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Also known as Ardha Matsyendrasana, Bharadvaja's twist or seated spinal twist yoga pose, Half Lord of the Fishes is a seated twist type of yoga pose. It is one of the beginner's pose that helps you gain strength, stretch and flexibility required for much advanced spinal twists. It also opens up the shoulders, neck and hips while facilitating the cleansing of internal body organs. Take a look at the various steps required to carry out the Half Lord of the Fish Pose effectively-
Step 1- Sit on the mat with your spine all straight and your legs extended out in front of you. While shifting the weight to your right hip, bend your legs and swing them to your left side.
Step 2- Make your feet rest on the ground beside the outer right hip. Let your left ankle rest in the arch of your right foot.
Step 3- Keep your left hip on the floor and try to move your torso towards your right as far as you can. Inhale deeply while lifting up through the spine and exhale while twisting your right arm so that the left elbow comes to the outside of the right knee and the right palm rests on the floor, behind your sit bones.
Step 4- Look over your right shoulder but do not over turn as it may lead to a wrist in your belly and not the neck. However, you could turn your head to either side but do not over do it.
Step 5- As you inhale, try to draw the spine longer and twist on the inside with each exhale. Throughout, the pose, make sure that your right foot lies flat on the floor and is not twisted.
Step 6- Hold the pose for thirty to sixty seconds and then gradually ease out yourself. Take a slight twist to the opposite direction as you release the pose.
Step 7- Repeat the same steps to twist to the other side.
This is how you could go about practicing the seated spinal twist yoga pose. Beginners could use some padding to sit on in the initial practices.
However, those suffering from headache, diarrhea, abnormal blood pressure, or insomnia are not recommended to practice Half Lord of the Fishes pose. Also, women must not do this yoga pose while they are menstruating.
For those seeking perfect stretch for their body, Half Lord of the Fishes is the perfect yoga pose to practice.
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