Retiring Pigeon Pose – Hugger Mugger

I didn’t need to do it. I’ve all the time loved Kapotasana (Pigeon Pose), or at the very least the hip-opening variation that’s a preparation for Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (One-Legged King Pigeon). Many of my college students prefer it too. For a few years Pigeon Prep was a staple in my lessons. When we’d apply vinyasa-model, it felt fantastic to swing ahead from Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose) into Pigeon. It’s a clean transfer that I miss.

The Problem with Pigeon Pose

But the extra I started to delve into hip well being, the extra I notice that Pigeon Pose is probably going problematic for a lot of practitioners. I’ve stopped educating it. Here’s why:

• Pigeon Pose locations a really sturdy asymmetrical pressure on the sacroiliac joints (SI joints). In Pigeon, the exterior rotators and abductors on entrance-leg facet of the SI joint stretch, whereas the again-leg facet of the SI joint compresses.
• Gravity. When the pelvis is off the bottom and even barely grazing the bottom in Pigeon, the burden of the torso amplifies the asymmetrical pressure on the SI joint.
• More usually than not, the again leg’s place necessitates that the neck of its femur will press into the anterior border of the hip socket. Over time, this could put on down the labrum that rings the socket and the cartilage on the pinnacle of the femur.
• Tightness within the exterior rotators and abductors can switch into the knee of the entrance leg, placing shearing stress on the knee joint.

Can Pigeon Pose Be Saved?

Is there a solution to rectify the issues with Pigeon Pose? In the previous few years, earlier than retiring the pose altogether, I recommended that everybody elevate the pelvis by sitting on a Yoga Block. This can relieve among the issues. For some although, these whose hips are already off the ground, a block might or is probably not excessive sufficient to forestall the burden of the torso from exacerbating the asymmetrical results inherent within the pose. Also, there are practitioners who merely don’t need to use a block, and can apply the pose with out it.

Kapotasana Alternatives

So what to do as an alternative? Three choices come to thoughts: Supta Ardha Padmasana (Supine Half Lotus), Gomukhasana (Cow Face Pose) and Agnisthambasana (Fire Log Pose). All three assist relieve rigidity within the exterior rotators and abductors, however since each legs are in flexion in these poses, the motion on the SI joint is way more symmetrical.

Of the 2, Supta Ardha Padmasana is the most secure selection for most individuals. Because it’s practiced mendacity down, it’s simpler to maintain monitor of the integrity of your backbone. As all the time, it’s greatest to study these poses from an skilled trainer who understands the significance of sustaining a healthy spinal place, and may educate you find out how to perceive this for your self.

Final Thoughts

Modern postural yoga appears to have a little bit of an obsession with hip opening. While it’s necessary to keep up mobility within the hips—particularly since so many people spend plenty of time sitting in chairs in entrance of a pc—stability is simply as necessary. The apply of asana just isn’t about changing into ever extra versatile. It’s about stability—the stability between flexibility and stability. Hip-opening apply ought to all the time embody hip stabilizing apply as effectively—standing stability poses and Utkatasana (Fierce Pose), for instance.

As with all yoga apply, it’s useful to do not forget that we’re not all cookie-cutter replicas of one another. There might, certainly, be some individuals for whom Pigeon Pose yields optimistic outcomes. But within the context of a yoga class populated with diverse physique varieties, I don’t really feel Pigeon is the healthiest selection.

About Charlotte Bell

Charlotte Bell found yoga in 1982 and started educating in 1986. Charlotte is the creator of Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life: A Guide for Everyday Practice and Yoga for Meditators, each printed by Rodmell Press. Her third guide is titled Hip-Healthy Asana: The Yoga Practitioner’s Guide to Protecting the Hips and Avoiding SI Joint Pain (Shambhala Publications). She writes a month-to-month column for CATALYST Magazine and serves as editor for Yoga U Online. Charlotte is a founding board member for GreenTREE Yoga, a non-revenue that brings yoga to underserved populations. A lifelong musician, Charlotte performs oboe and English horn within the Salt Lake Symphony and people sextet Red Rock Rondo, whose DVD gained two Emmy awards.