Hot Yoga Pose Forums > Chapter: Bhujangasana
The idea of cricket wings pulling back and at my sides helps to give me more stable lift. I focused on this pose during class today. I know that I have been taught to squeeze my glutes in this pose, and it always hurt my back. I assumed that my back was just weak. Today I focused on lifting up with tight legs but not locked. I was able to get higher and with no pain. I am so glad that we talked about the benefit of not locking the glutes in this pose. It really helped my practice.
Brittany Yard
So glad you substituted engaged quads for squeezed glutes . No one likes a tight ass lol... and no one should be one especially in yoga. But not anywhere! Backbends are another asana where students are told to lock the glutes but instead, engage the quads, put weight in the heels and push the hips forward... again the glutes will engage to support you .
I love the cricket wings visual too (although i guess it's more like cricket legs ... crickets don't fly but in bhujangasana those wings make you feel like you're flying!)
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
I love the cricket wings! That cue really helped me "get" the setup in this pose. I loved the tip you gave this week, Rhonda, that we can have our fingertips down towards the nipples rather than up under the shoulders if our palms would still be flat. I did that in my classes this week, and I feel even stronger and even more lift coming from my back. I had always done vinyasa before coming to Riverflow, so I remember in my first class hearing cobra and pushing up, until I looked and noticed I was the only person doing it (and my teacher came to correct me too). It's amazing that both poses are called cobra, but it feels like they work completely different muscles.
Chrissy Graziano
I don't really feel I get much out of this pose. But since reading the in-depth instructions and discussing in further in our call, I have a better appreciation of it. What changed for me is that I put my hands and fingers further back than the shoulders, as you mentioned Rhonda, and I feel that totally changed the pose for me. I feel that my upper back lifts more easily and I feel an upward lightness in my body. I am beginning to like it, a little.
Lisa O'Rourke
Nice, Lisa. Yes its constantly awe-inspiring how often the littlest cue changes can shift something entirely in the way the asana feels for you. Try this: pull your elbows to your hip bones...this pulls your shoulders way, way down and delivers more of that light feeling you're beginning to get
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
Haha Chrissy, yes, there are so many variations on asanas with the same name and none of them are incorrect (when taught by a qualified teacher); its just a different take on the same pose and often meant to focus on a different part of the anatomy, Our COBRA Is all about lower back. The Vinyasa cobra you described is more about arms and shoulders. Not as satisfying to me but hey, thats just me!
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
I’m with Chrissy! The cricket wings for sure gave me the best visual to get where and how to line my hands up. But to answer the initial question reguarding the hand lift, I like the idea but as I progressed in my practice it caused me to question: “I’m not putting a lot of weight at all into my hands but when I lift them off the floor can’t get the lift/stretch that feels good with slight pressure is this wrong? Or is this right?”
With the slightest pressure in my hands i would get great lift and stretch in the low back, when I’d lift my palms off completely I couldn’t maintain it and I lost the stretch it felt almost strained. So this cue caused a lot of confusion for me when I deepened my practice.
Stephanie
I believe lifting your hands off can affect the range of motion in your low back. I remember feeling that earlier in my practice. I think that is a strength issue and will improve as you practice.
I find I can keep my upper body up and stronger when I follow the cue of pushing my thighs and feet into the mat. This is contracting the quads and getting the legs straight. I also agree with Melina and Tina way back, squeezing the inner thighs together and also roll the knees parallel to the mat makes me stronger in the lift. These last two things are my challenge.
Jeanne
I'm beginning to like this pose more . Rhonda's suggestion to align fingertips with nipples forces me to pull back elbows and hand further and gives me stronger lift. Similar to what Lisa said. Also squeezing inner thighs, tightening the quads as Jeanne, Tina and Chrissy suggests.
amy
I like this pose because I’ve learned to place my hands further back of my shoulders as Lisa mentioned, also. Also Rhonda mentions to pull them back to the nipple line sometimes in class..
Lifting the hands to test for minimal weight helps me make sure I’m not doing that push up too, as Rhonda and Melina mentioned in previous posts. For me I feel that my lower back muscles are more engaged when I continue to do this cue myself.
maria
Stephanie and Jeanne you got it: you NEED the hands on the mat to be able to curl back further - but lifting the hands to hover initially teaches you to use the hands as "brakes," not as leverage to push against. So you are correct: you DO need hands on the mat to come into full extension in Cobra - after you have learned to use the quads and lower back to lift.
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
Rhonda, Can you elaborate on the statement "use the hands as brakes"? I do lift my hands to test for weight, and my hands are back further by my breasts. I however have found that directing my inner thighs up-ish gives me a strong foundation in the pubic/pelvic region with the quads giving my lower back muscles a boost.
Paula
I found the pictures in the book especially helpful for this pose, particularly seeing the elbows and how they approach and can contact your hips. This visualization is helping me while actually practice the pose in class. Interestingly, the author talks about the power of visualization for this pose, so I imagine it makes sense that finding helpful visualizations seem more important to me in this pose than other poses.
Pamela
I found that focusing on looking up and back does allow me to go deeper into the backbend. I also loved the tips about the visualization provided in the book.
Irina
Reading a lot of the older posts for this pose gave me some ideas that I will bring into my next class--like rolling the thighs in a bit, and perhaps placing my palms a little further back--I think mine are a little too far forward. Always a work in progress!
irenem
Paula you are accurately describing all the places to lock in order to feel powerful and lifted in Cobra - and using the hands as "brakes" simply means not pressing into them for support, just lightly touching them to the ground in to keep you from "crashing down" once you are lifted and upon your descent. So its always a light touch of the palms to the mat, to connect you to the earth lightly upon lift off and touch-down again...
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
Got it! I wasnt sure if I was missing something.
Paula
I like lifting my hands briefly during this pose to feel the power in my back. I also find looking further back along the ceiling helps me to get the extra lift
Erica
I forgot it’s was the use of the week! Week 10! I love this pose it feels so good and is always getting better! This pose has helped me a lot with being able to put weight in my feet and from there I was able to contract the thigh and not only put weight in them but keep the legs 1 unit- it helps me to keep my knees together, and not let them spat out, in other moves. If somebody told me that I could not imagine how that would ever happen! Now I need to let my eyes go back farther and see where that takes me. How far back can one go? I just realized the only part of the body on the ground is feet, hips, and thighs and fly!
Lisa N
I forgot this was the pose of the week! Week 10! I love this pose it feels so good and is always getting better! This pose has helped me a lot with being able to press down on the feet and to contract the thigh muscles and ground them as well. To me I also understand that as putting weight in to them, is that not politically correct? By being able to press down and contract them I am no able to keep the legs 1 unit- it helps me to keep my knees together, and not let them splay out. It has helped a lot in other poses as well. If somebody told me that this one pose would help me to correct my leg position in almost every pose on the the floor series, I could not imagine how that would ever happen! Now I need to let my eyes go back farther and see where that takes me. How far back can one go? I just realized the only part of the body on the ground is feet, hips, and thighs and fly!
Lisa N
Believe it or not lisa, the only part of the body that presses to the ground in cobra is hips! When the thighs contract, the legs, though technically on the ground, feel locked but light… same with the feet. The flying part is the upper body, from the waist up. As this pose is called cobra- think of the way the king cobra lifts its upper portion almost floating in mid air and keeps the lower coils anchored to the ground…cobra pose.
Rhonda Uretzky
I have really been focused on pulling the arms down and back, which has really surprised me in how much more the abs are engaged! And stretch forward with my chest also helps give me more room to lift higher