asana: surya namaskar

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surya namaskar
„Sun salutation“

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last update: 12/30/2018
Name: surya namaskar
Trivial name: Sun salutation
Level: A

Classification

classic: sequence

Contraindication

This sequence is clearly contraindicated for facet syndrome, spondylolisthesis (slipped vertebrae) and spinal canal stenosis on the one hand and acute disc problems in the lumbar spine on the other. The former because of the backbend in the direction of urdhva hastasana as well as in upface dog and in the extended sun salutation of the backbend in even more situations, the latter because of the (convex) rounding of the lumbar spine that occurs again and again.

Effects

Preparation

Frontal abduction of the shoulder joint (for downface dog and urdhva hastasana):

  1. downface dog, especially the „wide“ variation as a general stretch of the shoulder joint and the hamstrings
  2. Back extension, especially the „raised “ variation as a general stretch of the shoulder joint and the hamstrings
  3. Right-angled handstand as a related posture, which generally only differs in the rotation of the arms
  4. Handstand as a very related and highly synergistic posture
  5. Elbowstand as a very related and highly synergistic posture
  6. right-angled elbowstand as a related pose, which generally only differs in the rotation of the arms
  7. Dog elbow stand as a very related and highly synergistic posture
  8. Hyperbola as one of the most effective and efficient stretches in the direction of frontal abduction without exorotation of the arms
  9. Shoulder opening on the chair as one of the most effective and efficient stretches in the direction of frontal abduction with exorotation of the arms

Other possible preparations of the shoulder joint for various aspects of movement:

  1. purvottanasana if the tone in the deltoid is too high
  2. Dips variation of downface dog
  3. the transition from downface dog to upface dog and back
  4. Dips variation of the handstand
  5. Repeatedly entering and exiting the bridge („dips“)
  6. hip opener 2
  7. „with block“ variation of upavista konasana
  8. Shrug in dog Head down
  9. Shrug in dog Head up
  10. Shrug in handstand
  11. Shrug in right-angled handstand

Stretching the palmar flexors and dorsal flexors (especially for upface dog):

  1. Dorsal forearm stretch
  2. Plantar forearm stretch
  3. Forearm stretch palmar in upavista konasana

Rectus abdominis stretch (especially for upface dog and urdhva hastasana):

  1. upface dog
  2. ustrasana
  3. urdhva dhanurasana

BWS backbend (especially for dog head up and urdhva hastasana):

  1. increased back extension
  2. Hyperbola
  3. urdhva dhanurasana
  4. ustrasana
  5. setu bandha sarvangasana

Stretching the back (especially for caturanga dandasana):

  1. „table“ variation of uttanasana
  2. right-angled uttanasana
  3. warrior 3 pose
  4. upavistakonasana in the „pull on the feet“ variation
  5. upavistakonasana in the „with block“ variation

Lower back (especially for upface dog and urdhva hastasana):

  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

Pomus musclestrength (for hip extension into downface dog and urdhva hastasana)

  1. caturkonasana
  2. parsvakonasana
  3. counter
  4. warrior 2 pose
  5. purvottanasana
  6. urdhva dhanurasana
  7. eka pada variation of urdhva dhanurasana
  8. setu bandha sarvangasana
  9. eka pada variation of setu bandha sarvangasana
  10. warrior 3 pose
  11. backwards against the wall“ variation of warrior 3 pose

as well as various other backbends. Flexibility of the hip flexors (head down dog and urdhva hastasana)

  1. hip opener 1
  2. hip opener 2
  3. Quadriceps stretch 1 on the wall
  4. Quadriceps stretch 2 on the wall
  5. warrior 1 pose
  6. ardha supta krouncasana
  7. supta krouncasana
  8. upface dog
  9. urdhva dhanurasana (back arch)
  10. ustrasana (camel)
  11. setu bandha sarvangasana

and other backbends with extension in the hip joint. Ischiocrural group (for downface dog and uttanasana):

