Warrior II Pose / Veerabhadrasana II–Instructions, Benefits & Contra-Indications

Warrior II is also known as Veerabhadrasana in Sanskrit. The posture is extremely beneficial for your inner thighs, groin and hips. This asana can help you to increase strength and lets your confidence grow. It’s hip opener that – along many other benefits – promotes physical and mental balance.

Here are the instructions for you:

1. Stand in Tadasana (Standing Mountain Pose)
2. Take a big step backwards with your left leg
3. Your right foot should face forward, your left foot should face out
4. The arch of the left foot should be in line with the right heel
5. Bend your right knee and keep the thigh parallel to the ground
6. Keep the left leg straight in one line, don’t bend your knee
7. Open your chest and raise your arms to your shoulder level
8. The right arm should face forward, the left arm backward
9. Engage the sides of your hips and elongate evenly through your spine
10. Draw your abdomen in and up and keep the diaphragm soft
11. Hold the position for 30 seconds and breathe normally
12. Then come back release your arms and legs and change the side

Note: Remember to keep your knee over your ankle, work with your legs and keep them aligned!

Benefits of Veerabhadrasana:

• Stretches the hips, groin, inner thighs, and shoulders
• Strengthens the legs and thigh muscles
• Improves concentration
• Opens the hips
• Increases stamina

Contra-indications:

You should avoid this posture if you suffer from knee or hip injuries.

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.