Pada: Foot
Angustha: Big Toe
Asana: Pose
Ubhaya Padangusthasana at a Glance
Ubhaya Padangusthasana, or both big toe pose, is a challenging posture in the Ashtanga yoga primary series. It is also known as the balancing stick pose as the entire body is balanced on the sit bones, where the legs are stretched in the air up to 45 to 60 degrees. The Muladhara and the Swadisthana chakra get stimulated.
Benefits:
- This helps to enhance your core strength.
- It helps to strengthen the legs, spinal cord, and shoulders.
- It helps to improve your balance and concentration.
- It helps to strengthen your abdominal muscles.
Who can do it?
Beginners can do this pose, only if they have a strong core and balancing ability. Intermediate and advanced yoga practitioners can do this pose. People with good core strength can do this pose. Individuals with a good sense of concentration and balance can do this pose. Sports persons and dancers can do this pose.
Who should not do it?
Beginners, who are new to yoga should avoid this pose. People with any injury in their shoulders, back, hips, legs, and arms should avoid this pose. Individuals with any surgery should avoid this pose. Pregnant women should avoid this pose.
How to Do Ubhaya Padangusthasana?
Follow the Step-by-Step Procedure
Do warmup and preparatory poses to strengthen your abdominal muscles and develop your balance, to get into this pose with ease. You can get into the pose, through Dandasana and Halasana as well, but here we will get into pose with Dandasana pose.
- Sit down on the ground(mat), and begin with stretching your legs in the front as in the Dandasana Keep your back straight and elongated and your arms to your sides and keep breathing.
- Fold your legs (at the knee) and slide your feet toward your hips or bend your knees as in the butterfly pose and bring the heels close to the groin area.
- Now hold your big toe with the help of the first two fingers and the thumb, both hands to respective legs.
- Inhale and keep your knees bent, holding the big toes just come to your sit bones and lift your feet off the floor.
- Slowly balance and be grounded on the sit bones, and roll your shoulder blades back and down and open your chest.
- Exhale and slowly straighten your legs pulling up toward your torso to about 45 to 60 degrees in the air. Your body would for a ‘V’ shape and balance your sit bones and gaze at a steady point in front of you.
- Keep your core engaged keep breathing and hold this pose for a few breaths at your comfort level.
- When you release inhale and come back to the Dandasana pose and rest with your legs stretched and relax.
What are the Benefits of Ubhaya Padangusthasana?
- This pose helps to strengthen and stretch your thighs, hamstrings, and calf muscles.
- This helps to strengthen your core muscles, shoulders, and chest.
- this asana strengthens the abdominal muscles and stretches the hamstrings
- This pose improves your balance and concentration and improves the energy flow.
- This pose helps to connect your body and mind.
Health Conditions that Might Benefit from Ubhaya Padangusthasana
- Regular practice can help to avoid mild backaches.
- This can also help improve your posture.
- Increases mobility and circulation in your pelvis.
- This massages your abdominals and keeps your digestive system healthy.
Safety and Precautions
- People with any health concerns should consult their doctor for safety reasons.
- Use props like yoga straps.
- Don’t miss the warmup.
Common Mistakes
- Avoid locking your knees.
- Avoid rushing into and getting out of the pose.
- Not engaging your core.
- Respect your body and avoid comparing yourself with others.
Tips for Ubhaya Padangusthasana
- Warm up and follow the alignment procedure.
- Concentrate more on balance with engaging your core.
- Keep drawing your waist in, breathing up into your chest.
- If any pain or discomfort, modify or get guidance from your yoga teacher.
- Use props like yoga blocks and yoga straps.
- Keep your quads and hamstrings engaged and active.
Physical Alignment Principles for Ubhaya Padangusthasana
- Balance on your sit bones
- Elongate and keep your back and neck straight.
- Neck in line with the spine
- draw the outer edges of your feet back
- Tuck your navel to your spine.
- Keep your legs engaged.
- Fingers holding the respective big toe.
- Hips squared and slightly rotate your thighs internally.
- Roll your shoulders back and down.
- Flex your feet.
- Engage your core and leg muscles.
- Broaden your shoulders and lift your chest.
- Lift your crown of the head toward the sky.
- Gaze through the 3rd eye or straight to a steady point.
Ubhaya Padangusthasana and Breath
Take some relaxed breaths before you get into the pose. Inhale deeply fold your legs and hold your big toes with a firm grip. Exhale deeply as you lift your lift off the floor and come to the Ubhaya Padangusthasana pose and engage your core with the breath for better balance and stability on your sit bones. Inhale and exhale to deepen the stretch and core engagement, and this improves your focus and concentration. Keep breathing and inhale deeply and release the pose with a sense of calmness.
Ubhaya Padangusthasana and Variations
- Use a yoga strap to hold your big toes.
- Use a chair in front for support.
- Boat pose.
- Easy boat pose.
- Supine toe grasping pose.
The Bottom Line
This pose is challenging but can be done if you have control of balance and core strength. Initially do this pose under the guidance of the yoga teacher and follow the alignment principles, respecting your body. Any health concerns should be avoided or consult your doctor.
Practice this pose on an empty stomach. Warm up to avoid any injuries and progress gradually to reach the final pose. Connect physically and mentally to get a perfect balance and stability with your core engagement and reap the benefits, which improve the quality of your life.
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