Eight Angle Pose
(from Yoga Journal)
Stand in Tadasana (Mountain Pose), with your feet separated a bit wider than usual. Exhale, bend forward to Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend), press your hands to the floor outside your feet. Then with your knees slightly bent, slip your right arm to the inside and then behind your right leg, and finally press the hand on the floor just outside your right foot. Work your right arm across the back of the right knee, until the knee is high up on the back of your right shoulder.
Brace your shoulder against the knee and slide your left foot to the right. Cross the left ankle in front of the right and hook the ankles. Lean slightly to the left, taking more weight on your left arm, and begin to lift your feet a few inches off the floor.
With the right leg supported on the shoulder, exhale and bend your elbows. Lean your torso forward and lower it toward parallel to the floor; at the same time, straighten your knees and extend your legs out to the right, parallel to the floor (and perpendicular to your torso). Squeeze your upper right arm between your thighs. Use that pressure to help twist your torso to the left. Keep your elbows in close to the torso. Look at the floor.
Hold for 30 seconds to a minute. Then straighten your arms slowly, lift your torso back to upright, bend your knees, unhook your ankles, and return your feet to the floor. Stand back and rest in Uttanasana for a few breaths. Then repeat the pose for the same length of time to the left.
There are other ways to get into this pose.
1. I prefer to start on my ass (bc I’m lazy). And I bend my right knee behind my right arm - try to work it up as high as it goes.
2. Plant my right hand on the ground with my right leg still behind my right arm.
3. Extend the left leg forward, as in Staff pose.
4. Plant the left hand outside the left leg - parrallel to right hand’s placement on floor (probably going to be a few inches in front of the hips). Make sure if your elbows were to bend (which they will in a few steps) they bend BACK, not out to the sides. You don’t want your hands too far apart. Adjust your hand distance if needed. You’ll know.
5. Then bend that right foot closer to the ground and cross your left ankle over your right ankle.
6. Say a little prayer. Lean (and gaze) forward and straighten the legs, elbows bending back. Newbs will probably squeeze the legs together a lot to lift the back end off the ground. Thats fine. But with time and practice you want to work towards using your abs and core to lift everything off the ground.
Like in Crow pose, you’re going to lean forward a lot to counterbalance your ass weight.
Work the other side! You’ll notice its probably harder on one side. Work on balance within the body! Left side just as strong as right side! Or vice versa.
Again, many ways to get into this. Reblog with your helpful hints or other ways to get into Eight Angle!
