asana: dvi pada viparita dandasana

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dvi pada viparita dandasana

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Last modified: 30.12.2018
Name: dvi pada viparita dandasana
Level: FA

Classification

classic: backbend
Psychomental: stimulating, opening
physiological: hip extension with spinal backbend and, if necessary, cervical spine extension

Contraindication

This pose is contraindicated for facet syndrome, spondylolisthesis and spinal canal stenosis and can easily lead to the reoccurrence of the respective complaints. The more restricted the flexibility of the hip flexors, the more this applies. Acute lumbago is also a contraindication in the first few days, at least until urdhva dhanurasana has been practised a few times without pain.

Effects

Preparation

The shoulder must be in very extensive frontal abduction with simultaneous strong external rotation, which requires good preparation, e.g. with:

  1. downface dog, especially the „wide“ variation as a general stretch of the shoulder
  2. back stretching, especially the „elevated “ variation as a general stretch of the shoulder
  3. rectangular handstand as a pose that promotes shoulder flexibility and strengthens the shoulder
  4. handstand to promote frontal abduction
  5. elbow stand as a very related and highly synergistic posture
  6. rectangular elbow stand as a pose that promotes shoulder flexibility and strengthens the shoulder
  7. dog elbow pose as a related pose with also widely turned out arms
  8. hyperbola as one of the most effective and efficient stretches in the direction of frontal abduction without widely turned out arms
  9. shoulder opening on the chair as one of the most effective and efficient stretches in the direction of frontal abduction with turned out arms

Practise in preparation for extension in the hip joint:

  1. hip opener 1
  2. hip opener 2
  3. warrior 1 pose
  4. upface dog
  5. urdhva dhanurasana (back arch)
  6. ustrasana (camel)

and other backbends with hip extension.

If the muscles of the lumbar spine are under increased tension, this can be reduced in advance so that the area does not develop a cramp in the pose:

  1. parsva uttanasana
  2. virasana forward bend (child’s pose)
  3. parsva upavista konasana
  4. parivrtta trikonasana
  5. parsvottanasana
  6. half lotus forward bend
  7. karnapidasana

The cervical spine takes an unusually strong extension here. Prepare for this, e.g. with:

  1. „head on neck“ variation of upface dog
  2. purvottanasana

As a certain amount of stretching can occur in the rectus abdominis, here are the preliminary exercises:

  1. upafce dog
  2. ustrasana
  3. urdhva dhanurasana
  4. setu bandha sarvangasana

Follow up

If the lower back feels tense during or after the pose, reduce the tension:

  1. parsva uttanasana
  2. virasana forward bend (child’s pose)
  3. parsva upavista konasana
  4. parivrtta trikonasana
  5. parsvottanasana
  6. half lotus forward bend
  7. karnapidasana

Derived asanas:

eka pada viparita dandasana

Similar asanas:

Diagnostics (No.)

(711) An excessive hollow back in this pose indicates shortened hip flexors. See the FAQ for the risks of a hollow back:

  1. hip opener 1
  2. hip opener 2
  3. warrior 1 pose
  4. upface dog
  5. urdhva dhanurasana (back arch)
  6. ustrasana (camel)

and other backbends with extension in the hip joint.

(230) Shoulder (urdhva hastasana variation):

The flexibility of the shoulder can be recognised here, including any existing side differences, and there may be indications of diseases of the shoulder:

  1. irritable hypertonicity of the deltoid: ambitious beginners in yoga in particular tend to develop irritation in the deltoid, which is localised in the area of the muscle origins, presumably due to overstraining of the structures through frequent repetitive demands in full frontal abduction and is also noticeable under the same load, see FAQ.
  2. Various pathological changes in the shoulder joint such as impingement syndrome, frozen shoulder, calcification of the biceps tendon, biceps tendinitis, subacromial syndrome, rotator cuff lesions, which cannot all be discussed here and require clarification.
  3. side discrepancies in flexibility

The flexibility of the shoulder can only be recognised here in two dimensions of evasion:

  1. Movement of the shoulder towards one side
  2. Different angle of frontal abduction in the shoulder joints, that is, one shoulder is higher than the other

(650) Kyphosis and lordosis of the spine:

The deviations from the physiological double-S shape of the human spine are quite visible in this pose, but are hidden by the upper body and only visible from the floor. Maybe the course of the linea alba may give a hint. The thoracic spine kyphosis should be cancelled out here and the thoracic spine extended. See the FAQ for more information.

