Bitilasana Pose for Flexibility: Stretch and Strengthen Your Back

Bitilasana at a Glance

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

Cow Pose is a simple, foundational yoga posture for beginners and almost can be done by everyone. Find the step-by-step process for Bitilasana.

• Bend down on the yoga mat, onto the kneeling position (tabletop position), and your knees should be under your hips and your hands under your shoulders (or slightly ahead of shoulders).
• Let your hands be firm on the floor, inhale and should be slow deep breathing, and arch your back by lowering your belly button, lift your tailbone up and look forward, exhale, and come in the cat pose.
• Hold the cow pose for a few seconds, before coming back to the neutral pose.  
• While exhaling (cat pose) drop your chin to the chest and see that your buttocks are relaxed.
• Repeat the process again and feel the stretch and flexibility throughout and keep breathing as you move in and out of the pose.
• Do not force yourself too much. Move gently, listen to your body, and perform accordingly.

What are the Benefits of the Bitilasana?

Bitilasana is simple, easy, and is one of the preparatory poses, but offers many health benefits for your lower and upper body.

• You can experience a sensation of “Stretch Deep Pulling” in your spine while you breathe in and arch your back in Bitilasana (Cow Pose). A cat-cow pose can give you a feeling of happy back by reducing back pain with easier flexibility.
• While doing this pose, it even helps your tummy muscles to keep strong and healthy, improving your digestive issues.
• This can relieve your back, neck, and shoulder pain which helps to achieve a better posture.
• Bitilasana (cow pose) asana not only stretches your neck, but also your abdomen, hips, and chest and relaxes your shoulder joints.
• Relieves stress and anxiety.
• Bitilasana creates an ability to focus on yourself (self-awareness).
• Cow Pose (cat cow child pose flow) cultivates mindfulness and energy flow, while you coordinate with your breath, establishing an emotional balance and connection with your body and mind.

Health Conditions that Might Benefit from Bitilasana

• Back Pain: If your back feels sore or stiff, Cow Pose can help loosen and ease the discomfort.
• Menstrual Discomfort: Bitilasana pose can be a relief to menstrual cramps and discomfort.
• Stress and Anxiety: If you’re worried or stressed, this pose can help you relax and calm your mind.
• Bad Posture: If you’re not standing or sitting straight, Cow Pose can make your back muscles stronger and improve your posture.
• Breathing Issues: If you want to breathe better, this pose encourages deep breathing, benefiting your lungs.
• Tummy Troubles: If your tummy feels weak, Cow Pose can give it a gentle workout, making it stronger as it does for the cat-cow pose.
• Sciatica: In this condition, you have pain from the lower back to the leg. Cow pose (Bitilasana)can be helpful to improve the condition.
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: In this condition, there is numbness and tingling pain in your forearm. Cow yoga poses can be beneficial to people with carpal tunnel syndrome.

Safety and Precautions

Bitilasana or cow pose may seem as simple as the cat-cow pose but some people should be careful about doing this asana.

• People with neck, shoulder, back, or knee should avoid doing it or consult their health care professionals, as this may spike up your current health issues.
• People with migraines, high blood pressure, or any recent surgeries should avoid or contact their doctor.

Common Mistakes

• Don’t try to arch or round your back while doing the cow pose. Keep it gentle.
• Don’t strain your neck by looking upwards.
• Go hand in hand with your breath and body movement.
• Engage your abdominal muscles.
• Your shoulders shouldn’t be stiff. Keep it relaxed.
• Don’t force yourself by not using props when needed.
• If you feel any pain, just stop doing it.

Tips for the Bitilasana

• Start slowly and get into the asana pose step by step with the Cat-Cow Pose as the base.
• Make smooth movements, like in cat-cow, inhale (cat pose) and exhale (cow pose) as needed, and hold the pose as per your comfort.
• Your weight should be distributed evenly on your hands to avoid strain on your wrist.
• Keep your neck and shoulder blades relaxed.  Keep your core muscles engaged.
• Use props if needed. Beginners can do it under the guidance of a yoga teacher.
• You can do variations like seated cat-cow pose if that’s your comfort level.

The Physical Alignment Principles for Bitilasana

• Placement of hands and knees: Your sit bones are directly above your knees (legs, hips width). Your hands should be placed under your shoulders, pressing to the mat, and your fingers wide.
• Core: You keep your core slightly toned as if you are hugging your waist.
• Stretching and Breath: While inhaling, your back should arch and feel a gentle pull in your chest. Slowly exhale while you round your spine. Should turn out to be a cat-cow pose.
• Gaze forward: In Bitilasana, slightly lift your head forward and maintain the neck alignment, and don’t lift your neck deeper upwards.
• Shoulder Awareness: Don’t tense your shoulder blades. Engage your core gently to support the movements. Make the yoga poses easy on your body, within your comfort zone.
  Like other yoga poses, the key is to achieve the correct physical alignment in Bitilasana with a base pose such as a cat-cow pose.

Bitilasana and Breath

Breath is an important part of Cow Pose (cat-cow pose) stretches. Connection of the breath with cow pose Bitilasana can deepen the pose and make it more beneficial for your body and mind. Sync your breath and movement like a dance that eases your body.

Focus on your breath. The energy flows through your body, which can help you quiet your mind and improve your focus. Deep breathing with cow pose helps to reduce stress and anxiety and increases energy levels. The gentle forward and backbends of the pose can help relax your body.

Bitilasana and Variations

Variations of Bitilasana as per your abilities or to challenge yourself more.

• Dynamic Cat-Cow Pose: This pose is about changing the pose between Bitilasana and Marjaryasana in a sequence. Just inhale doing the cow pose and exhale for the cat pose.
• Extended Child’s Pose Transition: Start with Bitilasana, then child’s pose transition, by sitting on your heels like in child’s pose and your back and arms reaching the floor forward. This gives you a gentle stretch to your back and arms.
• Seated Cat-Cow Pose or with Blocks: Perform this seated version of the yoga pose that can be worked with your hands on a raised surface like the yoga blocks or chair. This can be helpful for people with wrist issues or flexibility issues.
• Extended Leg Challenging Pose: In Cow Pose, for a more challenging pose, one leg should be extended back, keeping in line with your back. This could be a challenging pose for better balance.
• Arm Variation in Cow Pose: In Cow Pose, to engage your core and to work on better balance, you can extend one arm forward and keep the other to the floor and alternatively do the other side, too. Finding variations like the seated cat-cow pose is to make yourself feel comfortable and beneficial for your body. If you face any issue before starting a pose or have health concerns, it’s always better to consult your health care professional.

Conclusion

Bitilasana, or Cow Pose, is a gentle and calming pose where you arch your back and then round it, just like Cat-Cow Pose. This pose is good for those who sit for long hours on computers as it releases tension in the upper back and shoulders. By moving with your breath – inhale to arch and exhale to round – you can improve body awareness and spinal flexibility, reduce stress and connect with your mind and body. This simple practice brings balance, relaxation and calms the body and mind.

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