Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose)

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana - Bridge Pose



Setu Sarvangasana is in the lying down and Intermediate Level of the Aasanas category. Also called Setu Bandhasana, Dwi Pada Pitham, Shoulder Pose, Two-Legged Table, Half Wheel Pose, Kandhrasana, it has more scientific benefits as compared to other types of asanas.
Setu Sarvangasana comes from three Sanskrit names. Setu means “bridge,” Bandha means “bind” or “lock,” and asana means “posture” or “seat.” The name, therefore, suggests that the posture resembles a bridge. It is the spine that forms a bridge-like curve in this pose.

Step by Step Instructions

  • Lie supine on the ground
  • If necessary, put a thickly folded blanket under the shoulders to protect the neck
  • Bend the knees and set the feet on the ground and the heels as close to your sitting bones as possible
  • Exhale and, pressing the arms and inner feet actively into the ground, push the tailbone upward in the direction of the pubis, firming and not hardening the buttocks
  • Lift your buttocks off the ground
  • Keep the inner feet and thighs parallel
  • Clasp your hands below the pelvis and extend through your arms to help you remain on your shoulder’s tops
  • Lift the buttocks until your thighs are close to parallel to the ground
  • Keep the knees directly over your heels. However, push them forward, farther from your hips, and lengthen your tailbone toward your knees’ backs.
  • Lift your pubis toward your navel
  • Slightly lift the chin away from your sternum
  • Firming your shoulder blades against the back, press the sternum’s top toward your chin
  • Firm your outer arms, broaden your shoulder blades and attempt to raise the space between them at your neck’s base (at the point it is resting on the folded blanket) up into your torso
  • Stay in this stance from between 30 seconds to a minute. With an exhalation, release, slowly rolling your spine down onto the ground

Modifications

If you find it difficult to support your pelvis’ lift in the Bridge Pose after taking the pelvis away from the ground:
  • Slide a bolster or block under the sacrum
  • Rest your pelvis on the support

Benefits

  • Stretches the spine, chest, and neck
  • Calms the brain
  • Helps alleviate mild depression and stress
  • Stimulates lungs, thyroid glands, and abdominal glands
  • Rejuvenates tired legs
  • Helps relieve menopause symptoms
  • Improves digestion
  • When you perform with support, it relieves menstrual discomfort
  • Reduces anxiety, fatigue, headache, backache, and insomnia
  • Therapeutic for sinusitis, asthma, osteoporosis, and high blood pressure

Variations

There are so many variations of the Bridge Pose. Some of them are:
  • Eka Pada Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
  • Supine Pelvic Tilt Tuck
  • Setu Bandha Sarvangasana Variation Heels
  • Setu Bandha Sarvangasana Variation Arm

Beginner Tips

Once you’ve rolled your shoulders under, ensure that you don’t pull them with force away from the ears. This tends to overstretch your neck. Lift the shoulders’ tops slightly toward your ears and push your inner shoulder blades away from your spine.

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