Natarajasana - Issues and solutions

List of some of the issues that can be relevant for practising this pose:

            Pregnancy





In terms of balance, this can be quite a challenging pose – even with modified versions that have the back foot resting on the floor. Facing a wall with one hand or both hands on the wall can help greatly – as can practising with one shoulder against a wall. And, as always with balance, having a focus (such as a mark on the floor) to let one’s gaze rest upon can be a great aid. The other thing that can help is allowing the trunk to lean forwards as the leg extends backwards – as the leg and trunk then act as a counter-weight for each other. Lifting one’s gaze to look upwards is only for those who feel very stable in the pose before they do this.



There are many different options for head and arms positions with this pose. If the head remains facing forwards and the trunk vertical then the pose is not usually problematic for the neck. If the trunk is leaned forwards then the muscles of the back of the neck have to work to keep the head and neck in line with the trunk – and again this is not usually problematic unless these muscles are particularly weak.

In the fuller versions of the pose, the head is taken backwards (or upwards if the trunk is leaned forwards). This position is fine if it is a result of the back bending in the thoracic spine continuing in a smooth curve into the cervical spine. Even so, it is best to aim to keep the chin at least somewhat drawn into the neck so that the back of the neck stays long, thus avoiding putting the cervical spine into a compressive backbend. Those who are restricted in the thoracic spine with regard to extension (backwards bending) will find it difficult or impossible to lift the head without scrunching up the back of the neck. Thinking in terms of moving the back of the neck backwards (instead of the back of the head) helps, but without the thoracic spine moving into extension the amount the head ends up tilted backwards will be slight. Those who already have neck problems or poor balance do best to omit attempting to position the head backwards (or upwards) of the trunk.

There is a wide range of possible arm positions. Typically one arm is taken backwards so the hand clasps the ankle of the foot of the arm side. This can be tricky if there is a lot of tightness in the pectorals or stiffness around the thoracic spine – in which case, looping a towel around the ankle and clasping that may well help. Alternatively one can practise versions that don’t require the ankle to be clasped. The other arm is typically either lifted to pointing forwards (easier version) or lifted forwards and up to point over-head, or further backwards than this (usually OK because one simply moves the arm to the limit of what feels comfortable). The alternative common position for the other arm is moved backwards to also clasp the ankle – this requires a lot of mobility in both the shoulders and thoracic spine.



In this pose the chest is usually held open, limiting the amount of breathing via chest movements. This effect is increased if the arm(s) are lifted to overhead (or beyond) or both arms held in a strongly backwards position. This is not normally a problem, but those who are used to primarily breathing via the expansion and contraction of the rib-cage (rather than “abdominally”) may well find the experience uncomfortable or even distressing - although it is very unlikely to do any physical harm. If one does experience some discomfort with regard to breathing, then one should simply go a little less far into the spinal back-bending aspect of the pose or use arm movement to aid the feeling of breathing freely. The degree of back bend with which one feels comfortable will increase with practice.

The pose can also be strenuous. The legs are (ideally) active with lots of muscles held contracted, and the more “effortful” breathing encourages the heart to beat more strongly – so holding the pose will tend to increase blood pressure whilst in the pose. This effect is greater if one of the arms is lifted to the overhead position as the heart also has to beat heard enough to ensure blood reaches the hand. For most people this gives the heart and circulatory system (in general) a good workout. But where the heart or other aspects of the circulatory system have already been badly compromised then it will be better to explore the pose without lifting the arm, to the overhead position.

The lumbar spine is potentially quite vulnerable in this pose. This will be particularly the case for those with a highly mobile lumbar spine or a tendency to excessive lumbar lordosis (sway back), and / or tight ilio-psoas or rectus femoris muscles. A key feature of the pose is the extension of one of the legs at the hips. This will tend to pull on the ilio-psoas and rectus femoris (only if the knee is bent) muscles. And this in turn will pull forwards on either the front of the lumbar spine or the front top of the pelvic girdle both of which tend to pull the lumbar spine into a potentially compressive backbend. In versions of the pose where the ankle is clasped by one or both hands this issue is compounded for those who have short arms relative to their back as this means they have to move into a back bend just to reach their ankles with their hands. For those with short arms, the arm length can be “added to” by looping a towel or strap round the ankle and clasping this instead of the ankle.

