Bikram Yoga Countdown; Day 6

Ustrasana

Camel

This is jewel in the Bikram Yoga crown. When you experience a good long camel, it can feel like you’ve just undergone 5 years of therapy in less than a minute.

No amount of talk will convince you that you can do this posture until you do it. Don’t rush in and frighten your spine. One step at a time: just explore, breathing through any fear and discomfort.

Keep hands on the lower back, elbows squeezing together for as long as possible while you let your head fall back and look for the floor behind you. Lengthen in the front of the body rather than collapsing into the lower back. Two cardinal rules of camel: press hips forward and lift heart up! Get the sense that you’re lifting and arching as opposed to collapsing. Don’t clench the bum; instead, imagine you have a beach-ball between your knees and squeeze into it, to activate the inner-thighs. Notice the intensity spreading across your chest as your heart opens. Be fully present with that feeling.
Come out slowly, hands supporting lower back, head up last. If you want to burst out crying or laughing, go for it. All sorts of weird emotional stuff can come up after a camel posture – you’ve just released all sorts of stuck energy. Avoid water after Camel, this pushes the emotions back down and prevents their release.