Locust Pose: A Beginner’s Guide

Are you experiencing regular bouts of pain in your lower back? Well, the reason could be weaker back muscles. Many factors can influence pain. However, one thing that could completely vanish the pain is the Locust pose. From lower back to shoulder joints, it works on every major and minor joint in your body.

So, the Locust pose also known as Salabhasana is one of the essential yoga poses that help you bid farewell to painful days. It might seem like a simple yoga pose, however, it has deep and long-lasting effects on your body and mind. In short, the Locust pose should be a part of your yoga routine if you want to live an easy life.

With that said, let us have a glimpse at some of the easiest steps to practice this pose. Moreover, do not forget to check out the mistakes to avoid and the benefits of practicing this pose. Read on.

Steps to Practice Locust Pose

To begin with, lie on your belly. Make sure you lie down on a soft padded surface.
Extend your legs to the back and bring your arms close to your hips.
Moreover, ensure that your palms are placed on the ground face down.
Activate your hamstring muscles by pulling out your toes.
Squeeze your hips and core to lift your legs.
However, make sure your hands and arms are on the ground.
Also, lift your head and chest off the ground.
Squeeze your upper back by rolling your shoulder backward.
Slowly release your muscles to come out of the pose.
Stay put on the ground after releasing and relaxing the muscles.

As you can see, the steps are simple. However, many yoga beginners make plenty of mistakes. A few of them are mentioned below. Make sure you check them out so that you know what you should avoid while practicing the Locust pose.

Mistake to Avoid

Do not lift just your chin, rather, lift your sternum.
Make sure your hands do not grab your hips.
While lifting your chest, do not go past your limit.
When your hands start to get off the ground, lower your upper body.
Shaking or swinging your legs might hurt you.

Benefits of Practicing Locust Pose

Here are some of the major benefits of practicing the Locust pose. Give it a read to know why you should inculcate this into your routine.

Stronger Hamstring Muscles

One of the major benefits of practicing the Locust pose is that you get stronger hamstring muscles. Weak hamstrings could result in injuries. Moreover, they cause a lower range of motion of your legs and upper body.

So, practicing the Locust pose is going to improve the overall flexibility and agility of your hamstring muscles.

Better Shoulder Mobility

When you place your hands on the ground while lifting your upper body, it stretches the shoulder joint. Hence, it helps in improving the range of motion of your shoulders. Moreover, it stretches the ligaments in the shoulder joints that relieves pain.

Hence, the Locust pose has major benefits for the shoulder joints. Also, raising your upper body targets the rear delts that improve your posture.

Stronger Lower Back

One of the most delicate regions in your body is the lower back. It is because with every movement that you do, especially bending forward, the weight shifts to your lower back. Hence, the muscles present in the lower back become more prone to injuries.

Practicing the Locust pose helps in strengthening the lower back muscles. Not just that, it also improves the functioning of the smaller spinal joints in the lower back.

Tighter Core

The core is abundantly used in every minor or major movement while practicing yoga. So, when you lie on your belly, your core comes under pressure. Hence, for every movement you do thereafter, the core is actively involved.

Lifting your body puts additional pressure on your core muscles. Therefore, with regular practice, you get strong core muscles.