It’s been a minute since I’ve talked about yoga around here, so today, let’s talk stability. One of the biggest fears newbie yogis tend to have relates to balance and stability. Nobody wants to stumble or fall during asana practice. In reality, that’s part of the practice and each of us have our own poses that are just trickier for whatever reason. Rather than asking new students try to remember every single placement cue for each different asana, I think it is more helpful to talk about how our body and brain sense our stability and give tips and tricks to help work through balance issues.

Dimensionality

Our brains receive a ton of input from our bodies every minute of every day, but during exercise, we need to evaluate a larger amount of information and trouble shoot quickly. One of the first pieces of input that our brain will receive from our body is info about dimensionality. Dimensionality refers to how our limbs and limb segments relate to each other in space. In other words, our brain is trying to process info about how compact or dispersed our limbs are relative to one another. Our brains like our bodies to be nice and tucked in (compact). Think about it, when you are standing having a conversation with a friend, you usually stand with two feet on the floor somewhat close to each other and arms in close to your torso. Dimensionality also communicates info to our brains about how symmetrical our limbs segments are at a given moment. Again, as a general rule, our brains like both right and left halves of our bodies to look roughly similar. Changes in compactness or symmetry can cause balance issues that we have to deal with.

Check yourself before you wreck yourself… This is a Chair Pose progression. You will notice that the base position doesn’t change (low squat), but the positioning of the arms and torso does. Practice this progression and if you notice that you struggle to maintain balance at the end, remember that for your personal practice, you can always choose a more compact and symmetrical version of the asana

Base of Support

The second factor that will have a huge effect on how our brains sense balance and stability is base of support. Quite simply, base of support refers to how much of your body is in contact with the ground. In practice, this has several parts. We walk on our two feet, so it should come as no surprise that those are the parts of our body our brains prefer to have supporting us. No wonder everybody but the most experienced yogis have anxiety about arm balancing postures. How many total points of contact with the ground do you have? It should be pretty simple to understand that this is a case where more is better. Meaning that being supported by both feet, rather than one, will always increase stability. How wide is the base? Placing your feet slightly wider or practicing the same body shape in a seated posture versus standing will also offer stability benefits.

Check yourself before your wreck yourself… These are both Forward Folds. The first is from a standing position, the second seated. Practice both and notice that the larger base your butt and legs provide in the seated position make this a much easier and more comfortable posture. Because the dimensionality (body shape) is the same, these poses offer many of the same benefits, so use the one more suited for your ability.

The following is a Bridge Pose progression. Notice in the first picture the block provides an extra point of contact with the ground (5 total). The second is the traditional asana, and the third is an advanced modification where a point of contact is lost (3 total). Practice this progression and notice if your stability is compromised towards the end. Again, remember, it is the same base asana, so choose the variation in which you feel confidently stable.

Information From Our Senses

Lastly, our brains process a ridiculous amount of information from our senses that allows us to make a determination on how stable and balanced we feel. Feedback we receive from our vision is important. Our brain likes to know our head is upright and facing forward, if it isn’t, our brain will try to orient our body in that direction, which usually results in balance issues. Noise, especially loud and sudden, can cause balance problems. Touch is important, too. Yoga is practiced with sticky mats because they provide a grippy surface for our hands and feet. While it may not seem like a huge deal, try practicing an asana you know you struggle to maintain your balance in without it. We also receive sensory input from our muscles. It is a lot more difficult to maintain balance once a muscle starts to shake or twitch.

Check yourself before you wreck yourself… This is a Tree Pose progression.  The first picture is modified with the up foot placed lower on the calf to enhance stability. The second picture is the traditional pose. Practice this progression, moving your foot as high as comfortable to mimic the traditional pose. Notice any wobbling in your base foot. Then, move back to the modified pose, but close your eyes. Again, notice the change to your stability. As before, use these cues to decide the relative high/low placement of your up foot.

The examples I used are by no means exhaustive, but more to illustrate my point that yoga is yours, its individual. You can tailor just about any asana to your stability level. And the point of yoga practice is to use that continual brain-body (mind-body) feedback to challenge yourself and get better.