  1. uttanasana as a generally effective and efficient stretch of the ischiocrural group to prepare for flexion in the hip joints in this posture
  2. prasarita padottanasana very similar to uttanasana
  3. parsvottanasana as a stretch that goes beyond uttanasana
  4. pascimottanasana
  5. janu sirsasana
  6. tryangamukhaikapada pascimottanasana
  7. downface dog as another good preparation for the hamstrings when the pelvis is tilted powerfully
  8. hip opener 5 as a very effective stretch of the hamstrings that goes beyond uttanasana
  9. warrior 3 pose
  10. parivrtta trikonasana

Follow-up

derived asanas:

similar asanas:

Diagnostics (No.)

Variants:

extended

Instructions

  1. Stand in namaste in tadasana with folded hands and the balls of the thumbs resting on the sternum.
  2. Move the arms upwards, inhaling; when the arms are extended above or behind the head, activate the gluteal muscles and go into extension in the hip joints, allowing the upper body to perform a slight backbend and the arms to remain in the same position in relation to the pelvis: urdhva hastasana.
  3. Bring the upper body and pelvis out of the slight backbend, bring the arms down from the overhead position; keep moving the upper body downwards by going further and further into flexion in the hip joints until uttanasana is reached. Exhale during this transition. Then place the hands approximately next to the feet and parallel to them.
  4. Press the hands firmly onto the floor; if necessary, bend the knee joints. Bend the knee joints further and jump into the downward dog position with an inhalation, see the description of the transition.
  5. With the next exhalation, assume the head up dog position, whereby – as usual – the heels remain as far back and down as possible and the upper body moves as little forward as possible, see the description of the transition.
  6. Maintain the position of the heels and legs, bend the elbows backwards on an inhalation and bring the upper body down to a horizontal position in order to come into pole pose, see the description of the transition.
  7. With the following exhalation, push the upper body up out of the bar and back into the dog position, head up, see the description of the transition.
  8. Use your arms topush your upper body backwards so that you return to the downward dog position with slightflexion in the hip joints. Inhale during this transition.
  9. With the following exhalation, jump back into uttanasana, landing gently and quietly, see the description of the transition.
  10. With the following inhalation come up into urdhva hastasana.
  11. Exhale as you return to namaste in tadasana.

