How to Handstand and Why
The other day in Jackie Prete's Anusara yoga class at World Yoga Center - I was able to stick a handstand for a darling few moments beyond my normal toppling over in the middle of the room. Anusara buddy and handstand superhero Dave Willocks first taught me the following way to get into the challenging Handstand in the middle of the room. And in Jackie's class - with the delightful kula around, it happened! Here's how:
Clear the mind, open the heart.
1) Begin with forward bend - Uttanasana. Inflate the back waist-line with breath and prana.
2) Root all four corners of each foot down.
3) Plant both hands on the floor so that each fingertip and knuckles are down. Cat claw each finger pad on your sticky mat. Integrate the arms into the shoulder sockets. Breathe.
4) Lift one leg up in Standing Split.
5) Hug the inner thigh of the lifted leg towards the standing leg.
6) Lift on to the tips of the standing leg toes.
7) Hug all the energy into the midline as you draw the standing leg up to meet the lifted leg.
8) Fill the back waistline with breath - extend the energy back into the hands as you press up through the heels and flare the toes.
9) Enjoy the beauty of effort.
Try it out against the wall or in a very supportive class. It's important that your arms are super-engaged and long throughout the asana. If you are practicing on your own at home in the middle of the room - and you feel the "TIMBER" coming on, then either jump to the side, or tuck your chin into your neck for a forward roll. For super flexible backs - like mine - the difficulty in sticking the pose comes from the body wanting to bend in half - backwards. Inflating the waistline is key for super-bendy folks. The "kidney loop" as we call it in Anusara must be engaged by breathing into the lower back and extending the tailbone up towards the heels.
I've found that engaging my midline in handstand has been incredibly healing for the curve in the spine - provides an incredible stability and fires up muscles I wouldn't otherwise engage.
Handstand is an inversion. This class of asanas bring much needed circulation of blood, lymph and energy towards the head, neck and shoulderblades -- parts of the body that are often over-worked and therefore, hold a lot of tension. By engaging the body in the handstand for a few minutes at a time as you breathe - you tap into a tremendous amount of energy in your own body - helping you accomplish seemingly "impossible" tasks in life.
Om shantih!
