Ardha Navasana The Yoga Pose That Strengthens Your Entire Body

Navasana is also called the half boat pose because of the shape that the body acquires while performing this. It is described as ardha means half, Nava means boat and asana means posture. It includes variations such as Paripurna Navasana - Full boat pose, Ardha Navasana - half boat pose and Ekapada Navasana - One legged boat pose.

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What is Ardha Navasana (Boat) yoga pose?

This yoga pose start from a seating position and the hands are gripped around the back of the legs and the knees are bent at a 90 degree angle.

Both legs are pulled in toward the abdomen. The core is specifically engaged to maintain the balance on the sits bones. Make sure that you have a straight back while doing this yoga pose. The back should not be bend as it can cause you an injury. The front of the torso lengthens the pubis and top of the sternum as the spine extends in both directions reaching up to the sky and rooting down to the earth.

Step by Step guide to do a Ardha Navasana:

• Sit straight on a yoga mat or floor.
• Spread your legs in front of you. It¡¯s the initial position and remember to check your back.
• Slowly bend your legs and knees.
• Place your hands on the floor behind your back for support and perform the asana slow and easy.
• Raise your legs which are half-bent with the front of your leg below the knee parallel to the floor.
• Now balance on your pelvic bones and keep a sturdy yoga pose.
• Straighten your arms in front of your leg below the knee¡¯s level and balance your body throughout the yoga pose.
• Try to maintain your back as straight as possible for better results.
• Stay in this Ardha Navasana for as long as you can.
• Breathe out and relax
• Repeat the above steps from the initial position.

The variations of Ardha Navasana:

Boat Pose Variation-Navasana

So our first pose here is the boat pose. This is a standard form with knees bent. This helps in building the core strength that makes this pose easier to perform and it becomes more effective as well. You can of course do it without the block. Some people have a problem keeping their shins and their knees together depending on their hips are going and so the block helps in making this pat easier.

Upward hands variation

This pose here number two this is our standard navasana pose. Here the toes are dorsiflexed, the key though is to keep your back straight and keep pushing the chest forward. This helps a lot in making this pose effective for the core. Here this pose is like our hands-up variation.Boat pose-bicycles yogi The yogi bicycles variation, In this pose we cross elbow across the body it works the trans abs and oblique and then we switch sides bringing the knee to elbow.

Ubhyaya Padangusthasana

The both big toe pose is a very challenging pose to hold. You need a lot of compression to get your legs very high to form straight back so you don¡¯t roll over. A lot of people have trouble with this pose when they¡¯re in a rounded position trying to reach for their toes, so you need a lot of hamstring mobility as well. There¡¯s also a split leg variation which you can do easily.

Elevated Boat Pose- Utthita Navasana

The elevated boat has a lot of different names it¡¯s also called an L hold. For most people, this yoga pose seems difficult. This can be done with the help of a professional trainer. This boat exercises for strengthening the core, and you¡¯ll definitely see a lot of changes in your body after practising it daily. Boat pose on forearms: Boat pose on forearms is easier than the standard boat, because we can use our elbows. It allows you to avoid stretching or pulling from your back, because your arms are supported. It gets just as much core as standard boat and helps prevent people from doing the form incorrectly.

The half-lotus pose - Ardha baddha padma Navasana

This variation is one of the toughest one as this works in a different way for different people. You can do this with one hand on the foot and one hand reaching across. You do not have to bind. The whole point of this one is the force of the foot pull down and makes holding boat more difficult. The V-Up yoga variation: This pose is a brilliant exercise for strengthening the abductors and the core. You can even take this as a normal stretch exercise. This is really good for the core and strengthens the whole body.

Ardha Navasana Flow

The pose is basically a leg-up crunch. So we start in this like hollow position and we kind of sit up. I will usually have a client with their hands out, I don¡¯t really like to have clients pull from the head. It can cause neck pain. And you can just drive your hand straight up, and this will be good for the abdominal muscles. Revolved Heron pose: This is an easier pose. This pose is almost more of a twisting pose than it is a core pose, but for some people, the strength needed just to keep their leg up is sufficient.

Benefits of Ardha Navasana

• Tones your muscles
• Build strength in your body
• Improves your balance
• Proper digestion and immunity
• Increases confidence and self worth
• It helps in stimulating glands
• Increases the digestion power
• Regulates the menstrual cycle and hormonal imbalance
• Stimulate the thyroid
• Tones the kidneys

Precautions and safety tips:

• Sit with your back near a wall to do this pose, if you have an injury or you are just starting this
• The ladies who are Pregnant or girls having menstruation can avoid performing this
• Heart patients and people with low blood pressure should not perform this pose
• People suffering from Diarrhea, Asthma should avoid this pose
• It¡¯s always the best to consider expert advice while performing this step
• Do not round your back. Keep it straight
• Beginners can hold the back of the thigh by your hands, if it is difficult to raise your hands
• Do this regularly for more benefits