Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose)
Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose) is a seated Yoga pose that is also known as the Cobbler’s Pose. It is excellent for stretching the spine, while opening up the hips and groin. It is particularly good for people leading sedentary lives, who sit long hours at a computer, or in a car as this tends to tighten their hip flexors. These are the muscles on either side of the hips. Tight hip flexors end up in lower back pain.
How to do Bound Angle Pose
1. To start sit on your Yoga mat, legs stretched straight out in front of you. If your groins or hips are tight, feel free to raise your pelvis on a Yoga blanket.
2. With a deep exhalation, bend your knees and draw your heels in toward your groin. Draw them as close to your groin as possible, until such time as you start to feel some discomfort.
3. Next, drop your knees out on either side and press your soles together then take hold of each big toe of each foot with your index and middle fingers and thumb. See that the outer edges of you feet are planted firmly on your mat.
4. Sit in such a way that your pubis in front and your tailbone at the back are equidistant from the mat. Then your perineum will be just about parallel to the mat and your pelvis will be in a neutral position.
5. Firm up your shoulder blades and sacrum against your back and stretch your front torso through the top of your sternum. Resist the urge to force down your knees. Rather, release the top of your thigh bones toward the mat. The knees will follow where this action leads.
6. Hold the pose comfortably for anywhere between 1 and 5 minutes.
7. To exit the pose, with an exhalation, raise your knees up from the mat, stretch and take your legs back to their original position.
Benefits of Baddha Konasana
- This is a restorative pose that helps relieve stiffness
- Stretches the groins, inner thighs, and knees
- Stimulates the heart, ovaries and prostate gland, bladder, abdominal organs, and kidneys
- Improves overall circulation
- Relieves fatigue, anxiety and mild depression
- Soothes sciatica, menstrual discomfort and relieves symptoms of menopause
- Highly therapeutic for asthma, high BP, flat feet and infertility
- Regular practice till late into pregnancy is known to help ease labor and facilitate easy delivery.
Baddha Konasana Contraindications
- In case of knee or groin injury, do the pose with only with a folded Yoga blanket for support under your outer thighs.
