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HW: special cases
A lot of my friends are really sporty but suffer from really tight hips and they really struggle how to know how to stretch them out. Watching the tight hips gave me a few ideas to how I can help my friends out especially with cow-face pose, pigeon pose and low lunge/lizard pose.
For pigeon pose, my friend really struggles being able to stay in this pose comfortably so for someone with tight hips such as that it’s possible to do surpine pigeon pose. This is where they lie on their back and cradle their knee and shin across their chest instead of resting on the legs the opposite way. With this modification it takes away that extra weight that presses you down into your hips in pigeon pose and instead enables the person to hold their leg as close or far away from them to adjust the effectiveness of the stretch. If your hips aren’t as tight as that and can manage pigeon pose then another modification within that pose is to add a block under the hip of the leg that is bent in front. This will elevate the hip ensuring that the hips are level in the posture as well as reducing any painful discomfort.
It’s important to note that no pose should be painful and if so then the pose should be modified immediately. However, in order to deepen your flexibility you must be able to hold these poses which sometimes may feel a bit awkward/uncomfortable – this should be manageable !!
If practicing by yourself then you can always add a bit of self massage Into the practice and pose. For example, in pigeon pose you can massage your hip/ upper outer thigh with your hand really pushing into those areas of high tension as well as your lower back.
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3 Replies
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Hi Zoe, I agree that pigion pose can be tricky with stiff hips. I am still having trouble with it myself. Blocks under the pelvis, and putting both hands on the pelvis to check if the pelvis remains straight helps me progress in this pose. In addition, I bend my front leg a little more to not make the tortie in the hip too big.With the reversed pigoin (lying on the back) I find it more difficult to achieve the same progression.During the day I now sit more often with my ankle on the knee and my leg open (making number 4), in my opinion this also helps to increase the flexibility of the hips throughout the day.@ all: Sometimes I experience a ‘click’ sound + feeling in the hip joint. It feels very scary but after that I usually get deeper into the pose.Does anyone have any experience with this or any idea where it came from?
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Thank you Floor. 😊 I agree that figure 4 is a great hip opener. It feels good to have the lower back grounded and less pressure on the legs. I don’t have experience with the clicking in my hips, but other areas which my physical therapist explains is not a problem unless you’re experiencing pain.
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Thank you Zoe for speaking to the challenges some face is this pose. Your explanation for modifications was good, and it is very important to note that no pose should be painful! Excellent. 🕉
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