As we continue our journey of inversions, we arrive at the “king” of poses, sirsasana/headstand. Headstand is given this regal name because of the myriad of benefits that it confers: courage, increased focus, hormonal balance, relieving stress on the heart by reversing blood flow, improving digestion, strengthening shoulders and arms. It’s easier to master this pose than one would think, but preparation and technique is key – otherwise, misalignment of the neck and/or a fall can result in injury.
Fortunately, we also have the option of a “headless headstand,” a variation in which the weight of the body is held up by the arms only, rather than the head and arms, as happens in classic headstand. Thus, even those of you who have cervical vertebrae or disc injuries can safely practice this inversion (credit goes to Doug Keller, a teacher of therapeutic yoga in Virginia, from whom I learned this variation.) Read on to learn how to practice this fun pose.
Begin by stretching the backs of the legs with uttanasana/forward fold, adho muka svanasana/downward facing dog pose, or prasarita padottanasana/wide legged forward fold (pictured below).
Next, wake up your core with forearm plank, pointing and flexing your feet to move the body forward and back over the elbows.
Half-dog pose is an excellent way to extend the mid-spine region, which is a necessity when moving into headstand. In this variation, interlace the fingers, instead of using the block between the hands as we have in the past, but be sure to keep your elbows no further than shoulder width apart – if in doubt, it’s better for the elbows to be closer than further apart.
Now, we are ready for the headless headstand! Move to a wall, and set three blocks on top of each other as pictured below.
Wrap the ends of your fingers around the bottom block, placing the elbows (the thin end of the) block width apart – this is more narrowly than we usually place them. Press the edges of the wrists down strongly to activate the shoulder girdle, then lift your knees off the ground and walk towards the blocks until your back presses securely into the blocks. Your head is about 1/2 – 1 inch off the ground.
With the back firmly against the blocks, and forearms plus wrists anchored, raise one leg and kick up into the headless headstand. Note that not kicking up and just practicing raising one leg at a time is a perfectly good place to end your practice until you are confident enough to kick up on your own.
Once in the pose, you should be bearing all of your weight on the arms and none on the head, as I demonstrate by tucking my head towards my chest in the right side photo below. If you feel yourself collapsing into your head, come down immediately, one straight leg at a time.
Finish the practice with balasana/child’s pose until the blood readjusts in your body, then savasana/corpse pose to allow the benefits of the inversion to flow through your now-relaxed body.
Happy inverting! 🙂
~namaste,
Sylvia