Big toe pose (hold)

Padangusthasana

Yogaeasytimedno equipment

Standing forward fold with feet hip-width apart in which the index and middle fingers hook the big toes, and the torso closes down onto the straight legs with the head toward or between the knees and the elbows bending out to the sides.

How to do it

1. Stand with the feet about hip-width apart and parallel; legs straight, kneecaps lifted.
2. Fold from the hips and hook each big toe with the index and middle finger, thumb wrapping over them.
3. Inhale: straighten the arms, lift the chest and head, back flat (half lift), gaze forward/up.
4. Exhale: pull on the toes, bend the elbows out to the sides and fold deeply, bringing the belly and chest onto the thighs and the crown/forehead toward the shins or between the knees.
5. Legs stay straight, feet fully flat; gaze to the nose. Hold several breaths.

Muscles worked

Supporting: hamstrings