POW! (Pose of the Week)

Pose of the Week: Siddhasana - because we're building on something here...

Siddhasana, or "Sage pose" is a nice little pose to work on once you've warmed up quite a bit in your practice. It will help focus the mind and reduce stress, but it's also going to open the hips and elongate the spine while toning the abdominals as you focus on proper breathing techniques.

I've been seeing quite a bit of Lotus pose lately (online, in Yoga Journal, in books), and it's definitely one of those decievingly advanced yoga poses that you have to work up to. Whenever you see a photograph of Lotus, the practitioner looks calm, and at peace, like he/she is totally relaxed in the moment. In fact, Lotus is a common pose that people take when meditating, the ultimate practice of looking inward towards the third eye and/or heart center.

But Lotus is a very challenging pose, and I think Sage pose is a good pose to practice in order to ready yourself for Lotus. Begin seated with extended legs and bring the sole of one foot to the inner thigh of the other leg. Gently bend your other leg, bringing that foot and ankle to rest on top of the opposite calf muscle. Let the legs and pelvis feel heavy as you breathe deeply into the belly. Relax here for as long as you like, before switching to repeat on the opposite side. With regular practice of the Sage pose, soon, you'll find yourself ready to try the half Lotus, and finally Full Lotus poses.

Namaste.