Salamba Sarvangasana - Supported Shoulderstand

Supported Shoulderstand is an inverted yoga pose that stretches the back of the neck while strengthening the spine and core muscles. It is appropriate for intermediate to advanced yoga students.

Benefits

• Calms the brain and helps relieve stress and mild depression

• Stimulates the thyroid and prostate glands and abdominal organs

• Stretches the shoulders and neck

• Tones the legs and buttocks

• Improves digestion

• Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause

• Reduces fatigue and alleviates insomnia

• Therapeutic for asthma, infertility, and sinusitis

Directions

1. Lying on your back with arms on the floor alongside your torso, bend your knees and set your feet

   against the floor with the heels close to the sitting bones.

2. Press your arms against the floor, and push your feet away from the floor, drawing your thighs into the

   front torso.

3. Continue to lift by curling the pelvis and then the back torso away from the floor, so that your knees

   come toward your face.

4. Place your hands on your lower back and start to lift your legs straight up with thighs in line with the

   torso.

5. When legs are straightened, lift through the balls of the big toes so the inner legs are slightly longer

   than the outer.

6. Stay for 30 seconds and up to 3 minutes (for advanced practitioners) and then gently release into plow,

   legs up the wall and then eventually legs release to the mat.

Modifications

• Use blanket under shoulders

Variations

• Eka Pada Sarvangasana- one leg lifts while the other releases to the floor overhead, and alternate.

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