(752)(753)(754) Adductors:

  1. A marked tendency of the knees to fall apart may indicate weakness of the adductors.
  2. A tendency to cramp can be a sign of excessive tone, but can also be a sign of excessive tone in the hip flexors causing the thighs to evade vigorously.
  3. Other injuries to the muscles or their attachments can also become noticeable here.

(723) hamstrings:

A tendency for the hamstrings to cramp in this pose may indicate shortening and high tone.

(884) Knee:

In this pose, knee problems associated with wide flexion under load may be revealed. These can be, for example: traumatic or degenerative meniscus damage, arthrosis, arthritis, subluxations, ligament damage, plica syndromes and others, see the FAQ.

(644) Lumbar spine:

This pose can reveal problems of the lumbar spine or its muscles, see FAQ.

Variants:

Elbows against the wall

Sternum against the wall

Elbow on a support

with belt

(P)

Instructions

  1. Lie on your back and place your hands and feet as for urdhva dhanurasana: the hands about shoulder-width apart with the wrists pointing away from the torso and the fingertips just below the shoulders, the feet hip-width apart and close to the buttocks.
  2. Then tense the glutes to maximise the extension of the hip joints.
  3. Use the strength of the legs and arms to lift the upper body at the same time, but do not go all the way into urdhva dhanurasana, just enough to allow the head to rest on the floor.
  4. After the head has been placed lightly on the floor towards the forehead, bring calm to the rest of the body and carefully take one hand from the floor to bring it into the hand position of headstand: the hands behind the head, the forearms diagonally to the side and forwards so that the elbow is about as far to the side as the shoulder. Then carefully take the other arm out of the pose and bring it into the corresponding position on the other side.
  5. Slowly stretch the legs further and further to move the shoulder area away from the feet and eventually the head will be able to lift off.
  6. Walk the legs in (towards the elbow) and extend the knee joints as far as the shoulder will allow.
  7. To exit the pose, walk backwards exactly this way.

Details

  1. The elbows should be placed as close together as possible, as a greater distance reduces the shoulder opening that can be achieved.
  2. If the shoulder flexibility is insufficient, the elbows will probably not be able to reach the floor. In this case, first practise other preparatory poses to provide the necessary shoulder flexibility, e.g. hyperbola, raised back stretching, shoulder opening on the chair. There is a direct correlation between shoulder flexibility and the position at which the elbows can be placed: the more flexible the shoulders, the closer the elbows can be placed. If a sufficiently close distance between the elbows cannot be realised, it may not be possible to lift the head. In these cases, it is advisable to practise urdhva dhanurasana (back arch) as an alternative and, in addition, the above-mentioned exercises for shoulder flexibility in the sense of frontal abduction.
  3. If the distance between the elbows is too great, it may not be possible to lift the head.
  4. To be able to lift your head, make sure that your hair cannot get in the way, for example by using a hair tie. Once the hands are on the hair, it is difficult to free them in the position they are in.
  5. Keep the glutes working in all phases of the pose to avoid uncomfortable tension in the lower back. For some people, intensive preparation of the back and stretching of the hip flexors may be necessary.
  6. In rare cases, as in setu bandha sarvangasana, there is a sensation that the feet could slip. This can be avoided by pressing the feet against the wall so that the toes are pointing vertically upwards on the wall. However, this advantage is lost again once you walk in with the feet.
  7. If it seems impossible to get out of the pose the other way round due to lack of orientation or exhaustion, you can alternatively drop the head and rolled over its back so that the upper body can be lowered gently and slowly.
  8. Note that the head must be placed a little bit towards its back at the beginning, as it is generally necessary to roll forwards a little over the skull until the elbows reach the floor.
  9. Of course, the knees should also be kept hip-width apart in this position. If a belt is used around the thighs close to the knees to achieve this, it will be much more difficult to walk in.
  10. Press your entire feet on the floor, both the front feet and the heels.
  11. In this pose, knee pain similar to setu bandha sarvangasana may occur, but probably not as pronounced.