When the pose is practised well, one consciously directs the back-bending component of the practices as much as possible into the thoracic spine so that the lumbar spine stays long, if somewhat extended. Consciously imagining the tailbone moving downwards will help to lengthen the lumbar spine downwards - and imagining sinking the heel of the standing leg can help with this. Engaging and maintaining good tone in the abdominal muscles (e.g. by squeezing the abdomen in towards the spine) gives the lumbar spine a slightly upwards lengthening support – helping to make the whole of the lumbar area more stable as well as “lengthening” the backbend. There is a difficulty in using abdominal tone to support the lumbar spine in this pose in that if the thoracic spine is moved into a back bend then it is necessary for the abdominal muscles to relax enough to allow abdominal breathing to occur. In other words there needs to be good tone in the abdomen but not rigid contraction of the abdominal muscles. Lifting the arm or pressing it backwards usually increases the overall back-bending in the spine and, if the thoracic spine is not free enough to allow this, the additional back-bending will occur to a significant degree in the lumbar spine. It is thus best to keep the back-bending component of this pose fairly minimal until the thoracic spine is free enough for much of the backbend to occur here and one can practice the pose with keeping the lumbar spine “long”.

Using “base support” ideas and mula bandha are also protective of the lumbar spine.



Tightness in the hip flexor muscles can be very limiting in this pose if one is to avoid damaging either the knees or the lumbar back. This case is an example of where accepting and working with one’s limitations is particularly advisable. If you know your hip flexor muscles are tight, then it makes sense to practise a version of this pose that emphasizes stretching these muscles, and working and strengthening the antagonistic muscles. So, instead of working to move into a back-bend, one can focus on keeping the lumbar spine long and stable, and moving the leg backwards to the point where one can either feel the hip flexor muscles being stretched or the hip extensor muscles working. Personally, I do not find this pose particularly good for stretching the hip flexors (e.g. kneeling lunges with the trunk upright work much better for me) – but some versions of the pose are great for working and strengthening the hip extensors (hamstrings and gluteus maximus).



Despite having healthy knees, my personal experience of this pose is that, if I am clasping one ankle, my bent knee is very prone to discomfort or strain. Part of the reason for this is that to reach my ankle I need to bend sideways and rotate the leg – and then in the process of aligning the knee a lot of strange bending / twisting forces end up acting across the knee. One solution is to use a loop of towel or a strap around the ankle and clasp that instead of the ankle – another is to practise versions that don’t require the knee to be clasped. The other reason for my difficulties is that my rectus femoris muscles are tight – I am quite good (now!) at keeping my lumbar spine, long but a consequence of this is the strain this transfers to the knee. So, mostly, I avoid versions of this pose that involve me clasping the ankle – and use other poses for stretching the rectus femoris (e.g. kneeing with bottom on heels, placing hands on floor behind me and then tilting pelvic girdle backwards works well for me).

Even without particular knee difficulties in the pose, practising some knee realigning exercises afterwards is good preventative care. Good examples would be up-down kneeling, or bending or straightening the legs in boat pose.



One possible source of strain in the ankle is if one clasps the foot instead of the ankle as this tends to cause the ankle to be pulled into a strong plantar flexion. The solution is of course to clasp the ankle instead of the foot – or, if that is difficult, to loop a towel or strap around the foot and clasp that.

If the muscles of the lower leg are weak, then the stability of the feet and ankles may be affected, giving one poor balance. Practising versions with balance aided either with hands on a support or the toes of back leg resting on the floor will help accessing the pose.


Pregnancy

Practising yoga in the first trimester is considered by most yoga teachers to be contra-indicated. The only explanation I have heard for this is that in the first trimester there is a fairly high tendency for spontaneous miscarriage and this could in principle be exacerbated by yoga (although, as far as I know, there is no evidence for this). Possibly a mid-wife or an expert pregnancy yoga teacher might be able to give a better explanation.

In the later stages of pregnancy, one of the issues that needs to be borne in mind is that the womb starts to press against the inferior vena cava (main vein in the trunk) and the aorta (main artery). This has implications for blood circulation to and from the legs. It is thus unwise to hold the leg part of standing postures - with risks of discomfort, tiredness (in legs) and an increased likelihood, over the long term, of getting varicose veins or tissue fluid issues (oedema) in the legs. So this is not a good posture to explore during pregnancy. One could practise standing, transfer weight, lift one leg backwards and then return foot to floor and repeat to the other side as a dynamic practice with the breath. Otherwise one would do much better to explore extending the leg at the hip from an all fours position where blood flow to and from the legs is much less restricted and the “standing” leg does not need to be so active.

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