How to Assume the Horse Rider Pose in Yoga
The horse rider pose is a fairly straight forward posture in yoga that can be executed by pretty much any level of yoga student. It’s a great way of stretching the groins while strengthening the arms and legs during your practice, and can be sequenced quite easily into any routine. Try placing it before downward facing dog, big toe or intense side stretch in your next yoga workout.
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Instructions
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Stand on the mat with your feet together, making sure that your big toes are touching and your heels are somewhat spread apart. Evenly balance your weight through your thighs, your calves, your ankles, and down to your feet.
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Make your thighs firm as you turn them inward. At the same time, lengthen your spine from your neck down to your tailbone.
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Roll your shoulders back and lift your ribcage, keeping your sternum straight and perpendicular to the floor, until your chest is open. Make sure that when you lift your ribcage that it is just a lift, not a push forward with a lift.
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Let your arms hang down to your side, keeping them relaxed.
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Straighten your neck, balancing your head evenly between your shoulders, until your chin is parallel with the floor.
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Exhale, bend forward, initiating this movement from your hips, while you lengthen your torso to further help you in moving into the bend.
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Keeping your legs straight, place your fingers, if not your palms, onto the floor and position them just in front of or next to your feet. The actual location isn’t as important as the contact you are trying to make. As you reach your hands to the floor, press the heels of your feet into the earth and tilt your pelvis toward the sky.
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Inhale, concentrate on lengthening your upper body to bring yourself into the bend. At the same time, allow your head to find its natural position in the stretch.
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Hold this position for a few breaths.
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Inhale, bend your knees and step your right foot back, placing the ball of the foot on your mat. The right foot should come back far enough to bring your left thigh parallel with the floor.
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Let your torso come to rest on the top of your left thigh as you lengthen your spine from your tailbone to your neck. At the same time, extend your right leg further back by pressing the heel of your right foot towards the ground and the top of the right thigh towards the sky.
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Look forward and hold this position, breathing evenly and smoothly for 30 to 60 seconds.
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Exhale, bring your right foot back to its original position next to your left foot.
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Inhale, bend your knees again and this time step your left foot back, placing the ball of this foot on your mat. Again, the left foot should come back far enough to bring your right thigh parallel with the floor.
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Let your torso come to rest on the top of your right thigh as you lengthen your spine from your tailbone to your neck. At the same time, extend your left leg further back by pressing the heel of your left foot towards the ground and the top of the left thigh towards the sky.
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Look forward and hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds, breathing evenly and smoothly, before moving on to your next pose.
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Tips & Warnings
If you suffer from a knee injury, avoid practicing the horse rider pose unless under the supervision of an experienced yoga instructor.
If you suffer from a neck injury, instead of focusing your gaze forward, keep your head down as you come into the pose.
