Part XVII · Yoga poses
Yoga Squat: Sit Deep Even When Your Heels Won't Go Down
Feet hip-width, toes turned out, sink your hips toward the floor and stay there, heels down or on a rolled towel. Opens your ankles, calves and deep hips.
The lesson
- 01
Feet hip-width, toes out
Stand with your feet about hip-width apart, or a little wider, toes turned out a little.
- 02
Sink straight down
Bend your knees and let your hips sink toward the floor, knees travelling out over your toes. Knees going past your toes is normal here.
- 03
Prop the heels
If your heels lift, slide a rolled towel or the folded edge of your mat under them, so your heels can take your weight and you do not tip backwards.
- 04
Chest up, elbows wide
Palms together at your chest, upper arms inside your knees. Press your elbows gently out against your knees while your knees press back, and let your spine grow long instead of slumping.
- 05
Breathe and settle
Stay still and heavy, breathing out slowly, and let your hips and ankles sink a little more on each breath. Do not bounce.
- 06
Know which sensation is which
A stretch through your groin, calves and ankles is the pose. A pinch at the front of your ankle or in your knee means you have hit your limit: prop the heels higher or sit a little less deep.
- 07
Come up slowly
Hands to the floor, straighten your legs into a Forward Fold, then bend your knees a little and come up with a long back. Take your time after a long hold so your knees and your head can catch up.
Watch for
- Heels up with nothing under them. Your weight tips onto your toes and you hold yourself up instead of settling.
- Knees falling in past your big toes. The knee twists and your inner thighs lose the stretch.
- Slumping. Your lower back rounds and your hips stop opening.
- Forcing the heels down or bouncing. The front of the ankle jams instead of opening.
Why can't I squat with my heels down? Usually stiff ankles and calves, and for some people the shape of the hip or ankle bones. Prop your heels so you can settle, and time spent in the squat usually brings them closer to the floor. Forcing them down only jams the front of the ankle.
Is a deep squat bad for your knees? Not for healthy knees: research reviews have found no good evidence that squatting deep harms them, and the pressure behind the kneecap is no higher at full depth than halfway down. If a knee pinches, prop your heels higher or sit a little less deep.
What does a Yoga Squat stretch? Your calves and Achilles tendons as your knees travel forward over your feet, your inner thighs and deep hips as your knees open, and your lower back as you sit low.
How long should you hold a Yoga Squat? A minute in Post-Run Yoga · 01, and in Post-Run Yoga · 02 you move between the squat and a Forward Fold for as long as it feels good. Elsewhere you pass through it for a breath on your way back to standing. There is no daily target: sit in it when your training day has one of those routines.
Next
Standing Forward Fold→It comes straight after the squat in every routine that has one. You straighten your legs and fold, so the stretch moves from your ankles and hips to the backs of your legs.
From the book
22Range lets you rest on your line→