
Audiences: Yoga enthusiasts, yoga instructors, and other fitness professionals; reference for health and medical professionals and for physical education, kinesiology, and anatomy students.
With more full-color anatomical illustrations and in-depth information, the third edition of Yoga Anatomy provides you with a deeper understanding of yoga and of the structures and principles underlying each movement.
From breathing to standing poses to inversions, see how specific muscles respond to the movements of the joints, how alterations of a pose can change its effect, and how the spine, breathing, and body position are all fundamentally linked.
![]()
sah-LOM-bah sar-van-GAHS-anna
salamba = with support (sa = with, alamba = support); sarva = all; anga = limb
![]()
The foundation of this pose, as in setu bandhasana (page 238), is your shoulder girdle (not your neck). To truly be a shoulder stand, the muscles that elevate, adduct, and downwardly rotate your scapulae must be strong enough to keep your scapulae in that position despite the weight of your entire body resting on them. When preparing for this pose, it is essential that your scapulae find elevation along with the other actions; if your scapulae are depressed, your cervical spine receives the weight of your whole body while in a flexed position, which makes it more vulnerable to injury from overarticulating.
![]()
Can you sense the relationship between the mobility and stability of your shoulder girdle and the relative freedom of your breath in this position? This pose takes a considerable amount of both flexibility and strength in your entire shoulder region. Do you notice the relationship between the integrity of your shoulder girdle and the tendency of your weight to shift down into your
thorax and add resistance to the movements of your diaphragm? Wherever your hands are placed, can you sense breath movement beneath them?
As with any inversion, a possible point of focus is keeping the base of your rib cage open, allowing your diaphragm and abdominal viscera to shift effectively cranially. What effect does that headward shift have on your breath?
Master Pranayama and all 26 postures with The Hot Yoga Asana Book, now available as an audiobook. Get it FREE with your Audible trial.
Listen Free on Audible
Enhance your yoga practice and bring inspiration to your hot yoga room with this beautiful microfiber tapestry featuring all 26 Bikram poses. Order now on Amazon!
Order Your Hot Yoga Tapestry
Explore more yoga books, audiobooks, philosophy guides, and practice resources across Bikram, Vinyasa, Yin, breathwork, meditation, and mindfulness.
$29.41
$11.98
$18.76
$18.50
$19.95
$14.44
$19.95
$12.72
$18.04
$11.93