Camel Pose: Ustrasana

Handsome Man doing Camel PoseBeautiful Woman doing Camel PoseHandsome Man doing Camel Pose

Love it or loathe it, Camel Posture is the posture that most people experience intense bodily reactions such as fear/anxiety, dizziness or nausea. The benefits of this posture are enormous and just being present and conscious of these intense feelings is half the battle. It’s all about relaxing in the posture and letting yourself open up to letting all these natural feelings just be there and move through you!

Benefits of Camel Pose

  • Compresses spine, relieving back problems
  • Opens rib cage, lungs and digestive system
  • Stimulates the nervous system
  • Great for the lungs and many bronchial problems
  • Strengthens back and shoulder muscles
  • Improves flexion of the neck
  • Stretches the throat
  • Flushes blood through the kidneys
  • Helps eliminate toxins

Tips for Camel Pose

  • The dizziness you experience as a beginner is completely normal so try not to get anxious. If you just keep pushing your hips forward and breathe, the dizziness will pass. When you feel dizzy it is because of a change in blood pressure in your body from the backward bend. It is a new sensation which can be scary because we are always forward bending.
  • Knees and feet 6 inches apart so you have a good solid base to stand on.
  • When entering into camel make sure your hands are are on your hips with fingers facing down. Take a deep breath and drop your head back, go back half way and stop. If you lean back half way you will realize how close your hands are to your feet. Once you realize how close your hands are to your feet it becomes less scary to just reach back.
  • RELAX! The more you tense up, the harder it becomes.
  • Keep the grip on the feet tight, with your PALMS ON YOUR HEELS so you can push your hips forward.
  • Bring your body weight forward onto the knees instead of leaning back on the heels. This will help you to create 360 degree back bending. Stretching the whole front side of your body!
  • Keep the neck relaxed. Don’t tense up.
  • The most important part about Bikram Yoga is to continuously focus on the breath. Breathe calmly and all of the sensations you feel will normalize.
  • If you have high blood pressure or any heart condition, please only hold the posture for 5 second at a time in the beginning. Slowly ease into it and gradually increase the time you spend in the posture.

More on Camel Pose

Previous Yoga Pose: Half Tortoise Pose

Next Yoga Pose: Rabbit Pose