While in Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend) in Kate Wester’s class, she has often said to “let the day just roll off your spine, drip off the end of your head and fall away.” Her perspective is spot on – just try it. Putting our bodies into a standing forward bend with our head toward our feet can be an easy way to shift from scattered energy to centeredness, compression to openness, and shallow breathing to deep, rhythmic breaths. This is probably a useful tool to have as another school year unfolds and we shift from being primarily outdoors to hibernating indoors.
Uttanasana can help open our hamstrings, calm the brain, strengthen our legs, improve digestion and relieve headaches and fatigue. All this from just making the effort to touch your toes! If your hamstrings or hips are tight, do the pose with your knees slightly bent, releasing strain on your lower back. If you are flexible, try to remain active in the pose, using your breath to deepen your experience and keep your body awake in the pose – or even try lifting the heels slightly, draw the inner groins into the pelvis and lower the heels from this place.
Follow this link to the pose description on Yoga Journal’s website and, go ahead, just let it all roll away.
