Crescent Lunge

The lesson

1. 01

   Step one foot back, long

   From your fold or halfway lift, step one foot straight back. Long is what you want — the further back it goes, the more room your hips have to sink.

2. 02

   Back leg straight, heel high

   Straighten your back leg and lift that heel as high as it goes, weight on the ball of the foot, toes tucked under. A flat back foot is a different pose.

3. 03

   Sink low and let the hips travel forward

   Drop your hips down and forward until your front knee is over or even past your toes. That forward travel is what lengthens the front of your back hip — staying upright with a vertical shin leaves the stretch on the table.

4. 04

   Square the hips, drop the tail

   Turn both hip points toward the front of your mat and let your tailbone drop. That's what moves the stretch into the front of your back hip instead of into your low back.

5. 05

   Arms overhead

   Reach both arms up alongside your ears, ribs stacked over hips. Hands on your front thigh or your hips is fine if your shoulders or your balance object.

6. 06

   The test

   You want two things at once — a long pull down the front of your back hip, and a live stretch under the arch and toes of that back foot. If all you feel is your front thigh burning, you're sitting up too tall. Step the back foot further away and sink the hips forward.

7. 07

   Come back through Mountain

   Step your back foot forward and stand tall before you change sides. The pause is part of the flow, not a gap in it.