Details

  1. In dynamic yoga, the rule is that greater efforts should be made with the exhalation. If two major efforts are made in succession, the greater of the two is taken with the exhalation. Breathing in surya namaskar strictly follows the transitions: in each transition between two postures there is a breathing process, inhalation or exhalation. Some of these breathing processes are less easy than others: jumping from uttanasana into downward dog p ose with an inhalation certainly takes some getting used to, as does assuming staff pose with an inhalation, as does jumping into downward dog pose after upward dog pose. If the sun salutation is practiced slowly, more than one breath per transition is necessary. In addition to breathing during the transitions in the postures, breathe completely (in and out) once or several times.
  2. The jump from uttanasana into dog pose head down should not, as is often the case, be performed from a powerful jump backwards with the feet so that the upper body and shoulders have to be pulled backwards after the feet have touched down. On the contrary, the jump should be made as far as possible from the strength of the arms (especially the palmar flexors of the forearm) and shoulders(deltoids), which means NOT jumping backwards, but rather jumping upwards with wide flexion of the knee joints and giving the arms and shoulders time to convert their strength into a movement of the upper body (and the legs in its wake) backwards. The aim is to keep the feet in the air for as long as possible so that the limited strength of the shoulders and arms can be converted into movement for as long as possible. An indication of the success of this transition is the fact that the shoulders no longer have to be moved backwards after the feet have come up, only the legs have to be extended. This transition requires strength as well as technique and a lot of practice.
  3. In the transition from the downward dog position to the upward dog position, keep the heels as far back and down as possible, which requires a sustained backward push. Build up tension in the gluteal muscles early and strongly so as not to compress the lower back excessively in Head Up Dog.
  4. In the transition to the pole, keep the legs as motionless as possible, i.e. also keep the heels as far back as possible, which means strong backward pressure. For the pole, only bend the elbow joints, moving the elbows backwards so that the upper body moves down into a horizontal position, with the arms lying loosely against the upper body, i.e. neither moving sideways away from it nor pressed against it, which is often done to relieve the arms. Make sure that the gluteal muscles do not become inactive, in particular avoid moving the buttocks upwards. If the hip joints were in the dog position head up in extension, stick in the neutral position. Do not allow the shoulders to move lower than the level of the heels and pelvis and do not lift the pelvis. Continue to stretch the upper body.
  5. When transitioning back to the head-up dog position, pay particular attention to ensuring that the gluteal muscles do not become inactive but help to move the hip joints into extension as far as possible. An undesirable, more or less pronounced forward movement of the heels can often be seen in this transition because it is suitable for relieving the arms a little. Lift the upper body using the strength of the arms and not the strength of the back.
  6. The transition back to the downward dog position should be done mainly with the strength of the arms and shoulders and only as far as necessary with the strength of the hip flexors, which bend in the hip joints(flexion).
  7. When jumping from dog pose head down back into uttanasana, try to land as gently and quietly as possible. This requires that the hands are pressed firmly to the floor and that both the forearm muscles(palmar flexors) and the shoulder muscles(frontal abductors) reduce the forward movement of the upper body accelerated by the jump and delay the landing of the feet. When the feet land, the knee joints should be at least slightly bent, as there is a risk of endangering the knee joints and other joints such as the hip joint if the landing is rough! It is therefore strongly discouraged.
  8. When rising the upper body from uttanasana back into urdhva hastasana, avoid the hollow back that occurs when the pelvis is not moved upwards strongly or quickly enough due to the strength of the gluteal muscles and the hamstrings and the upper body moves forward instead.
  9. During the transitions between urdhva hastasana and uttanasana, the back should be largely stretched. The back should only be bent when necessary for uttanasana. In the same way, it should stretch as quickly and powerfully as possible when leaving uttanasana.

Variations

extended

Extension of the sun salutation with more intensive backbends

Instructions

  1. Stand in namaste
  2. Stretch the arms upwards, bring the upper body into a slight backbend and tilt the hips backwards into extension for urdhva hastasana.
  3. From a flexion in the hip joints, swing the upper body down into uttanasana.
  4. Jump backwards into head down dog pose.
  5. The first extension follows: jump forward by about the length of your own lower legs, landing on the back of your feet, then bring your knees gently to the floor a fraction of a second later, reach your hands to your calves and turn them out, sit your bottom up, lean back and lower your upper body into supta virasana. Stretch the arms back into frontal abduction in the shoulder joints.
  6. Reach the hands under the lower legs slightly above the ankles. Press the elbows firmly to the floor, bend the arms at the elbow joint to lift the upper body together with the strength of the hip flexors and abdominal muscles(rectus abdominis). As early as possible, in any case well before the upper body reaches the vertical, stretch out the knee joint to lift the pelvis. Hold the upper body back and down and bring the pelvis forward for ustrasana until the thighs reach or (with good flexibility of the hip flexors) exceed the vertical. Work vigorously with the gluteusmaximus to extend the hip joints. Lean your upper body as far as possible into a backbend and grasp the buttock creases on both sides with your thumbs to pull them apart (outwards).
  7. Release the buttock creases, swing the upper body forward, place the hands on the floor with momentum, slightly in front of the knees), jump backwards at the same time as turning the toes over, moving the upper body backwards to stand in a downward dog position after stretching the knee joints.
  8. This is followed by the familiar middle section: go up in upface dog.
  9. Come into the pole position.
  10. Push yourself up into the head up dog position.
  11. Return to the downward dog position.
  12. Now comes the second insertion: jump with your feet between your hands, place your bottom, which is already relatively close to the floor, on the floor, roll your back, place your feet back on the floor if you have come up in the process, simultaneously place your hands on the floor with your fingers pointing towards your feet, tense your glutes to push your hips into extension and swing up into bridge.
  13. Lower back down again, pull the knees up with momentum, roll the back in at the same time and swing the pelvis backwards to come into karnapidasana.
  14. Roll your back out of karnapidasana. Land on your feet with momentum, maintaining the proximity of the upper body to the thighs that existed in karnapidasana and when rolling down. Keep the upper body as low as possible with the best possible contact between the upper body and the thighs and bring the pelvis up by straightening the knee joints to get into uttanasana.
  15. The rest of the normal sun salutation follows: go up into urdhva hastasana.
  16. Come back into namaste in tadasana.

