Bound Extended Side Angle

Hello, welcome to Yoga & You. My name is Sanjana, a passionate yoga teacher from India, here to show you today's asana, Baddha Parsvakonasana. First, we'll just break down the meaning of the name. The word "Baddha" stands for "bind" or "lock", "Parsva" meaning "side", "Kona" meaning "angle" and "asana" is "pose". Therefore, Baddha Parsvakonasana means "bound side angle pose". It's an intermediate level posture which requires shoulder mobility, chest and hip opening, and leg strength. So before you try Baddha Parsvakonasana, make sure you're very comfortable with the basic Parsvakonasana. Also, when you're trying this variation, make sure that your body is already warmed up.

To enter Baddha Parsvakonasana, come to standing on one side of your mat. As you inhale, open your legs, taking about four feet distance between your legs. Your heels are on the same line, hands at shoulder level, palms facing down. Turn the right toes out to 90 degrees, turn your left toes in, hips facing forward, and bend the right knee. Once you bend the knee, check the leg position; if your thigh and your calf are not at a 90 degree angle, adjust the distance between your legs.

Once you come to this position, sideways, place the right palm or fingertips in front of the right foot. Left hand towards the roof. This is your base position, also a variation of Parsvakonasana. From here, you want to take the right hand from front to behind, externally rotating the palm, left hand from behind, and you will try to interlock the fingers or hold the wrist behind your back pocket. Lean your shoulder back, bringing the head over the knee. You can slightly look up if you are comfortable having balance. To dismount, step by step slowly release your hands, press onto your right leg, come back up. Turn your toes forward, back to Tadasana.

If you are someone having limited shoulder mobility or stiffness around the hips, it might not be very easy for you all to reach initially. So to make the pose accessible for everyone, we can use a strap to help us bind. I am just going to turn back so that you can see me better. So from this position, again we enter Utthita Hasta. Right toes out, left toes in, and bend your knee. You are going to hold the strap with the upper hand, so down you go, externally rotating the palm wherever it reaches. With the top hand, you are going to leave this strap and hold wherever you are able to. Eventually with practice, you will be able to crawl your hands closer, and one day when your hand reaches, you can get rid of the strap.

In your practice, you can hold the Baddha Parsvakonasana based on your comfort, so about 3 to 5 breaths. Make sure never to hold your breath; we are trying to do regular breathing here.

Let's see the common mistakes that are possible during this practice. Firstly, collapsing either onto the back or the front leg. I'll just give you an example. Now say you are in the Baddha Parsvakonasana position, but if you do not have enough control from the hips and the thighs, there's a higher chance this knee falls and you might collapse. Likewise, the bottom leg might lift the heel or the outer edge of the foot. Both these instances will make your asana very unstable and you will not be able to progress with your practice.

The third very common mistake is, after you bind, closing the shoulder, chest or hip, going back. Maybe just to get the bind you can lean a little forward, but after that it is important to bring the hip forward and open the shoulders to keep the head over the knees.

If you are someone who has a history of a shoulder, knee or ankle injury, please be careful with your practice. Take your time with this pose. Focus more on your breath and the foundation; the rest will come with time. Thank you for watching and practicing with me.