Take Flight with Our Pose of the Month! Crow/Kakasana vs Crane/Bakasana

 “What if I fall?” Oh but my darling, What if you fly? ~Erin Hanson

Its time to take flight!

You go to a class and hear “crow” pose and then go to another class and hear “crane” pose. What’s the difference? Is there a difference?

Actually, if we are getting technical, yes!   

In crow pose (Kakasana), your arms are bent (think Chaturanga arms), knees are on the backs of your arms, elbows stacked over wrists and hips are lifted some; whereas in Crane Pose (Bakasana), your knees are tucked in your arm pits, and arms are more straight and your hips are lifted higher.

In both, you need to have a good foundation: hands are strong, shoulders engaged, core is strong, and find a good gaze point. The biggest difference between the two poses is in your arms (bent; elbows stacked over wrists in Crow and Straight in Crane) and Hips (parallel to ground in Crow and Lifted in Crane)

* If you have joint pain in wrists/elbow/shoulders you may want to avoid this pose

Why are we even doing this pose? For fun! Duh

Real Talk: this pose is scary! So, How do we do it?

Well, first thing first, lets pad the room! Grab some blankets or pillows and Blocks!  Every person is different and we all need a different platform; but there are a few consistencies that everyone must have: Strong Hands, Engaged Shoulders/Back/Core

I really enjoy the modified crow because it gets your body into position without having to leave the ground!

1) Place 2-4 blankets at the head 

2) Place your feet on 2 yoga blocks

3) Engage your Hands/Shoulders/Back/Core!

You are now in position without the fear of falling!

What’s most challenging about this pose is finding a good place of balance in your core. I really like this preparatory exercise to find that place of balance.

1  1)   Start by stacking 2-4 blankets at the front of your yoga mat

2  2)   Get two blocks slightly behind that, place your feet on the yoga blocks and your hands in between the blocks and blankets

3  3)   Spread your hands wide and make sure you engage your hands (press through the index finger pad, thumb pad and pinky pad)

4  4)   Place your knees as high up on the backs of your arms as you can; shoot for your armpits

5  5)   Engage your shoulders and core

6  6)   Begin to shift your weight forward towards the blankets

7  7)   Keep your toes on the yoga blocks

8  8)   Now try to move back and forth between the crouched position and the blankets

9  9)   The goal is to try to find a place of balance between your crouched position and your forehead on the blankets

Are you really doing Crow/Crane yes and no; but you are training your body and muscles to be in a supportive position and to prepare your body to fly in a strong and supported way!