May 2009 Posture Video: Spinal Twist

May’s posture of the month is half spinal twist, also known as Ardha Matsyendrasana (ARE-dah MOT-see-en-DRAHS-anna)

I believe this posture is also called Half Lord of the Fishes Pose, although I am not familiar with that name myself.

*Benefits of this posture include:

• Stimulates the liver and kidneys
• Stretches the shoulders, hips, and neck
• Energizes the spine
• Stimulates the digestive fire  in the belly
• Relieves menstrual discomfort, fatigue, sciatica, and backache
• Therapeutic for asthma and infertility

*Benefits courtesy of Half Lord of the Fishes Pose on Yoga Journal

Spinal twist is a pose I always look forward to near the end of class. By this time I am nice and warmed up and sweaty, and being able to twist so deeply is a really nice and relaxing feeling. I really feel that this is a detoxifying type of pose and like to imagine “squeezing out” all of the bad things and toxins from my system.

I personally bend my bottom leg in this pose (as shown in the video) however if you do not have this flexibility, it is best to have your bottom leg straight and extended.

In the next year I hope to learn to “bind” my hands in this pose, which is basically to loop your arm through your top leg so that you can clasp your fingers together. I think it also looks kind of pretzel-like!

What poses do you consider to be detoxifying? What poses do you look forward to in class?

Video courtesy of Moksha Yoga

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