Bhekasana – Frog Pose II

Bhekasana at a Glance

How to Do Bhekasana?
Follow the Step-by-Step Procedure

• This is a back bend and a hip opener pose. Do the warm-up and preparatory back mend and hip opening postures to ease the Bhekasana pose.
• Do this yoga pose in the morning on your empty stomach. You can also start by doing the half-frog pose to get flexibility and then do the Bhekasana pose.
• To start with the Bhekasana pose, lie down on a yoga mat, on your stomach. Feel the chest and the entire body touching the ground and take some relaxed breaths.
• Now inhale lift your head and your chest and support yourself on your forearms.
• Slowly take your right arm back and simultaneously bend your right knee, now bring the right heel (right foot) to your outer right thigh, with your right arm.
• Now bend your left knee and bring your left heel to your left buttocks.
• Hold the inner side of the foot with their respective arms slowly bringing your palms toward the foot pressing it with your hands and pushing the feet towards the floor.
• Here the fingers would be on the toes and your elbows would point upward and engage your core.
• Your chest and head are lifted and your thighs and core are engaged for stability.
• Keep breathing and hold, the pose for a few breaths and within your comfort limit.
• Keep focusing on the root chakra, exhale by slowly releasing, your legs, and come back and relax in the child’s pose or the savasana pose.

What are the Benefits of Bhekasana?

• It helps to stretch the entire body, mainly the legs, back, shoulders, knees, ankles, and neck.
• It enhances your overall strength and improves your body posture.
• It helps to stretch and strengthen your quadriceps and tones your leg muscles.
• It strengthens your chest muscles and also stimulates the adrenal glands.
• It improves your self-awareness and enhances your balance and control.
• It can also help relieve the stress in the joints.
• It can help to calm your body and mind.

Health Conditions that Might Benefit from Bhekasana

• It helps to keep the reproductive system healthy by activating the hormones.
• It massages the lower abdomen, so helps with a better digestion process and keeps the digestive system healthy.
• This posture can help women during their cramps and pain during their menstrual cycle.
• This can help cure flat feet.
• This helps to improve the blood flow to the spine and reduces stiffness.
• This helps to improve the flexibility in the hips and groin area.
• Regular practice can help to reduce the extra fat from your waist and thighs.
• This can help to reduce the stress in different parts of the body, which helps calm your body and mind.
• This pose helps enhance mindfulness with the involvement of your breath.

Safety and Precautions

• Warmup and preparatory poses are very important, Begin your practice session with several rounds of sun salutations.
• Don’t push yourself into the pose, progress gradually.
• Avoid this pose if you have high or low blood pressure.
• Any stomach-related issues or headaches just avoid or consult your doctor.
• Don’t push your ankles too harshly.
• Use props under the guidance of the yoga teacher.

Common Mistakes

• Avoid doing the yoga practice after meals.
• Don’t put too much pressure on your hips and shoulders.
• Initially do it under the guidance of the yoga teacher.
• If you feel any discomfort or pain, in any part of your body just come out of the pose.
• Do preparatory poses like bow pose, one-legged frog pose, or camel pose to gain flexibility.
• Practice Bhekasana by Respecting your body and acting accordingly.
• Avoid hunching your lower back.
• Keep your core and thigh muscles engaged.

Tips for Bhekasana

• Always practice 4 to 5 hours after your meal or in the morning.
• Keep your pubic bone firm and tuck your belly in.
• Keep breathing, avoid holding your breath.
• Do the variations before reaching this pose.
• lengthen through the front body while engaging through the back body.
• Lift your thighs, lower ribs, and chin, and hold this position
• Use soft cushions or blankets under your knees or hips.
• Have patience and be mindful of the sensations.
• You can also use a strap to hold the feet.

Physical Alignment Principles for Bhekasana

• Fold your legs and bring your foot to the outside of the hips.
• Keep your quadriceps engaged.
• Press your upper foot gently, with your fingers.
• Your toes facing down.
• Your elbows pointing upward to the sky.
• You should feel a stretch in the belly of the thigh muscle and not around the knee joint.
• Squeeze your legs until you feel your inner thighs engage.
• Lift your collarbones and upper chest toward the ceiling.
• The center of the chest is up and forward and the knees are back and away from the body.
• Keep your upper back lifted.
• Press your hips onto the ground for stability
• Knees in line with the body.
• Slightly internally rotate your thighs
• Elbows towards each other.
• Keep your back engaged.
• Engage your core.
• Gaze at a steady point or the tip of the nose.
• Following proper alignment principles can help you with a better foundation and balance.

Bhekasana and Breath

Frog Pose and breath are interconnected, and while performing this asana with a proper breath movement the pose becomes more balanced and better. Before starting the pose just take a few deep breaths to clear your stress and feel relaxed.  After you settle to start the pose just breathe deeply and gently and feel the sensation of your breath, inhale deeply, exhale letting out your tension and stress from every part of the body, and also your mental stress.

Frog pose can relax your muscles and your body gets charged. imagine of your breath traveling through your nostrils and to other parts of your body to charge it and clear all the toxins out.  Breath is the key for this asana and can help to open up more easily to achieve a better posture keeping you relaxed.

Bhekasana and Variations

• Mandukasana – This pose is the beginner’s version.
• Ardha Bhekasana pose/ half frog pose – Cross the left forearm in front of the body. Bend your right knee and reach back with the right hand to hold the top of your foot, pulling the foot in towards your right hip.
• Child Pose – Child pose can be a very simple variation and everyone can perform without any difficulty.
• Cobra pose is also one of the variations.
• Wide child pose – where in your knees are apart.
• Uttana Mandukasana – This is bit more advanced version, wherein you can reach your arms over your head, and slightly lean back. It requires a lot of core strength.
• Whether you do a simple or advanced variation, listen to your body, use props to support if your body asks for them, and most importantly focus on your breath.

The Bottom Line

Bhekasana or the Frog pose, is an intermediate to advanced pose. Helps you to give deep stretch to your hips and thighs. Aligning your knees with hips, with deep breathing, helps you to maintain a straight spine. This pose helps you to relax your muscles which promotes flexibility. When you engage your core, it helps to fix your abdominal issues and comforts your back and neck.

Initially do it under the guidance of the yoga teacher. Any health concerns consult your health care professional. With regular practice it can help you maintain your physical and mental balance and you can get rid of your physical stress over some time. Bhekasana can nurture and soothe both your body and mind.