MONS Athletics
Yoga poses

Bear Sit-Through: Rotate Your Hips From All Fours

From hands and feet with your knees hovering, thread one foot under you to the far side and turn your hips up to the sky. Then back through, and the other way.

Moving · Shoulders · Core · Hips · 2 min read

Why it works: Chapter 15, Your core is a barrel, not a six-pack

How to do it

  1. 1

    Find the bear

    Hands under shoulders, knees under hips, toes tucked, back flat. Lift your knees about an inch off the floor and hold them there. Spread your fingers and press the floor away.

  2. 2

    Free one hand

    To turn to your left, lift your left hand. Your weight shifts onto your right hand and both feet. Everything else stays planted.

  3. 3

    Thread the foot underneath

    Lift your hips a little, then slide your right foot under your body and out to the left, letting your hips open and turn until you are facing up at the sky.

  4. 4

    Land on one hand and two feet

    Set the threaded foot down flat, knee bent, so you finish half facing up on one hand and two feet. Keep your hips lifted rather than sitting them down to the floor. Let the free arm reach up to open your chest.

  5. 5

    Back through the middle

    Pull the foot back the way it came into the bear, knees still hovering, and take a breath there. Then lift the other hand and thread the other foot. Left, middle, right, middle. Your hands never walk.

  6. 6

    The easier version

    Go slower and turn only as far as your hips go freely. If you need a moment, pause in the middle with your knees still hovering and take a breath. If your wrists complain, spread your fingers wide and press through the whole hand.

  7. 7

    The test

    It should feel like the hips turning the body, not the arms dragging it.

Watch for

  • Threading before you lift. Your knee drags along the floor and the turn stalls halfway.
  • Pulling yourself round with your arms. Your shoulders take the strain and your hips stop doing the turning.
  • Letting the hands creep. You drift across the floor, and your shoulders never learn to hold one fixed base while you turn.
  • Rushing it. Momentum swings you round, your breath goes ragged and your knees start touching down.

Questions

What muscles does the Bear Sit-Through work?

Your shoulders and arms hold you up. Your trunk, especially the obliques along the sides of your waist, drives and controls the turn. Your hips and the fronts of your thighs keep the knees hovering.

How long should you do bear sit-throughs?

Two minutes in the Balance · 01 routine: left, middle, right, middle, the whole time, with your knees off the floor throughout. Go slowly enough that they never touch down, and pause in the middle with them hovering if you need a breath. There is no daily target: do it when your training day has that routine. Those are the times in the normal-length session: a long day holds a little longer, and a short day trims only the holds longer than a minute.