Blog – Yoga Daily Art

Gomukhasana Step By Step Guide, Benefits and Tips For Beginners.

Gomukhasana (Cow Face Pose) stretches the entire body, including the shoulders and arms, as well as the ankles, hips, thighs, and back. The folded legs in the pose are said to resemble a cow’s mouth, while the elbows form the shape of a cow’s ears.

Cow Face Pose allows you to explore the symmetry of the body in a variety of ways. When you cross one knee over the other, pay attention to how it feels right over left versus left over right. Similarly, arm position will immediately tell you if one shoulder is tighter than the other.

In Gomukhasana, you should also pay attention to the length and position of your back, neck, and head. You can work on lengthening your spine all the way up through your neck to your skull. Students tend to bend the neck and lean to the side when bringing the upper arm close to the face. Maintain a straight spine at all times.

Make this asana more accessible by using props. Use a strap if your tight shoulders make it difficult to clasp your fingers behind your back in Cow Face Pose. To give your legs more room to move into the asana, sit on a block or blankets.

How To Do Cow Face Pose

Preparetory Poses

• Baddha Konasana
• Upavistha Konasana
• Virasana
• Supta Padangusthasana
• Supta Virasana
• Supta Baddha Konasana

Instrucstions:

1. Begin in Dandasana (Staff Pose), then cross your right leg over your left, stacking your knees on top of each other and bringing your right heel to the outside of your left hip.
2. Bring your left heel to the outside of your right hip by bending your left knee.
3. Press down evenly with your sitting bones while keeping your knees stacked and centered.
4. Extend your spine and lift your lower back.
5. Inhale, extend your right arm to the side, and rotate it so that your palm is facing back and your thumb is pointing down.
6. Exhale and bend the elbow and bringing your right arm behind your back, palm facing out and upper arm pulled in close to your body. Your elbow is pointing to your sacrum, and your right fingers are pointing to the base of your neck.
7. With your next inhalation, extend your left arm out to the side and up to the ceiling, palm facing the midline.
8. Bend your left elbow and reach for your neck with your hand. As your hand reaches down the spine, bring your elbow in close to your face and up toward the ceiling.
9. Bring your hands together until they touch. If possible, clasp your hands or fingers.
10. Exhale and carefully release your arms out to your sides to return to Dandasana.
11. Repeat on the other side.

Step By Step Video Tutorial: Cow Face Pose

Follow Up Poses

• Ardha Matsyendrasana
• Marichyasana III
• Bharadvajasana
• Paschimottanasana
• Upavistha Konasana
• Garudasana
• Padmasana

Tips For Beginners

• If you have trouble getting into cow face pose, start on all fours and cross your legs, bringing your left knee to the inside of your right knee. Reduce your hips to the space between your feet.
• Sit on a folded blanket, a block, or a cushion if your sitting bones are not evenly resting on the floor. Make an effort to keep your spine as long as possible.
• You can either keep your lower leg stretched out in front of you or work with another hip-opening pose, such as Pigeon pose.
• If your fingertips don’t meet, simply point them towards each other, grab your top, or use a strap. If you can’t reach the hands together, grab the strap with your top hand. If you can’t reach the hands together, grab the strap with your lower hand.

Common Mistakes

• Maintain a straight, rather than twisted, spine. From the top of your head to your tailbone, you should have a straight line. To join your hands, avoid twisting.
• Do not stick your ribs out while your hands are clasped. Instead, try dropping your tailbone to the floor and broadening your lower back. Also, avoid rounding your back and inwardly curving your chest. Instead, spread your collarbones.

Modifications and Variations

As you work to improve, a few minor adjustments can make the pose more comfortable for you and then increase the challenge later.

To Make It Easier

Bring a blanket, block, or bolster to place beneath your buttocks if it makes the pose more comfortable. If your seat is uneven, use the props to level it (one side of your butt higher than the other).

If you’re twisting to try to join your hands, grab a strap instead of forcing them to join. Work on moving your hands toward each other along the strap over time.

For More Challenge

Come into a forward bend while keeping the spine long and the hands joined to deepen the pose.

By bringing your feet closer to your hips, you will deepen the hip opening.

Contraindications:

1. Shoulder pain or injury: If you have a lot of pain in your shoulders, skip Gomukhasana. If the shoulder pain is minor, perform the posture under the supervision of a certified yoga instructor.
2. Pain in any of the following key body parts: It is not recommended to perform the asana if any of the body parts that are stretched while performing the posture are in severe pain.
3. Leg soft tissue injury: Muscle, ligament, and tendon damage is referred to as soft tissue injury. It is usually caused by a strain or sprain.
4. Muscle tear or thigh pain
5. Bleeding piles
6. Spondylitis

In the above-mentioned conditions, performing Gomukhasana may aggravate the condition. As a result, it is critical to avoid performing the posture in these circumstances.

Benefits Of Gomukhasana

1. Because the body is positioned with the legs at the thighs interlocked, the quadriceps muscles become flexible, and the stretch is felt deep in the hips as these joints are put to work to get the thighs interlocked properly.
2. The hamstring stretch aids in flexibility, which can be beneficial to athletes in the long run with repeated practice.
3. Gomukhasana is both a hip opener and a heart opener, so it will help to bring balance to the body while also keeping the spine fit.
4. Cow face pose increases blood flow to the legs and arms, making it an effective way to counteract long periods of sitting in a chair or hunching over a desk.
5. If there is no ligament tear, flexion of the knee joint can be beneficial in healing certain types of knee weakness. This works on opening the limb at the knee while pushing the knee towards the ground is worked on in the pose.
6. The shoulders and chest expand, resulting in a strong and erect upper spine.
7. Raising the entire body upwards to get the arms or fingers interlocked behind aids in the expansion of the lower abdominal muscles, allowing the abdominal organs to function properly.
8. A deep abdominal stretch also burns excess fat in the tummy area and tones the entire torso.
9. Breathing with the diaphragm expanded improves blood circulation in the chest and keeps allergies at bay.
10. The arms become stronger in the biceps and triceps, as well as more flexible in the shoulder and upper arms.
11. The entire spine is stretched, allowing a good flow of prana to flow throughout the body.
12. The abdominal muscles are put to work in the various variations of Gomukhasana to improve digestion or any kind of ailments pertaining to the organs at the abdomen.
13. Overall, cow face pose is more geared toward human anatomy, keeping the entire body stretched and allowing for proper flow of prana and blood throughout the body.

Visit Our Website For More

source https://yogadailyart.com/cow-face-pose/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=cow-face-pose