Protect Your Knees

Standing asanas (poses) are considered the safest category of Yoga poses. They are generally available to all but the most frail of people. Though they are the safest, it doesn’t mean that they don’t have risks associated with them. As with any asana, if you’re not using the correct alignment, many different parts of the body are at risk for injury. We’ll focus on preventing knee injury today.

Whenever you’re in a bent leg pose such as
• Virabhadrasana I or II (Warrior Pose 1 or 2)
• Parsvakonasana (Side Angle Pose)
• Utkatasana (Chair Pose)

your bent knee should never come past your ankle. Making sure your weight is in your heel will keep your knee stacked over your ankle rather than in front of it.

When you’re in a straight leg pose such as
• Uttansana (Standing Forward Bend Pose)
• Trikonasana (Triangle Pose)
• Parsvottansana (Intense Side Stretch Pose)

your weight should be in the big toe mound to keep from dumping weight into the knee and possibly hyper-extending the knee.

Keep these simple tips in mind during your next practice, especially when your teacher has you doing Suryanamaskar B (Sun Salutation B). You’ll start in Tadasana (Mountain Pose) pressing down through all four corners of your feet; but when you come into Utktasana (Chair Pose) your weight comes to rest in your heels, preventing your knees from pushing out past your toes; then when you transition to Uttanasana (Forward Fold) you’ll shift your weight into your big toe mounds, keeping your hips and knees stacked over your ankles.

Subtle things like this will keep your joints pressure free and able to sustain you through many practices to come.


Namaste.