If you've never attempted this pose before, be sure to only work within your own limits and abilities - I'm still learning and growing in this pose, therefore my form isn't perfect - keep that in mind.
With that being said, wheel pose is one of my favorites, partly because it makes me feel strong and partly because it's known to strengthen and lengthen the vertebrae in your spine - hello, great posture! Plus, wheel pose helps the nervous system function regularly and improves hormone secretions that keep your body in optimal health. In case you need another reason to get into wheel pose daily, it helps you remove fat buildup from your oblique area when practiced regularly. This pose is more advanced than some of the others in the challenge, so be sure to be cautious when attempting and don't force anything!
Start on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Bend your knees and set your feet on the floor, heels as close to the sitting bones as possible. Bend your elbows and spread your hands on the floor beside your head, forearms relatively perpendicular to the floor, fingers pointing toward your shoulders. Lift your hips toward the ceiling drawing your tailbone up, keeping yout thighs and feet parallel, take a few breaths then firmly press your hands into the floor and your shoulder blades against the floor pushing yourself up and lift on the crown of your head. Breath again. Press your feet and hands into the floor, lift your head off the floor and straighten your arms. Lengthen the tailbone toward the backs of the knees, lifting yourself "from your belly button" is the simplest way I know how to put it into words - let your head hang and stay here for around 5-10 seconds, if you can. Repeat as many times as you want, I usually stick to about 2-3 times. I'll repeat this again, be sure to work within your own limits and abilities.
This challenge has brought so many amazing ladies into my life already, looking forward to getting to know all of you more... and hopefully we can get some guys in on the challenge with us! I'm loving seeing all of your photos and hearing about your experiences! I have some super exciting news to announce soon regarding my fitness series so be on the look out for that --- until then, let's keep rocking out our yoga practice and supporting our sponsors with some love!
Namaste.
Do you want to be a part of the Yoga Challenge?
It's never too late to join us...
{well, you can't win if you don't enter by September 30, 2014 but you can always practice yoga and win that way!}
You can find out the exact details on how to participate in the yoga challenge here.
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