Bhekasana ( भेकासन ) or The Frog Pose is an advanced level of yoga that’s effective to improve flexibility. This pose is a part of Ashtanga Yoga that promotes a healthy mind-body coordination and offers great stretching of ankles, groins, back etc. Here, we’ll discuss various such benefits, steps and precautions for performing Bhekasana.
The Sanskrit name, ‘Bhekasana’ is the combination of two words ‘Bheka’ ( भेका ) meaning ‘Frog‘ and ‘Asana‘ ( आसन ) means ‘pose‘ or ‘seat’. In this asana, yogi need to lie down on the floor stretching arms behind to grab the feet with hands. Meanwhile torso and head would remain lifted and entire body weight rest on the abdomen region.
During the practice of Bhekasana, body of practitioners resemble as a ‘Frog’ ( Bheka ) that removes stiffness, soreness and pain of knee joints. It’s an excellent stretching and strengthening yoga pose that helps to correct poor body posture.
Apart from this, Bhekasana offers great flexibility and mobility to your body that helps to relieve tight hips, fatigue and other problems caused due to sedentary lifestyle. Following are the two major variations of Bhekasana ( The Frog Pose ) –
- Mandukasana
- Ardha Bhekasana
How to Perform Bhekasana – The Frog Pose
To get the maximum benefits follow the below mentioned step – by – step guide to perform Bhekasana ( The Frog Pose ) :
Step 1 :
- Lie down flat on the floor in supine position, putting the entire weight on your stomach.
Step 2 :
- Keep feet flat and hips distance apart meanwhile your toes pointed towards the ceiling.
Step 3 :
- Stretch your arms behind you, bend your knees and clasp both the feet with your hands.
Step 4 :
- Breathe normally as usual, start lifting your head & chest off the floor as high as you can.
Step 5 :
- Squeeze the shoulders, expand chest muscles, lengthen neck, engage core and thighs.
Step 6 :
- Take deep breaths and maintain the pose for 10–15 seconds or as per your own comfort.
Step 7 :
- To release pose, lower your trunk, head and hands to the original position with exhalation.
Step 8 :
- Straighten your legs, lie down in the supine position on the ground and relax for some time.
Precautions and Contraindications
- Don’t practice the Frog pose in a hurry as overstretching of the muscles may cause injuries, strains and pains etc.
- Avoid the practice of this asana if you’ve recent injury in your spine, core, knees, feet, ankles, legs, hips or thighs.
- Avoid practice of this pose If you’re suffering from inflammation in the stomach or been through recent surgery.
- Women should avoid the practice of this asana during pregnancy as it puts pressure on the abdominal muscles.
Benefits Of Bhekasana – The Frog Pose
The powerful calming effects of back – bending pose makes it easier to hold body in seated meditation for long.
Following are The Top 5 Health Benefits of Bhekasana ( The Frog Pose ), that you may attain with regular practice :
1. Bhekasana Improves Your Digestion
- Bhekasana offers a gentle massage to abdominal muscles that stimulates internal organs & cure many health issues.
- Moreover, its practice helps to improve overall metabolism and aids in removing excess fat from belly, arms and legs
Also Read :
2. Bhekasana Aids to Relieve Stiffness
- Bhekasana is an effective stretching exercise for your lower body especially feet, ankles, knees, thighs and hip region.
- The Frog Pose not only makes the body strong and firm but also eradicates all the stiffness from your spinal columns.
Also Read :
3. Bhekasana Helps to Strengthen Muscles
- Regular practice of Bhekasana aids to tone and strengthen your chest, neck, shoulders, core (abs) and back muscles.
- Beside this, Frog Pose also aids to cure flat foot, calcaneal spurs and joint pain in knees due to rheumatism and gout.
Also Read :
4. Bhekasana Stimulates Different Chakras
- The Frog pose stimulates Svadhisthana and Manipura Chakras that unlock sensual and creative energies respectively.
- Plus, it helps to open the Kundalini energy and creates a proper circulation of ‘Prana’ towards the abdominal regions.
Also Read :
5. Bhekasana Promotes Good Mental Health
- The daily practice of Bhekasana or Frog pose is considered to be effective in relieving stress, anxiety and depression.
- It calms your mind and body by improving the blood circulation and amount of oxygen to different parts of the body.
Also Read :
Preparatory Poses
- Bhujangasana
- Supta Virasana
- Virasana
- Shalabhasana
- Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
Follow-up Poses
- Garudasana
- Adho Mukha Svanasana
Tips For Beginners
- Bhekasana is an advance pose so always practice some warm-up exercises before you start practicing this asana.
- It is recommended that you perform this yoga asana under the supervision of a certified yoga teacher or a trainer.
- You can practice this asana both in morning and evening on an empty stomach or after 4 hours of having a meal.
Conclusion
Bhekasana or Frog Pose offers numerous therapeutic benefits – improves flexibility, corrects poor body posture, relieves menstrual cramps, increases blood circulation to reproductive organs such as uterus and ovaries etc.
We really hope that this article would be useful guide for your practice of Bhekasana. We would like to invite you to please do share your thoughts, views and suggestions on this blog post in the comment section below.
Also Read :
FAQs Related to Bhekasana and its Health Benefits
How do Bhekasana help oneself to lead a healthy lifestyle ?
Bhekasana aids to relieve pain, stiffness, corrects body alignments and make joints stronger. During its practice, our internal organs and glands get immense pressure that work as a massaging effect. This pose stimulate organs like liver, kidneys, pancreas, adrenal glands and intestines. Thus, it helps oneself to lead a healthy and stress free lifestyle.
Recommended For You
