Shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana): How To Practice, Benefits And Precautions

Shoulderstand is a difficult pose that should be practised with caution. Read on to know how to do this pose properly to avoid injuries.

Shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana) is also referred to as the 'queen of asanas' and is often treated as an asana of the highest honour in yoga. This yoga pose is called Salamba Sarvangasana in Sanskrit, Salamba means "supported" and Sarvanga means "all limbs," which implies "supported all limbs position."

When you do a shoulder stand, your upper arms and shoulders should support your entire body. You run the risk of putting too much weight on your neck or spine if you can't get your arms far enough underneath you. As a result, Shoulderstand is considered an advanced inversion that should be put up with care and caution.

Benefits Of Shouldestand

Doing this pose can be beneficial for you in more than one way, here are some of the health benefits:

• Calms the mind and aids in the relief of minor sadness and stress
• Thyroid and prostate glands, as well as the abdominal organs, are stimulated
• Shoulders and neck are stretched
• Legs and buttocks toning
• Enhances digestion
• It aids in the relief of menopause symptoms
• It helps to relieve weariness and sleeplessness
• Asthma, infertility, and sinusitis are all treated with this drug.

How To Do The Asana?

Here's how to do a shoulder stand:

• Lie down on your yoga mat. Come into a bridge pose with your legs bent, feet on the floor and back up against the floor.
• Coming into Bridge pose, lift your hips off the mat and extend your arms to the ground, palms facing down as if your hands could touch your heels.
• To elevate onto the balls of the feet and extend one leg up while pressing firmly into the palms.
• Bend your elbows, lay your hands on your lower back to form a shelf, and then extend the other leg up. Don't move your head to the side to look around the room after you have raised your legs because this can harm your neck. Maintain a straight neck and gaze upward instead.
• For extra stability, lift through the balls of your feet, walking your hands further up the back. You should feel the chest reaching toward the chin to support opening the upper back.
• To straighten your body, move your hips toward the front of the room and your feet toward the back. This will assist you in achieving proper alignment, with your hips over your shoulders and your feet over your hips.
• Hold the posture for at least 10 breaths.
• Bring your feet back over your head to come out of the shoulder stand and into plough posture, then slowly roll out of plough.

Precautions To Take

People with neck injuries or conditions should avoid doing this pose. Also, those with high blood pressure, glaucoma, retinal problems are not recommended to do poses that require their heads to be lower than your heart.

If you experience any pain while doing Shoulderstand, immediately stop and exit the pose. Beginners should hold this pose for one or two breaths, while more expert yoga practitioners can hold it for up to ten.