headstands...the long version

[Guest guest]

after you have cupped your hands, positioned your

forearms and then placed your head between your arms, snug

up against your hands, with the top of your head on

the ground, raise up onto your toes with your legs

straight. walk your feet in towards your hands until your

body (mainly your butt) begins to lean backward a bit.

at some point, the center of gravity will shift and

your toes will begin to lift off of the ground. STOP

at this point. get comfortable with this balance

point. maybe even roll over into a somersault a couple

of times to get a sense for what it feels like to

tilt too far, and how to safely land if you go too

far. <br><br>once you feel comfortable with being able

to hover your feet above the ground, with your head

and neck stable and without discomfort, begin to lean

even a bit further. allow your legs to elevate a bit

to a horizontal position. HOLD it here. get

comfortable with this second balance point. come down slowly.

try it again several times if you feel strong enough.

<br><br>once you feel capable at that balance point, from the

90 degree position, slowly begin to elevate your

feet further, not by leaning further backward but by

using your abs (bandhas). if you do only that, however,

you will promptly roll over backwards. you have to

begin shifting your center of gravity back towards the

way you are facing. to do that, at the same time that

you begin to elevate your feet, slowly push your hips

forward. the two actions--feet up, hips forward--should be

done slowly and in unison to counterbalance each

other. <br><br>as your feet come up, don't be frightened

and fall down just because you are actually doing it.

the best way to keep your balance as the feet go more

vertical is use your abs for stability and BREATHE! slow,

steady rhythmic breathing. keep your eyes focused on a

single point on the wall. use your arms and head to

share the weight. you shouldn't feel that either the

arms or the head is carrying the burden. if you feel

discomfort or strain, come down then. you can always go back

up later. learn to accept gradual progression and

you will do just that. <br><br>to come down, gently

push your hips back away from the way you are facing

and, using your abs again, start to lower your legs in

a controlled fashion.<br>get a spotter to help you

but do not rely on them to keep you in balance. learn

to balance yourself. doing a somersault does not

hurt. you likely spent a good part of your childhood

doing them. no big deal. do try to get your hands away

from the back of the neck if you do roll over.

<br><br>when you learned to walk, it took you quite a while.

this is easier. the base of balance, the forearms is

longer than your feet. there are only two joints that

flex in the inverted position--the hips and neck. when

you're trying to learn to stand, you have to coordinate

the flexion of ankles, knees and hips--much harder.

headstanding should be easier than feet standing. just takes

some practice and horizon adjustment

[Guest guest]

John,<br><br>excellent posting, loads of sound

advice. I stopped being afraid of falling over in private

when I realised that doing a back somersault didn't

hurt, and when I learned to unclasp my hands quickly

enough to avoid crunching my knuckles as I rolled over

them. Of course, it helps when you start off to be sure

your "drop zone" is clear and/or well padded.<br><br>I

stopped being afraid of falling over in public after I

fell over in front of about 30 or 40 people in a Lino

Miele workshop about a year ago.

[Guest guest]

also - remember to counterbalace as you come up

and down by pushing your elbows down into the floor

and lifting, always lifting your scapulas (shoulder

blades) away from the floor. This will take weight off of

your head and neck, too. Roll your forearms inward a

bit to spread the shoulderblades outward and your

chest will not collapse but instead will open up

nicely. Check the base by closing first one eye and then

the other you should see both elbows - otherwise your

base is too wide. Knees rolled inward for stability,

bandhas engaged, drishti set and breathe and enjoy this

beautiful pose.

[Guest guest]

Lauren: lots of good advice you have gotten here.

It took me about 5 months to "get" headstand, and

another 2 to feel comfortable in it. I now enjoy hanging

out there for at least 30 breaths, doing the

perpendicular leg thing for a while. I'll still get the

wobblies, but mostly if I am facing someone who is flopping

about, so I usually turn on my mat so I can face a wall

with no distractions.<br><br>A fellow classmate who

got into headstand much sooner than I did said

something to me once that really helped me a lot (he lurks

on this board and every once in a while comes out

with something scholarly or witty {you know who you

are...}). When you're walking your toes in, hanging out in

what I think is called Dolphin, push your head off the

ground a few times (being sure to position it back

correctly) to make sure your shoulders are engaged and

ready. If you anchor your weight in your forearms, with

your shoulders engaged, and keep inching you feet

toward your face, my friend pointed out that your legs

simply have no where to go but up! <br><br>I don't know

if the "science" behind it is correct, but the

phrase worked for me; that was the first day I got into

headstand.<br><br>Learning to be comfortable falling over is also important,

as is proper clearance, as others have pointed out.

And I admit I crushed my knuckles a whole lot and

ultimately made it so that if I fell I went into an backbend

instead of a roll. That's probably not ideal, a roll is

prbably better for you, but it worked for me, esp. in

cramped spaces.<br><br>Banhdas are so important; if you

reorient the headstand it's like coming in and out of a

sit up, so your ab strength will help.<br><br>I never

used a wall and I think it would be counter-productive

since as others have explained it's a lot about

controlling the distribution of your weight. People tend to

get thrown off with how far behind you your hips need

to go when you're on your way up to the 90 degree

phase, then the redjustment to upright.<br><br>Also,

make sure you have the correct base; you should be

able to clasp each elbow with the opposite hand then

take your forearms into a triangle. And when you plant

your arms and head down, make sure your elbows don't

drift out or your base will be much more unstable. I

see that drifting impeding students a lot in

classes.<br><br>Headstanders: one teacher used to have us try to push with our

shoulders while in headstand so we could actually lift our

heads off the floor. IS that something your teachers

had you try? Also, spinal twists while in

headstand?<br><br>B

[Guest guest]

>but mostly if I am facing someone who is

<br>>flopping about, so I usually turn on my mat <br>>so I

can face a wall with no distractions.<br><br>...

without coming down? Wow.<br><br><br>Alan

[Guest guest]

Balancing tip for sirsa newbies:<br><br>Lace the

fingers, put one thumb over the other, go into

headstand...while going up, apply some slight "twiddling" pressure

to the thumbs so that you keep your attention on

them. <br><br>An iyengar teacher gave me this tip long

ago when i was first learning headstands, and it

greatly helped me keep my balance.

[Guest guest]

It's my breakdancing background.

[Guest guest]

While we're on the subject of sirsasana, how

about the head placement in sirsasana? Guruji talks in

Yoga Mala about NOT placing pressure right on the

sahasrara-cakra (which, apparently, can block the nadi in the top

of the head and cause mental problems). Instead, he

says that we should balance FORWARD of the crown of

the head. (At the workshop in nyc this summer, you

could see some long time practitioners doing sirsasana

almost right on the forehead).<br><br>I find this helps

with keeping the chest from collapsing inward and lets

me "cheat" by not having to be quite so open in the

shoulders. But it feels less aligned from front to back, and

feels like it puts unusual pressure on the neck.

<br><br>Anyone care to share their experiences with head

placement in sirsasana?

[Guest guest]

Yeah, closer to the forehead is right. I was

taught this. Also, elbows closer than you think or want

and ideally no weight on the head at all. But I won't

ever find out if this is right if I can't get Eddie's

studio phone number, will I? Help!<br>Funky T.

[Guest guest]

If it puts pressure on the neck, don't do it,

whatever some book says. In alt.yoga in usenet I saw a

warning against putting the weight on your forehead

because it will strain the vertebrae in the neck. I guess

it would be good to put the crown of the head to

ground with most or all of the pressure carried with

arms.