Asana: Pose
Camatkarasana At a Glance
Camatkarasana, or the Flip Dog Pose, is playful and dynamic but challenging. This is an advanced backward bend and not for beginners. This can also be added to the Vinyasa flow, which gives your body and mind a good stretch and rush of energy. Camatkarasana means ” the ecstatic unfolding of the enraptured heart “.
Benefits
- It helps to open your chest and strengthens your chest muscles.
- It helps to strengthen your back, arms, wrists, and hips.
- It helps to enhance the core muscles.
- This helps to improve your balance and coordination.
- This helps to activate the heart chakra.
Who can do it?
Intermediate yoga practitioners and advanced yoga practitioners can do the pose. Individuals with good balance and flexibility can do this pose. People with good upper body strength can do this pose. Dancers can do this pose.
Who should not do it?
Beginners should avoid doing this pose. People with any injuries to their wrists, arms, shoulders, back, hips, or any part of their leg should avoid doing this pose. People with Carpal tunnel syndrome should avoid doing this pose. Any surgeries to any part of your body should avoid this pose. Pregnant women should avoid doing this pose.
How to Do Camatkarasana?
Follow the Step-by-Step Procedure
Do the proper warm-up and the preparatory poses before you do the Wild thing pose, as the pose is a deep back bend.
- Start with the downward dog pose or the plank pose. Here, we would begin with the downward dog.
- Come to the downward dog pose, keeping your palms shoulder-width distance and your feet hip-width distance.
- Stretch your body in this pose and inhale and exhale.
- Once you prepare for the wild thing, pose, inhale, and bring your body weight to your left hand (left arm).
Inhale and bend your right leg from the knee, keeping your left foot on the ground and your weight transferred to the left hand. - Now exhale and slowly bring your right leg (right foot) above the left and gently place your right foot on the left side of the left leg, on the floor, on your toes and knee bent.
- You simultaneously lift your right hand (right arm), bring it above your head, and extend it to open the chest.
- Spread your left-hand fingers and the left foot firmly on the ground. Your head is hanging back.
- In this position, you come in the backbend position, supporting your body on one arm and one leg.
- Keep breathing comfortably for a few breaths, slowly inhale, exhale, and roll back slowly to the downward dog pose.
- Relax and do it on the other side.
What are the Benefits of Camatkarasana?
Benefits of Wild Thing Pose is a fun and invigorating pose with many benefits:
- The wild thing pose helps to open your chest and shoulders.
- This helps to stretch your neck and back muscles and hip flexors and strengthens your entire back.
- This helps strengthen and improve the arms, legs, and upper and lower body flexibility.
- This helps to strengthen and stretch your abdominal muscles.
- This deep backbend and head inversion improves blood circulation.
- The wild pose helps enhance your mindfulness, patience, mind-body coordination, and balance.
Health Conditions that Might be Beneficial from Camatkarasana
The wild pose helps improve your digestion process and reduces bloating and constipation.
- This helps to stimulate the energy chakra, boost confidence and self-love, and improve your mindfulness.
- It can also help battle fatigue or beat mild depression.
- It enhances your lung capacity, which improves your breathing capacity.
- This beautifully expressive pose will awaken your side body, shoulders, and hips.
- It can help reduce your back pain and improve your body posture.
Safety and Precautions
- People with carpal tunnel syndrome should avoid this pose.
- People with any issues with shoulders and wrists should avoid this pose.
- For any injury or surgery, you should avoid or consult your doctor.
- Do a proper warm-up before doing this pose.
- Listen and respect your body and do accordingly.
Common Mistakes
- Keep breathing with the movement of the pose.
- Engage your core while doing the pose.
- Avoid doing it after your meals.
- Please be aware of your body sensations.
Tips for Camatkarasana
- Always do this pose following the proper alignment procedure.
- Lift your upper leg and bend your knee.
- Start, be consistent and patient and gradually get into the final pose.
- Initially, do it under the guidance of the yoga teacher.
- Do the Preparatory poses – like fish pose, plank pose, backbend poses, and stretching poses before you do the wild thing pose.
- You can simply cross one foot behind the other in a down dog and kind of pivot, lifting your free arm up off the floor.
- Do the follow-up poses like the children for the wild thing pose.
Physical Alignment Principles for Camatkarasana
- Keep the toes and the football pressing against the ground.
- The wrist of the palm, placed on the ground, should be slightly placed in front of the shoulder (not in line with the shoulder) for stability.
- The muscles of the bent leg, mainly the hip flexors, quadriceps, and pelvis, are neutral with deep stretch and contraction in the same muscles of the extended other leg.
- Your fingers on the bottom hand should be broad and pressed against the mat.
- The front foot should be at a 45-degree angle and grounded to the ground.
- Engage your glutes to keep the hips lifted.
- The arm at the bottom should be straight.
- Keep a micro bend in the knee of your front leg (left leg straight), and the rear leg should be bent at 90 degrees.
- Let your head hang, and don’t stress or keep any tension in the neck.
- See that you have no pain in the lower back.
- Keep your core engaged, pulling up and tucking the navel to your spine.
- Bring the upper arm over your head forward, open your chest, and lengthen your spine.
- Sternum and hips lifted upward.
- Bring your shoulder blades toward each other to open your chest.
Camatkarasana and Breath
Take deep breaths while you are in the Downward facing dog pose and relax your body. Inhale deeply and come to the first step up. Keep breathing, elongate your spine, and lengthen your arms. Inhale and lift your right leg, bend, and bring it to your left side with an exhale, extending your arms above, keeping your breath flowing gently, and feeling the stretch and balance of your posture.
When you release the pose, Inhale deeply, roll over your leg back, keep breathing, and bring your arms down and feel the stretch. Your breath will release the stress and tension in your body and give you a feeling of calmness with your breath.
Camatkarasana and Variations
- Camatkarasana Grabbing Foot
- Camatkarasana Knee-to-Floor
- Camatkarasana Foot to the Head
- Side plank pose.
- Wild thing with a twist.
The Bottom Line
This challenging and deep backbend pose gives importance to balance, focus, and stretch involves patience and self-love, and boosts confidence. This pose demands a good flexibility level and can be achieved by consistent practice to reach the final version of the pose. People with any health concerns should consult their doctor. Students doing this pose for the first time should do it under the guidance of their yoga teacher. This is a good shoulder opener with excellent pelvic and back stretch.
Follow the physical alignments, respect your body, and progress gradually and safely. Coordinate the movement with your breath, and it will help to let go of your stress and anxiety and give you the feeling of calm and peace in your body and mind. This yoga practice will improve your patience.
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