Day 83 : INVERTED : Niralumba sirsasana ( headstand without support) subroutine from Vinyasa Krama Inverted sequence

VIDEO LINK

HINT/TIPS/SUGGESTIONS

Coming up to headstand with the forearms on the mat can be challenging, the trick is to walk the feet in, bringing the hips well over the shoulders.

Press down into the mat from the fingertips to the elbows.

In regular headstand where the fingers are interlocked you may find that you press your arms into the mat while attempting to draw your hands apart and yet squeezing your fingers together to prevent them parting, this pulling of the hands can help ground and anchor your arms as you lift up.

A similar effect can be had in the forearm version where you press down into the mat  but also try and slide your arms apart along the mat, because the pressing into the mat is stronger than the attempt to draw the arms apart the arms stay in place and yet the action anchors the arms and gives a secure foundation as you move through the more challenging vinyasas.

The lift

Notice the 45 degree angle of the arms in Picture 7. To lift, exhale and push down though the hands, forearms and elbows and draw your shoulders back to bring your arms to a 90 degree angle at the elbow, as your shoulders come back your head lifts off the mat.

Stretch out through the full length of your body, through the trunk, hips, legs feet even the toes.

Arch your back bringing your legs over and beyond your shoulders take the head and chest through the arms, to balance.

Forming your lotus.

With your head and legs forward of your shoulders allow one leg to drop back, your left and folding the right one, rotate the hip joint to allow your right leg to rest on the left thigh as high up near the groin as possible. bring the left leg forward and bending the knee bring the left foot on to the right thigh while pressing down through the forearms and pushing the head through the arms as much as possible.

Vrischikasana

We need to create a deep arch in the back, engage  mula and uddiyana bandha to support the tailbone which we want to tuck forward to create more space in the vertebrae. 

take the head through the arms as much as possible, take the legs further over and push the pelvis forward. Stretch through the length of the legs and allow the weight of the legs to drop them down towards the head.

To exit, push through the legs and unbend the waist on the inhalation.

In the Subroutine we should ideally stay in pinchamyurasana as asana sthiti as we move through the vinyasas. However, as we build strength we might practice each vinyasa separately coming back down to downward dog and even taking a mini savasana to allow the heart rate and breath to steady.