Warrior II is probably one of my favorite standing poses. This one pose provides so much “bang for the buck!”
Warrior II does so many things: strengthens the legs and glutes, opens the hips,
builds arm strength, and opens the chest and shoulders.
It has been said to increase concentration and stamina too!
Unfortunately, Warrior II is also a pose that is easy to do incorrectly. The good news? With proper cueing, it is also very easy to fix and reap its many benefits.
Read on for the right (and wrong) way to do this powerful pose.
Here is what I often see in Warrior IIs:
Problems:
- The front hip still turned forward.
- The stance to short / lunge too shallow / knee ends up in front of ankle.
- The back arm is droopy.
- The shoulders are hiked up.
- The feet are improperly aligned.
- She is looking straight ahead.
- She is leaning forward (see photo).
- The chest is not open.
- The back hip is hiked up.
Sometimes I see people lunging TOO deeply
(arch of the back foot collapses into the mat and the back edge of the foot lifts off the mat).
So what does proper Warrior II alignment look and feel like?
- Long stance. Your feet should line up below your hands when the arms are extended.
- The feet should be aligned front heel to back arch.
- If that’s too difficult, go wider (heel to heel alignment).
- The back arm is at the same height at front arm (both at shoulder height)
- The back foot turned in 45 degrees, front foot squared forward
- Both hips face the long edge of the mat.
- The shoulders stay directly above the hips (think of the four joints forming a rectangle)
- The shoulders are relaxed down out of the ears.
- The chest is open - think about squeezing the shoulder blades together to keep it open.
- The gaze is forward out over the front fingertips.
- The lunge is deep. The front knee is aligned directly above the ankle (if possible).
- If you cannot lunge that deeply, ensure that the front knee stays BEHIND the ankle.
- The back foot stays sealed to the mat in the lunge.
- The tailbone is tucked under.
- The back hip tucked in.
- The back leg straight and strong.
See what a difference a few adjustments can make?
The Bottom Line
Done properly, Warrior II is a tremendously powerful pose.
With a few tweaks to your alignment, you will likely feel (and see) a tremendous difference in your body.
Remember, if you’re a more visual person, ask your teacher to demonstrate the pose.
If you’re a kinesthetic learner, ask her to adjust you to help you get into Warrior II properly.
