Banishing the Blues with Backbends

Here I’m using a bolster in Supported Bridge Pose

Help to Banish the Blues with Supported Bridge Pose

Here in the UK the nights are drawing-in and the temperature is dropping. With this shift into Autumn/Winter low moods and low energy can be more prevalent for some of us. Back-bending poses are known for their energising qualities.

What I like about Supported Bridge Pose is that it is accessible for most of us. The sacrum (directly below the lumbar spine) is supported by a bolster or yoga brick (or you can use cushions if you don’t have access to either of these). Here I am using a bolster (pictured).

Just a few of the benefits of Supported Bridge Pose include:

– Helps to relieve stress and low moods
– Helps to calm the nervous system (activates the parasympathetic nervous system which is in charge of
the body’s ‘rest and digest’ activities)
– Can help to reduce fatigue
– Stretches the spine from the shoulders all the way to the tailbone
– Can help to relieve lower back pain
– Stretches and opens the chest
– Can help to improve digestion

You can watch a video (filmed at Evolve) where I show you how to get into this pose using a yoga block by clicking here. You can move into and out of the pose in the same way if you are using cushions instead of a block.

If you are using a bolster as I am here (pictured above), start by sitting on the bolster, with knees bent and soles of both feet on the floor. Place your hands on the floor behind you, lift your hips and slide them forward so that you can rest your sacrum (the flat bony place just below your lower back curve) onto the bolster. Then using your hands ease yourself back onto the floor so that you are in a supported bridge position. Allow your arms and hands to rest where they feel most comfortable – you may wish to rest arms by your side, or rest hands on your lower abdomen or reach arms back to the floor behind you.

Rest here for five minutes or for as long as you feel comfortable.