The correct way of standing (tadasana):
The word tadasana is a Sanskrit word and means the Position of the Mountain
Technique:
- Stand with the feet at hip width. It is advisable to be bare foot.
- Considering that the metatarsals are wider than the heels the second toes should be parallel to each other, not the inner arches
- Activate the three arches: the inner arch, the outer arch and the transverse arch
- The barycentre of the body ( hara) should be directly above the transverse arch (the talo-calcaneo-navicular joint) in a way that you can catch the rebounding force of gravity. So the body is slightly leaning forward at an angle of 80° instead of 90° and the weight is divided between the metatarsal and the heels
- Activate the transverse arch (the talo-calcaneo-navicular joint) by pulling the metatarsals towards the heels without lifting the toes up. Thus rooting the feet the rebounding force of gravity goes directly into the hara.
- The hara is in the middle of the pelvis and is the centre of gravity. According to many traditions it is also the center of strength, of life . In yoga language it is called svadisthana, or the seat of the self. It is situated in the middle between the two iliac crests, and halfway between the pubic bone and the navel. In front of the third sacral vertebra
- It is also in the middle of the core. When the rebounding force of gravity is captured by the core, which is thus ‘activated’, it pushes the body upwards along the spinal column, thus becoming light and stable.
In Tadasana: Exercises for the feet, ankles, legs and spine
In all these exercises you have to constrict the gluteus muscles and pull the abdomen in (scoop) from the pubic bone to the xyphoid process of the sternum (slight backward rotation of the pelvis)
Nr. 1: ‘Pulling the toes up’
Technique:
- Stand next to a chair and hold the back of the chair with both hands
- Push the heels down and pull the toes up as high as possible
- Lift the three arches (inner, outer and trasversale)
- Inner ankles and outer ankles parallel to each other
- Hold for 10 seconds
- Repeat 4x
Nr. 2: ‘High heels’
Technique:
- Stand next to a chair and hold the back of the chair with both hands
- Pushing the metatarsals down pull the heels up as high as possible
- The inner and outer ankles are at the same height
- Hold for 10 seconds
- Repeat 4x
Nr. 3: ‘Walking tip toe’
- Walking on tip toe forward
- Walking on tip toe backward
Technique:
- Keep the heels as high as possible
- Inner and outer ankles parallel to each other
- Spread the toes
Nr. 4: ‘Wooden Leg’
Technique:
- Stand next to a chair and hold the back of the chair with both hands
- With the lower muscles of the right side of the back pull the right leg up into the lumbar
- The foot square and the leg straight (wooden leg)
- Keep the body and the pelvis straight forward
- Lower the right leg again on the exhalation
- Repeat 4x
Nr. 5: ‘Up and down the stairs laterally’
On a block
Technique:
- Stand with the left foot on the block
- With the lower muscles of the right side of the back pull the right leg up into the lumbar.
- The foot square and the leg straight (wooden leg)
- Keep the body and the pelvis straight forward
- With the exhalation lower the right foot onto the floor
- Change foot on the block
- Repeat 2x each side
Nr. 6: ‘Flexion of leg’
Technique:
- Put the weight of the body on the right foot
- With the exhalation pull the left leg up into the lumbar
- Keep the body and pelvis straight
- Inhale and with the exhalation lift the left leg straight forward as high as possible
- Change leg
- Repeat each leg 4x
Nr. 7: ‘Flexion and extorotation of the leg’
Technique:
- Put the weight of the body on the right foot
- With the exhalation pull the left leg up into the lumbar
- Keep the body and pelvis straight
- Inhale and with the exhalation lift the left leg straight forward as high as possible
- Without turning the pelvis rotate the left leg outward
- Exhale and return the leg straight forward and place it down next to the right
- Repeat each leg 4x
Nr. 8: ‘Abduction of the leg’
Technique:
- Put the weight of the body on the right foot
- With the exhalation pull the left leg up into the lumbar
- Inhale and with the exhalation lift the left leg sideways with the tensor fascia lata
- Keep the body and pelvis straight
- Without turning the pelvis rotate the left leg outward
- Exhale and return the leg straight forward again and place it down next to the right
- Repeat each leg 4x
Nr. 9: ‘Extension of the wooden leg’
Technique:
- Put the weight of the body on the right foot
- With the exhalation pull the left leg up into the lumbar
- Inhale and with the exhalation extend the left leg backwards with the right gluteus muscle
- The body remains vertical with the pelvis vertical and the abdomen in
- Inhale and with the exhalation turn the left leg out without turning the pelvis
- Keep the body, pelvis and lumbar in the scoop
- Inhale and with the exhalation turn the left straight again
- Put the left leg down again next to the right
- Change leg
- Repeat each leg 4x
Nr. 10: ‘The horse that sleeps’
Technique:
- Put the body weight on the right foot
- Bend the left knee and put the metatarsal of the left foot behind next to the right heel
- Inhale and relaxing the muscles of the right hip and lumbar and the adductor muscles of the left leg the left pelvis is lowered, bending slightly the left knee (the horse that sleeps)
- The left heel remains raised and the foot parallel to the right foot with the metatarsal of the left foot on the floor next to the right heel
- Exhaling and contracting the gluteus of the right hip, take the pelvis and the left knee down.
- Repeat 2x each side
Nr. 11: ‘The crab’
Technique:
- With an inhalation raise the arms up over the head
- Keep the arms parallel to each other and slightly bent.
- The palms of the hands facing each other
- With an inhalation curve the spine to the right
- With the exhalation come back up
- Change sides
- Repeat each side 2x
This can also be done clasping the hands behind the head and the elbows back
Nr. 12: ‘The twist’
Technique:
- Put the right hand on the back of the chair and the left hand on the left hip
- Inhale and with an exhalation turn the trunk to the left
- The pelvis stays straight and the body weight stays equal on both feet
- The height of the left and the right side of the trunk remain the same
- With the exhalation come back to the center
- Repeat on the other side
- Repeat 2x each side
This can also be done clasping the hands behind the head and the elbows back