Known problems that can occur even when performed correctly

Tendency to cramp in the deltoids
In this pose, there can be a significant tendency to cramp in the deltoid muscle, which is difficult to deal with while in the pose. One possible remedy would be to support the elbows so that the arms do not have to go so far into frontal abduction.

Variants

Elbows against the wall

Instructions

  1. Choose such a distance to the wall behind you that you can press your elbows against the wall in the pose so that they do not slip away.

Details

  1. The pressure of the elbows against the wall slightly prevents the elbows from sliding backwards, although the greater evasive movement is still that of the elbows outwards, which is hardly prevented by this, unless the elbows are pressed against a mat that is slightly turned upwards on the wall, which then provides a little more friction for the elbows against sliding outwards.
  2. The distance must be determined precisely so that the elbows come to the floor exactly at the wall and do not have to keep their distance from the wall or be placed further than shoulder-width apart.
  3. If the pressure of the elbows against the wall is uncomfortable, use shoulder stand plates on the wall against which the elbows press.
  4. The head may interfere with the pressure against the wall, which may be due to a lack of ability to recline.

Sternum against the wall

Instructions

  1. Do the variation with your elbows against the wall as described above.
  2. Extend your shoulders so far out that your sternum presses against the wall.

Details

  1. The requirement to press the sternum against the wall naturally requires a lot of flexibility in the shoulders in terms of frontal abduction. To do this, the head has to be held far back in the neck, which requires sufficient flexibility of the cervical spine in terms of reclination.
  2. If the muscles in the neck tend to tense up, this variation should not be performed.

Elbows on a support

Instructions

  1. Place a mat behind your head to support your elbows.
  2. Take the pose as described above.

Details

  1. One of the major difficulties of this pose is the requirement for frontal abduction in the shoulders with relatively wide external rotation of the upper arms. Those who are more or less lacking in flexibility will not be able to place their elbows on the floor, or at least not shoulder-width apart. The support now brings the floor a little closer, so to speak, so that the flexibility demand is reduced. In cases where the flexibility is borderline, this creates significantly more security in the pose so that the elbows do not slip outwards.
  2. If the pad interferes with the movement of the head, two folded mats can be used lengthways so that the head can move undisturbed in the free area between them.

With belt

Instructions

  1. Tie a belt around your thighs near your knees so that the belt holds them together at hip width.
  2. Take the pose as described above.

Details

  1. The belt prevents the frequent deviation into abduction. In view of the three-dimensional flexibility of the hip joint, in which a strong extension is performed here, abduction is the most important evasive movement. The other possible evasive movement is exorotation, which can lead to the above-mentioned stress in the outer knee. At the same time, the belt limits the rotation somewhat by rubbing against the skin or clothing. This can lead to a greater tendency for the knee to feel discomfort in the outer knee.
  2. It may be easiest to sit on your bum with your knees bent and your feet up to put on the belt.

(P)

Instructions

  1. Take the pose as described above.
  2. The supporter sits behind the head, limits the performer’s outward and backward deflection with his feet placed at a slight angle against the performer’s elbows and slowly pulls the performer by the shoulders further into frontal abduction, i.e. towards the performer’s shoulder area.

Details

  1. This variation allows the most precise execution as far as the arms and shoulders are concerned: the elbows are prevented from moving in both important directions (outwards and backwards) and the shoulders are additionally pulled into maximum frontal abduction with external force.

(2P) Support during the taking

Instructions

  1. Take the pose as described above.
  2. The supporter stands next to the performer with a view of the performer’s shoulder area and head. If necessary, the supporter helps the performer into the pose by reaching under both shoulders. If necessary and if the supporter’s strength is sufficient, he can hold the performer by one shoulder with one hand and move the opposite elbow further inwards with the other if the performer moves too much.

Details

  1. One of the greatest difficulties with the pose is the limited flexibility of the shoulder joint, which means that the elbows tend to move outwards. The tendency to deviate sideways makes it all the more difficult for the elbows to reach the ground due to their arched movement. It is therefore not uncommon for help to be needed in positioning the elbows