Janu Shirshasana (Head to Knee Forward Bend) – Benefits, Cautions & Guide
Janu Shirshasana is a great pose to increase flexibility in your hamstrings. It aims to massage the left and right inner organs and balances the endocrine system.
In the final pose, as the name suggests, your head should be touching onto your knee while bending forward. Did you know that you can enhance the posture’s benefit by using props? Keep a block and a strap at your side and we will explain to you how to use them correctly in this posture!
Here are the step-by-step instructions:
Instructions:
1. Sit in Dandhasana
2. Bend your right leg and place the right sole onto your inner left thigh
3. Keep the left leg straight and active
4. Adjust and lengthen your spine
5. Both hips should face forward
6. Inhale and raise your arms up above your head
7. Exhale and bend forward
8. Grab your left toes with your hands and interlock your fingers
9. Look forward
10. With your next exhalation lower your upper body closer to your left leg
11. Rest the left half of your abdomen on your thigh
12. Relax your head onto your lower left leg and knee
13. Hold the position as long as you can
14. Change the side
Remember to counter-pose with Setu Bandhasana after completing the posture.
Benefits:
· Tones the inner organs
· Balances the digestive and endocrine system
· Increases flexibility in the hamstrings
· Improves blood circulation in the legs, groin, and arms
· Strengthens the spine
· Reduces anxiety
Contra-indications:
Avoid this posture if you suffer from severe back pain and do not overstrain. If you cannot reach your head onto your knee, use a belt and slowly increase your flexibility.
Use of Props
If you are less flexible and can’t reach your ankles or interlock your hands around your foot, you can simply place a strap around your foot which is reaching towards the front of the mat. Place it around your foot and then grab both ends of the strap to pull your upper body down. In case you are very flexible already, place a block behind your foot and try to interlock your fingers behind the block or simply hold onto the block while bending forward.
Yoga Asana Practise at Gyan Yog Breath
Our Gyan Yog Breath Team publishes weekly asana tutorials for you to help you get into the right practice and understand about various benefits and contra-indications of postures.
Sometimes, reading about practice can awaken questions and the desire to learn yoga on a much deeper level.
Therefore, we have established three Yoga Alliance registered Yoga Teacher Training Programs that aim to guide you into advanced and higher levels of yoga.
Learning yoga from experienced teachers can be very helpful so that you can really get the most benefits. If you recently discovered yoga or wish to advance your practice, you should consider taking a Yoga Training intensive! It can be the first step towards a more confident practice, increased health & flexibility.
