Are you tricking yourself in your yoga practice? It's a common habit. The mind wants to make things easy, so it finds a way to look like you're doing the posture without actually engaging the right muscles!
Today's Mindful Monday offers a tip about essential body awareness, especially when practicing Chair Pose (Utkatasana) or a basic squat.
The Chair Pose "Trick"
Chair Pose is a powerhouse posture designed to build immense strength in your lower body. When you practice Chair Pose, a squat, or the motion of sitting down and standing up, the goal is to stay low and keep your chest lifted.
The trick I often see that prevents students from building real strength is:
Hinging Forward: Instead of bending the knees deeply, we hinge excessively forward at the hips, tucking the pelvis under or pushing the hips back too far.
Dropping the Head: To feel like we are getting "lower to the ground," we tilt our head and upper body down toward the floor.
This compensation doesn't actually challenge the legs more. Instead, it places undue strain on the back and tricks the mind into thinking you've done the difficult work.
Practice with Integrity
To ensure you are building true strength in your quads and glutes, focus on the following checkpoints whenever you are practicing a chair pose or squat:
Keep the Upper Body Lifted: Maintain a tall, straight chest and spine. Try to stack your shoulders directly over your hips (as much as your mobility allows).
Go Lower by Bending the Knees: Focus your effort on deepening the bend in your knees, bringing your thighs closer to parallel with the floor. This is where you challenge your quads and glutes.
Mantra: Bend Your Knees, Not Your Back.
