Swallow Your Pride and Prop, Prop, Prop!

For donkey’s years I thought I was doing a ‘good job’ in a Yoga class if I didn’t need any help. I didn’t think the teachers needed to adjust me and I wouldn’t dare use a foam block to help in poses such as Parivrtta Anjaneyasana (revolved lunge pose). Instead, I would grit my teeth and bare it, wait for that extremely uncomfortable niggle in my hip to go numb and incorrectly believe I had everything under control when it came to my body.

I had always been ‘flexible’ as they say so I depended on that to get myself through poses that didn’t just require flexibility but also strength. I even thought I didn’t need a little pillow to sit on when in Siddhasana or Sukhasana (easy pose). If your hips sit lower than your knees when in a position like Siddhasana, you need that little pillow to relieve the tension in the hip flexors. Tight hip flexors are not fun!

Little did I know that I was hurting myself by over-stretching into a pose instead of building my power and strength to assist in moving into a pose correctly. Something to keep in mind is that we have different body shapes and proportions. If you have long arms, Dandasana (staff pose) may be a breeze, but for someone like me, with short arms, it’s impossible to get the palms flat on the floor.

These days I’m the first to grab for a prop as I’ve now learned how important it is to have equal alignment and balance on both sides of the body. Props help us find length in poses such as Uttanasana (forward fold pose), stability in wobbly poses such as Parivrtta Anjaneyasana (revolved lunge pose) and Supta Pandangusthasana (reclining hand to big toe pose).

If you don’t have foam blocks and straps available you can easily make do with things around the house. In the photos for this blog post you will see how I’ve used a scarf for Supta Pandangusthasana pose, books in Uttanasana and Parivrtta Anjaneyasana, and a pillow for Siddhasana.

What props do you use in your Yoga practice? Feel free to share in the comment box below.