above your hips and you bring your arms up overhead and look to your hands.
To complete the pose you turn your hips to the front of the mat, lower your hips down and move the ankle of your left foot back on top of your left foot.
You hold here for several breaths and look up towards your hands.
Bob gets stuck when he attempts to bring his right foot forward to his right hand. He bends his knee and lifts it up towards his chest and brings his foot forward and it gets stuck on the floor about half way forward.
Why do you get stuck
The usual cause for Bob’s foot to get stuck half way is a lack of flexibility in his hip. The lack of flexibility in the hip and thigh joint prevents Bob from lifting his knee up high enough towards his chest. And as a result his foot gets stuck on the floor just like Bob’s car got stuck in the mud hole.
Bob’s buddy used his winch to get Bob’s car unstuck. Bob can use a similar winch to get his foot unstuck.
How to use the winch to fix this problem
Bob has his foot as far forward as possible. It is stuck about halfway to his hand.
Now Bob reaches back with his right hand and grabs a hold of his right ankle. Using his right arm like a winch, he lifts his right foot slightly and brings it the rest of the way to his right hand.
Will Bob always be stuck?
The good news is that this is usually a temporary problem. Over time Bob’s hip will get more flexible and his quadriceps will get stronger. This means that Bob will be able to get his knee closer to his chest and his foot further from the floor.
As his hip gets more flexible Bob notices that his right foot is getting closer to his right hand before it gets stuck.
It is tempting at this point for Bob to make one of the common mistakes in the this pose and turn his hips to the side.
Avoid these common mistakes
Turn your hips to the side
Lifting your right hip up towards the ceiling will lift your right foot further from the floor and let you get your foot forward to your hand.
This movement is bad for your back. You are doing a twist in the spine that over time can cause some injury to your back muscles. You are also avoiding continuing to develop the flexibility in your hip joint by doing this.
It is much better to leave your hips level to the floor as you work through this pose.
There is another common mistake that Bob can make in his attempt to get his right foot to his right hand.
Take your leg out to the side in an arc
Swinging your leg out to the side in a wide arc will help Bob get his right foot to his right hand.
This will cause problems with his hip and thigh joint. The muscles in the joint will get stressed over time because they are always going out to the side rather than straight ahead.
Going straight ahead with the leg will result in the muscles in the hip joint being stretched in the proper direction.
This problem teaches patience
Bob’s teacher has seen some people do a combination of both of these mistakes in their attempt to get their foot up to their hand right now.
There is a benefit to having this problem of not getting your foot to your hand right away.
It teaches you patience and asks you to accept where you are at in the pose.
Rather than taking a short cut and potentially injuring yourself it is better to accept the limitations that your body currently has.
Over time your hip will develop the flexibility it needs to permit your right foot to come all the way to your right hand.
Summary
The safest way for Bob to get his car unstuck is to let his buddy pull him out with his winch.
The safest way for Bob to get his right foot to his right hand is to use his right arm as a winch.
Next Step
Ask your teacher to check how you are doing Virabhadrasana. Your teacher can tell you if you are doing the winch correctly and confirm that you are avoiding the common mistakes.
See you at the studio.