Details

  1. Most of the transitions defined in the regular sun salutation are retained here. However, two insertions with two postures each are added:
    1. in the first insertion after the first downward dog pose:
      1. supta virasana
      2. ustrasana
    2. in the second insertion after the second dog pose, head down:
      1. urdhva dhanurasana
      2. karnapidasana
  2. As there are several backbends in the extended sun salutation, the extensor parts of the autochthonous back muscles may tend to increase their tone uncomfortably during the exercise. This can be noticeable as a general „firmness“ in the back, but also specifically in the muscles of the lower back (lumbar spine) or upper back and neck (cervical spine). Backbends are similar here:
    1. urdhva hastasana
    2. upface dog (slightly)
    3. supta virasana
    4. ustrasana
    5. urdhva dhanurasana
    In contrast, there is only one correct stretch for the autochthonous back muscles that is suitable for limiting their increase in tone: karnapidasana. Therefore, if the back muscles begin to feel firmer or harder than desired, the time spent in karnapidasana must be increased. In regular sun salutations, there is generally only a slight increase in tone, mainly due to the fact that urdhva hastasana is performed as a backbend. Raising the upper body from uttanasana also has a secondary effect of increasing tone, as lowering the upper body into uttanasana as an eccentric contraction of the autochthonous back muscles requires significantly less effort in relation to the capacity of these muscles. In addition, the upper body is lowered with gravity and raised against gravity. In the extended sun salutation, on the other hand, there are three more or less pronounced backbends and only one exercise in the opposite direction. The performer is therefore expected to be attentive to this issue.
  3. As in the regular sun salutation, the breathing rhythms are synchronized exactly with the transitions until the first break in the breathing rhythm of the usual sun salutation occurs when an odd number of postures are added: the first insertion is performed from a downward dog position and leads back into the downward dog position. On the other hand, although the second insertion follows a downward dog pose, the karnapidasana with which it ends immediately leads into uttanasana, so there is no further downward dog pose afterwards. This not only results in five inserted postures, i.e. an odd number, but in order to be able to perform the middle section with the breathing rhythm familiar from the standard sun salutation, you should also exhale and inhale in the head down dog after the first insertion. This maintains the breathing rhythm from this point onwards, as the second extension only consists of two postures without a final downface dog position. Of course, one or more additional full breaths (inhalation and exhalation) can also be performed in the respective postures if required; this is particularly recommended for karnapidasana due to the toning effect on the back muscles.
  4. The jump into supta virasana is certainly one of the difficult aspects of this variation. In any case, it is important to ensure that the knee joint and thigh muscles are well prepared. Practicing supta virasana or similar stretches of the quadriceps beforehand is therefore essential.
  5. The rise from supta virasana into ustrasana is probably the most difficult part of this variation. Depending on your flexibility and strength, it may not be possible to come out of supta virasana symmetrically or even in an orderly fashion. In these cases, only what is reasonable should be practiced. If a symmetrical exit from supta virasana is possible and there are no contraindications regarding any damage to the knee joint, the pelvis should be lifted as early as possible with a very strong stretching movementin the knee joint.