Cobra Pose

• Back injury
• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Headache
• Pregnancy

Don't overdo the backbend. To find the height at which you can work comfortably and avoid straining your back, take your hands off the floor for a moment, so that the height you find will be through extension.

If you are very stiff it might be better to avoid doing this pose on the floor. Brace a metal folding chair against a wall, and do the pose with your hands on the front edge of the seat, balls of the feet on the floor.

Your partner can help you learn about the correct action of the pelvis in a backbend. Once in the pose, have your partner straddle your legs. He/she should bend over and grip the sides of your pelvis, thumbs toward the sacrum, then spread the back of your pelvis, encourage your outer hips to soften, and push your hip points toward each other.

• Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
• Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

• Backbends

If you have the flexibility in the armpits, chest, and groins you can move into a deeper backbend. Walk the hands a little farther forward and straighten your elbows, turning the arms outward. Lift the top of the sternum straight toward the ceiling.