asana: kapotasana

yogabuch / asanas / kapotasana

kapotasana
„Pigeon“

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last update: 30.12.2018
Name: kapotasana
Trivial name: pigeon
Level: A

Classification

classic: backbend
psychomental: ___
physiological: ___

Contraindication

This pose is contraindicated for facet syndrome, spondylolisthesis (spondylolisthesis) and spinal canal stenosis and can easily lead to the occurrence of the respective complaints.

Effects

Preparation

Follow-up

Derived asanas:

Similar asanas:

Diagnostics (No.)

Variants:

Instructions

  1. Lie in supta virasana.
  2. Raise the pelvis, tilting it as far as possible into extension in the hip joints and walk the hands further and further towards the feet.
  3. Place the head on the floor in reclination, slightly behind the crown of the head.
  4. When the position of the head and upper body is stable enough, bring the hands into the headstand position and place maximum weight on the elbows.

Details

  1. In order to be able to place the elbows on the floor after placing the hands, the head must roll a little from the back of the head towards the forehead like when taking dvi pada viparita dandasana. To do this, it must have been placed far enough towards the back of the head beforehand, otherwise a greater degree of reclination may be required than can be achieved.
  2. The elbows should only be positioned slightly wider than shoulder width. Due to the external rotation of the arms, this requires a good degree of flexibility in the shoulder joints in the sense of frontal abduction.
  3. In contrast to dvi pada viparita dandasana, the head is not lifted off the floor in order to maximise frontal abduction from the shoulders. The head, hands and elbows remain on the floor.
  4. Of course, all the strength of the hip extensors (especially the gluteus maximus) must be utilised so that the lumbar spine area is in minimal hyperlordosis and experiences as little stress as possible.
  5. The knees clearly tend to slide apart, try to keep them at hip width with the strength of the adductors without making the extension in the hip joints worse as a result.
  6. As in supta virasana, the knees should be pulled forwards immediately after the feet have been placed on the floor so that the ankle joint stretches as much as possible and the sole of the foot does not cramp. It can also be helpful to tap the backs of the feet more or less gently on the mat several times, depending on your tolerance.
  7. In contrast to ustrasana, in which the knee joints have a fixed angle of 90°, and supta virasana, in which they bend to the maximum, here there is a basically unlimited stretching movement in the knee joint from quadriceps strength so that the arch can become as tight as possible. Although the knee joints are also stretched with full force in ustrasana, the angle of 90° remains unchanged.
  8. Extreme flexibility of all parts of the hip flexors is required here, both the iliopsoas located in the pelvis and the rectus femoris.

Variants