A few more pics from our Arm Balance Workshop this past weekend at Kula Yoga In Port Orange!!!
These pictures are of the Firefly Pose variations and the Tortoise Pose. The first picture is of the Firefly variation with straight arms and the arms and legs perpendicular to the ground. The second picture is of the Firefly variation with bent arms, the elbows at ninety degrees like in the Low Plank pose, and the legs parallel to the ground.
These poses are similar to the Crow Pose and the Crane Pose. The major difference between them is that in the Crow Pose and the Crane Pose the knees are in flexion.
A long time ago — one of my teachers told me that the arm balance poses were just advanced warm up poses. Each of the arm balance poses is just a standing warmup pose done in either Plank Pose or the Low Plank Pose. Later, another teacher told me that it’s not strength that holds most people back in the arm balance poses, its flexibility. It’s good to note that the arm balance poses aren’t going to help you open your hips up a lot but you do have to have open hips in order to do them.
These two Firefly poses are in the same family as the Seated Forward Fold and the Standing Forward Fold. The last picture is of The Tortoise Pose, another Pose in this family and a close relative of the Firefly.
Be careful of your low back when you are working on these poses. Make sure the muscles on the back of your legs are open and you don’t feel pain in your low back.
If you want to get better at these poses work on your hamstring flexibility. The Hand to Foot Pose would help a lot, especially the lying down variation. And work on all your forward folds
