In yoga, there are dozens of postures designed to empower, expand, and energize your confidence with ease. When you sink into a pose that makes you feel your best, it takes you on a journey unlike anything else in the world. As Amit Ray once said, “yoga means addition - addition of energy, strength, and beauty to mind, body, and soul.” By practicing asanas, we are adding to our natural greatness. Difficult poses can challenge our greatest inner shadow selves, distracting us from the joy and happiness that landing it can give us. Fearing a pose, whether it be about failing or succeeding, prevents the centered blissful state that is within every yogi on the mat. Handstands come with a multitude of benefits that many other postures cannot offer. Inversions create blood flow towards the shoulders, neck, and head, meaning a brighter and lighter face when you slowly come back to an upright position. This fresh intake of blood will give a healthy glow for hours! The pituitary gland also receives some love during handstand, ensuring that your body is balanced and healthy. In addition, the digestive system gets a boost from gravity pulling on the muscles, right aligning any minor ailments in digestion. Why conquer your fear of this pose? Because more than the benefits it provides, even more than the impressive view you’ll have when you are in the posture-- it means you will have demolished the boundaries to your success. |
Every single yogi feels a small twinge of fear before landing into a headstand. Just like a comedian or musician has jittery nerves before a show, no one is ever completely at ease before turning upside down. This beautiful metaphor of vulnerability reminds us that we are human beings with complex feelings and sensations that can and should be honored.
By diving into handstand, you are accepting the jitters and naming the nervousness. Instead of allowing it to make your decisions, wave “goodbye” to your reactions. Gently curve your legs towards the ceiling, overcoming the hesitancy and restriction that fear attempts to bring into your life!
You have a solid, stable base; now trust it.
Falling is Not Failure; It’s Progress
Whether you’ve never done a handstand before or you tried once and fell, or you express this posture regularly, there will be times that you lose your balance or drop your legs. This is a reality of life and an expression of truth on the mat. Looking back on every slip up or fall you’ve taken in life, would you trade them for automatic success? We learn and become the victorious people we are today based on the experiences that we encounter. Taking the time to reflect on your own personal obstacles you’ve faced, mirror that to your experience of handstand. Remember your thoughts when you take a step towards inversions.
Here are reflections to consider:
When you accomplished something that took several tries, would you have regretted giving up at first?
How do you typically approach a setback? What inspires you to ignite change?
You are Responsible For Your Success
Many yogis seek guidance from others to ensure that they land a handstand or inversion posture with ease, including workshops and online tutorials. It makes an enormous difference when you join with others looking to accomplish the same goal and can experience it as a group. The entire room is simultaneously rooting for you and pursuing their passions with incredible confidence.
The beauty in this exchange is that you are obtaining knowledge and skill from those who have experienced your goal while the toolbox is only being used by you. No one else is stepping into handstand posture-- you are taking the leap and creating your success.
You are responsible for your success with just your mind, body and spirit!
The very first handstand posture at home, alone in your place of serenity and centeredness, is such a powerful moment to remember and cherish as you advance in your practice. Handstands remind us that we create our power.
Claim your power and experience the success you have within. Join us on August 1st for Reanna Knotts’s Beginner Handstand Workshop at 12PM!
Take advantage of this one of a kind workshop to:
- Explain how alignment and stability are connected in hand balance asanas
- Demonstrate exercises that build core, back, and shoulder strength
- Identify props that can be used to support hand balances
- Display confidence while in a hand balance asana
- Deepen your hand balance practice with asanas that can be performed at home
Reserve your space here! | Let us know you’re going on Facebook!
Ready to show the world your handstand, fearless and courageous? Share your stories of inversions in your practice on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using the hashtags #rylwellnesswednesday and #roswellyogalife!