What Is A Yoga Bind?
In simple terms, a yoga bind is where one part of the body grabs and pulls against another part and involves intertwining your arms or legs, often by clasping your hands together around different parts of the body like your legs or feet.
Think of a bind as a way of deepening a particular yoga posture to create more space, enhance flexibility & strength.
Benefits of challenging yourself to try yoga binds
Here are just some of the benefits of getting yourself into a good old bind:
- Deepen the posture to enhance your flexibility
- Builds your strength
- Increases your concentration
- Boosts your confidence on the mat
- Promotes strong breathing techniques and mindfulness
- Encourages playfulness and curiosity
Tips from a teacher on how to find your bind
- Warm up - the key to a good bind is making sure your body is warmed up and feeling flexible - this prevents injury and gives you the best chance of those hands finding each other.
- Reach for props - never be too proud to use a prop to help you on your way. Blocks and straps can be very handy for offering you that extra helping hand to achieve your bind.
- Listen to your body - remember, yoga isn't a competition, so don't force yourself into anything that doesn't feel right for your body. That's the opposite of what yoga is all about. Know your limitations while leaving room to explore and challenge yourself gently.
- Get help - the best place to make progress on your yoga journey is in the studio, where experienced teachers like me and my fellow yogis can guide you, offer advice and make sure you're getting the form right to avoid injuries.
Common types of yoga bind to try your hand at
If you're coming round to the idea of trying out a bind the next time you're on the mat, you might be wondering where to start.
Here are the most common types you can try in your next practice:
Ardha Matsyendrasana (Bound Half Lord of the Fishes)
Begin in an upright seated position with one leg extended straight out in front of you and the other knee bent with the foot flat on the ground on the opposite side of your straight leg (Seated twist).
You can then choose to bend the underneath leg under if you wish.
Then, whilst you're sat nice and tall wrap the opposite arm around the bent leg and try to feed that hand through the gap between your legs & then the other arm slides behind your back and then try to clasp your hands together behind your back.
Gomukhasana (Cow Face Pose)
A shape where we twist the body into a funky shape which is meant to resemble the face of a cow. For the purpose of this blog we'll just discuss the arms.
From a seated or standing position extend one arm into the air and then bend your elbow so your hand slides down the back of your head to your upper back, the back of your other hand will then try to slide up your back to clasp your fingers together.
Bound Extended Side Angle Pose
Starting from a Warrior 2 stance, you will need to drop your torso down towards your bent leg and try to wrap your arm under the thigh and then wrap your upper arm behind the back to clasp your hands together, essentially holding onto your thigh.
Which one are you keen to try out first?
Whichever one you fancy, remember to enjoy yourself along the way - we place huge emphasis on fun and exploration at our Clitheroe yoga studio, so we encourage you to have fun exploring and finding new ways to challenge yourself physically and mentally.
As I always say it's yoga practice, not yoga perfect.
Book a class at our Ribble Valley yoga studio to try out a variety of styles and progress your practice
If you're local to our studio we'd love to see you on the mat for a class - we offer a range of different yoga styles, including chair yoga, energising hot yoga, dynamic vinyasa flow, and restorative aerial yoga.
You can also explore other types of movement like Pilates, aerial yoga, and barre, so there's sure to be something to inspire your journey in our varied weekly timetable.
The best place to start is with an Unlimited 21-Day Intro Pass - this way, you can try out as many different classes as you like to find your place in the yoga world and experience maximum mind and body benefits.
