Yoga at Home: The Bow Pose Helps My Knees! Here's How to Do It.

Last month, Dr. Oz wrote a column in the local Washington Express paper about "being nice to your knees." As the years pass, many people experience knee problems particularly if they are avid tennis players or joggers/runners or if they are carrying excess pounds.  I jogged daily for 20 years up until 12 years ago and I started noticing that the regular pounding of my feet on asphalt was not necessarily helpful to my knees, regardless of how great it felt to jog.

A few years ago, my podiatrist (who I see because I once broke my foot jumping on the trampoline and since then I see annually to get new orthotic inserts for my shoes) said I was fortunate not to have knee pain because my pesky bunions likely throw my back and overall posture out of alignment which can also affect my knees. Every so often, if I have been dancing for hours in heels (I love to dance - but that's a rare occasion!) or if I have walked around for hours in shoes without my orthotics, I will notice that my knees start rebelling and I will experience knee soreness. When this happens, I address the issue by massaging my knees and doing extra repetitions of certain yoga poses, particularly the bow, shown above!

As you see, I cannot raise my thighs very far at all off the ground- some yogis are able to lift their thighs at least a foot or so.  Nevertheless, when I do the bow, my knees enjoy great relief!  The initial part of the pose shown in the first photo above stretches the muscles around the knees in a most soothing way.  And, then part two of the pose shown in the second photo further enhances the soothing stretch and relieves soreness. So, if you have some knee problems, and have the green light from your medical advisor, include the bow in your yoga practice.  I have given the instructions before for the bow, but here they are again for easy reference.  Enjoy!

Bow  (Sanskrit name is Dhanurasana; dhanu means bow)

Type of yoga pose:  Active, convex, prone

Body parts targeted:  Lumbar area, spine, thigh muscles, abdominals, bust line, buttocks, upper arms

How to do the pose:

1. Lie on your stomach with your chin down on your mat. Place your arms and hands at your sides and have your legs straight. Your body should be relaxed and limp (aah – that can feel so good, but don’t go to sleep…). Inhale and exhale deeply at least once.
2. Bring your toes and heels together; stay relaxed.
3. Bend both legs at your knees; bring your heels as close to your buttocks as possible.      
4. Reach backward with both hands and grasp each ankle with your respective hand (if you can’t grasp both ankles, grasp one ankle and perform the bow by alternating the feet each time until you build up enough strength and flexibility to grasp both ankles at the same time).  F – e – e – l the stretch in your upper thighs and the tension being released.  A- a- a- h!  Feel the toning in your arms.
5. Inhale and slowly raise your knees and lift your thighs as high as possible off the floor (which for me is not high at all…) while simultaneously and gently raising your head and trunk off the floor. Your body should look like a bow and your arms should look and feel like a taut bowstring (having that image in your mind enhances the stretch).
6.  Keep your head back only as far as is comfortable (be certain not to strain your neck) and keep your knees together if possible.
7. Hold the pose for three seconds and inhale and exhale normally.
8. In slow motion, lower yourself out of the bow by first releasing your legs and allowing them to move slowly back toward the mat starting with your knees, then followed by your trunk and head.
9. Return to your initial resting position on your stomach with chin down on the mat.
10. Your entire body should be limp as you rest for a moment before repeating the pose or moving on to another pose.

Practice time:  Start with 3 seconds and add 1 or 2 seconds per week until you can comfortably hold the pose for 12-15 seconds.

Number of repetitions:  1-2 

Key benefits from this pose: 

 Strengthens, firms, and tones the abdominal, thigh, and arm muscles.

1. Helps reduce weight in the hips; tightens and eliminates extra fat from the back and buttocks.
2. Opens the chest and adjusts the sacroiliac and lumbar vertebrae.
3. Improves the posture and streamlines and firms bust muscles.
4. Improves spinal elasticity and flexibility.
5. Helps relieve menstrual disorders and lower back pain.
6. Enhances libido by stimulating the sex glands.

 Special tips and Laura’s experience with this pose:

This is one of the most intense, challenging poses taught in this book and that I do daily. Sometimes, I can hold the bow for only 8 to 10 seconds; other times I can hold it for 15 seconds or more.

Lift your thighs off the ground with your knees together if you can. If this is difficult, you can allow some space between your knees, but gradually work your way to keeping the knees together.  As you can see from my photo, my thighs appear as if they’re barely off the ground. Maybe 20 plus years of jogging made my hamstrings extra tight.  I don’t know but I am still working my way to getting higher off the ground. Nevertheless, I still feel the toning action of the bow and I reap its other benefits even though I can’t lift my thighs high off the ground as professional yoga instructors can.

When I started this pose, and this is still true on some mornings when I awaken a bit stiff, I feel a strong stretch in my upper thighs just by bending my legs at the knees, the first step of the pose.  Sometimes you will hear your vertebrae crack as they adjust into place with this pose.  Be patient and persistent and your comfort level will increase over time. After completing this pose you will likely hear your heart pumping or you may feel a bit winded because you have been lifting your own body weight. As you gain experience, you may choose to rock back and forth gently while holding the pose.

Yours for enjoying the Bow,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the Beginners' Yoga at Home Coach 

 

 

Comments

[Laura Rodriguez]

Thank you, Jillian - that is great news! On the days you don't attend class, I highly recommend you do the poses at home to maintain and enhance your results!

Happy upcoming New Year!

[Jillian]

Thanks a lot for sharing all of your information and experience with yoga. I recently started a yoga class as suggested by my back specialize in NYC since I've been experiencing upper and lower back pain. Although it's only been a few months, the pain is definitely going away and I feel great from the stretching.

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Yoga helps you in developing profound thoughts and also helps in executing creative tasks. Many sportsman, artists, creative professionals practice yoga to get benefited from its asana's.

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