chestshouldersinner thighsgroinhip flexorsupper back
Meridians
heartlungkidneyliverspleen
Props
bolster2 blocks
Counterpose
childs-pose · wind-relieving
Time your hold
Three soft ticks and a bell when you're done, so you can close your eyes and stop
watching the clock.
How to do it
Sit in front of the short end of a bolster, then lie back over it so it runs the length of your spine and supports your head.
Bring the soles of the feet together and let the knees fall wide.
Put a block or a cushion under each knee. This is not optional comfort — supported knees are what let the groin release rather than brace.
Arms wide and open, palms up, or hands resting on the belly.
Stay for three to five minutes. To come out, use your hands to bring the knees together before you roll to one side.
Why practice it
Opens the chest and the front of the shoulders while the inner thighs release — the whole front of the body at once, and none of it by effort.
The bolster does all the work, so this is one of the few deep openers you can hold for five minutes without negotiating with it.
Encourages fuller, easier breathing by giving the ribs somewhere to go, which is why it settles the nervous system as much as it stretches anything.
Reaches the hip flexors and groin from the opposite direction to a lunge — useful for runners, and for anyone who has been folded into a chair all day.
Before you go
Want the follow-along version?
No spam, ever. Unsubscribe any time. I'll only send Yin.
Check your inbox 🌙 your two-hour retreat is on its way.
Take care
Always bring the knees together with your hands before coming out — the inner thighs will have let go, and closing them under their own power is how groins get tweaked.
If the lower back complains, lower the bolster height or raise the knee supports.
If the chin tips up toward the ceiling, add a folded blanket under the head.
Coming in & out
Into the pose
From sitting in front of a bolster, lying back over it.
From Butterfly, by lying back rather than folding forward.
Out of the pose
Hands to the outsides of the knees, draw them together, then roll off the bolster to one side.
Into Constructive Rest or Corpse, flat on the mat.
Common questions
What if I do not have a bolster?
Two firm cushions end to end, or a rolled duvet, work well. The only thing that matters is that your spine and head are supported along their whole length, and that the prop is high enough to open the chest rather than just lift you off the floor.
Why do my knees need blocks under them?
So the inner thighs can stop working. Unsupported knees hover, and hovering is muscular — which is exactly what stops the groin releasing over a long hold. Support them and the shape becomes restful instead of a stretch you are enduring.
It feels like a lot in my lower back.
Use a lower prop, or slide the bolster further down so it starts below the shoulder blades rather than at the waist. A gentler angle held for five minutes beats a dramatic one you come out of after ninety seconds.
Supported Fish with Butterfly Legs is one shape among many. When you'd like to put a whole sequence together into one long, slow practice, pop your email in and I'll send you my free two-hour Yin, restorative and Yoga Nidra retreat. Yours to keep.
No spam, ever. Unsubscribe any time. I'll only send Yin.
Check your inbox 🌙 your two-hour retreat is on its way.
Add this to your Home Screen: tap Share, then Add to Home Screen.
