Posture Perfecter

Take aim at rounded shoulders with Dhanurasana.

By Carol Krucoff

Bow Balance

After you've mastered practicing with a strap, you can safely try the full pose. At first, practice inhaling your body into a full bow and then exhaling it back down. When you are ready, inhale into the pose and stay there for two to five breaths, continuing to lift your chest and feet skyward while staying rooted on your pubic bones and hip bones. Press the shins back into the hands to help lift the chest. As much as possible, keep length in your lower back by sending breath into your back waist and broadening the back of the pelvis. Feel the back of your rib cage widen as you inhale. When you can no longer feel the sensation of lengthening your spine with your breath, come out of the pose by releasing your ankles and relaxing down to the floor. Press back into Child's Pose to stretch out your back.

In the classic full pose, the legs are together, but this can be hard on the lower back, so let your legs open to a comfortable distance. Don't let them splay apart, however, because this can also compress the lower back. Instead, try to keep the legs parallel. Whichever version you're doing, remember to balance the effort needed to keep your bow taut, with the relaxation necessary to avoid compressing the back. Set your sights on maintaining steadiness and ease as you do your best to achieve your version of the pose. Don't worry about looking picture perfect. Instead, aim your Bow Pose toward feeling exhilarated and joyous.

Carol Krucoff is a yoga teacher and journalist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She is the coauthor of Healing Moves: How to Cure, Relieve and Prevent Common Ailments with Exercise.

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