{"id":9214,"date":"2022-12-02T21:14:45","date_gmt":"2022-12-02T21:14:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/?p=106822"},"modified":"2022-12-02T21:14:45","modified_gmt":"2022-12-02T21:14:45","slug":"these-7-videos-will-help-you-nail-chaturanga","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/2022\/12\/02\/these-7-videos-will-help-you-nail-chaturanga\/","title":{"rendered":"These 7 Videos Will Help You Nail Chaturanga"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/these-7-videos-will-help-you-nail-chaturanga.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-content-cta\">\n<p class=\"o-content-cta-text\"> Get full access to Outside Learn, our online education hub featuring in-depth yoga, fitness, &amp; nutrition courses, when you &lt;a href=&quot;https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/outsideplus&quot; class=&quot;o-content-cta-link&quot; data-analytics-event=&quot;click&quot; data-analytics-data=&quot;{&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Element Clicked&quot;,&quot;props&quot;:{&quot;destination_url&quot;:&quot;\/outsideplus&quot;,&quot;domain&quot;:&quot;&lt;&gt;&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;in-content-cta&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;link&quot;}}&#8221;&gt;sign up for Outside+<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed Staff Pose) is a yoga staple\u2013a posture that you often hold and move through as you transition from one pose to another. If we don\u2019t practice it with care, however, it can cause or exacerbate shoulder or wrist injury.<\/p>\n<p>A challenging pose, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/poses\/four-limbed-staff-pose\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chaturanga<\/a> requires strength in your arms and upper body as well as in your core and even your feet. It\u2019s also a pose that can build strength for other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/poses\/types\/arm-balances\/arm-balances-practice-at-home\/\">arm balances<\/a>, says Bengaluru-based yoga teacher Preeti Kalia.<\/p>\n<h2>7 Challenging Chaturanga Videos<\/h2>\n<p>Here are seven tutorials for Chaturanga Dandasana that demonstrate helpful techniques for finding safe alignment, building strength, and approaching the pose in a way that allows you to continue practicing it for years to come.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Pay attention to anatomy in Chaturanga<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3MfBDAaqpcw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>If you are practicing vinyasa, Matt Giordano estimates you may be coming into the pose between 30 and 50 times a session. \u201cIt\u2019s super beneficial that we understand what\u2019s going on in our body when we\u2019re doing this repetitively,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Giordano, known as The Yogi Matt, breaks down Chaturanga\u2019s arm and shoulder actions in&nbsp; detail. He explains the anatomy of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/practice\/yoga-strengthen-stretch-upper-body\/\">upper body<\/a> and the \u201cbalancing action\u201d that helps you engage the muscles involved in maintaining the alignment you need to hold the pose.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Spend time preparing for the pose<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/z5bcUo94NUQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Adela Serrano offers a Chaturanga practice that incorporates a variety of props to help you prepare for the pose. While most videos begin with Plank Pose, she begins her tutorial by practicing Virasana (Hero Pose) while sitting on a block. A strap looped across her back and around her upper arms holds her shoulders in the position that your arms take in Chaturanga. It can be helpful to practice the shape of a pose and alignment of a pose before you actually get into the posture.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s almost like you are setting the tone of the pose preparing certain parts of the body to do Chaturanga Dandasana,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Avoid wrist pain in Chaturanga<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/oyAMZxQj9H8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Bengaluru-based Preeti Kalia begins her tutorial with preparatory poses. Circling the body in Tabletop helps you practice weight distribution on your hands and arms. She demonstrates protraction and retraction of the shoulders in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/poses\/cat-pose\/\">Cat Pose<\/a> to help establish the feeling of distance between your shoulder blades.<\/p>\n<p>While you can expect to feel the effects of Chaturanga in your wrists and forearms after practicing the pose, she says, \u201cIf you are having a pinching pain on the outer side of your wrists that means you did not engage your inner knuckles properly. For that, make sure you are pressing your palms nicely into the mat and pushing yourself away, protracting your upper back.<\/p>\n<h3>4. Find strong shoulder alignment<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xElc9M_vaa0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Natalie Finnie, also known as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/practice\/a-gentler-approach-to-ashtanga\/\">Ashtanga<\/a> Yoga Girl, based in the UK, offers two variations on the pose\u2013one for beginners and one for people who have more strength. Her 10-minute video focuses on positioning the shoulders\u2013the area of the body that is crucial for safe practice of the pose.<\/p>\n<p>For example, when you set up the pose on hands and knees, \u201cstart to push the floor away,\u201d she says. This movement, called protraction, keeps your upper body from sagging down between your shoulders. \u201cAnd then, rather than have the shoulders hunch up toward the ears, you want to drop them away from the ears.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She points out some of the \u201clittle mistakes\u201d students commonly make in Chaturanga\u2013dipping your shoulders toward the floor, dropping your head, or allowing the elbows to flair out to the side\u2014and offers alternative positioning.<\/p>\n<h3>5. Hand position is key to an injury-free Chaturanga<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FL4ED4gL6dw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Viru Badwal, based in Macau, offers a helpful instruction for hand and arm alignment in Chaturanga. To avoid turning your hands out too far, Badwal explains, spread your fingers and find the line between your index and middle finger and align it with the center of your wrist.<\/p>\n<p>Also, \u201cTry to keep your body weight on your inner arms more than your outer arms. It can be cause for wrist pain,\u201d he says. \u201cTry to keep your maximum body <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/practice\/beginners\/the-one-cue-that-can-transform-your-downward-facing-dog\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">weight on your index finger<\/a>. Press it down.\u201d&nbsp; He also offers ways to practice using blocks under your shoulders for support and arm alignment.<\/p>\n<h3>6. Build up to Chaturanga in four stages<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RxrBBbm6ht4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>British yoga instructor Sophie Dear shows health and wellness influencer Niomi Smart four ways to practice the pose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is something that, before I met Sophie, I thought I was doing okay,\u201d Smart says. \u201cIt\u2019s those small little changes that you can make\u2026that make all the difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dear\u2019s four stages enable anyone to progressively build strength and alignment in Chaturanga. Her variations include knees-down versions, as well as ways to keep your elbows aligned over your wrists and tucked close to the body.<\/p>\n<h3>7. Chaturanga can be accessible for all types of bodies<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hZe2q7DMNI0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Amber Karnes\u2019 Chaturanga session is accessible for a variety of body types and experience levels. Her approach focuses on building strength using props and practicing wall exercises to increase awareness about form.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat we want to do is learn how to do this pose with integrity and with support while we\u2019re building strength,\u201d she says. She shows how using a bolster can \u201ccatch the weight of your body\u201d so you can focus on the alignment of your elbows, shoulders, and neck. Pushing up and lowering down slowly helps <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/practice\/yoga-sequences\/10-minutes-yoga-build-strength\/\">build the upper body strength<\/a> you need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/these-7-videos-will-help-you-nail-chaturanga-1.jpg\" alt=\"These 7 Videos Will Help You Nail Chaturanga\"><\/figure>\n<p>YouTube yoga teachers show you how to develop strength and alignment for this challenging pose. <\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\/practice\/chaturanga\/\">These 7 Videos Will Help You Nail Chaturanga<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yogajournal.com\">Yoga Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9215,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[37,35,36],"class_list":["post-9214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ayurveda","tag-blogs","tag-yoga","tag-yogacourseware"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9214"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9214\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9215"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9214"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9214"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogacourseware.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}