Today is an introduction to your bandhas, the Mula Bandha – the root/pelvic lock, Uddiyana Bandha – the core lock, Jalandhara Bandha – the throat lock and the Maha Bandha – all three locks at the same time.

In yogic teachings through the use of locking and releasing your bandhas you are able to control your prana, energy and direct it through the body. Ancient texts tell us that a key to mastering your yoga practice both physically and spiritually is through mastering the engagement and release of your bandhas.

Today we will focus on the first two bandhas and how they relate to your physical yoga practice. Practicing with a gentle lock throughout your practice and strengthening it as required helps with stability, strength and balance.

Come to a comfortable supine position, close down the eyes and start to connect with your breath.

You might like to place your palms on either side of your rib cage, and as you inhale, take a deep breath into the ribs and see if you can push your hands out towards the sides. As you exhale, release and relax, come back down. Take another deep breath in, this is a diaphragmatic breath. Inhale and really expand through the rib cage, can you expand through the back, the sides, the front? As you exhale, release it back down.

And the next inhalation, take a deep breath in, expand through the rib cage, and as you exhale, engage your Mula bandha, your pelvic floor. Draw your clitoris/or base of the penis and anus towards each other and then up through your midline, then as you inhale release relax, expand through the rib cage.

As you exhale, engage your pelvic floor again, your Mula Bandha, keep going with your own breath.

If it feels good for you, inhale expand through the rib cage and as you exhale, engage your Mula Bandha first, your pelvic floor then your Uddiyana Bandha, wrap the outside edges of your core in towards your belly button and then lift to a gentle tuck underneath your rib cage. Inhale release relax allow it all to float back down, and as you exhale engage in Mula Bandha first then your Uddiyana Bandha, keep engaging and releasing with your own breath.

To have a little play or exploration here you can play with your holds/locks of your bandhas, and the length of holds. You might also like to have a little play with the engagement of your bandhas in different positions/poses. What does it feel like to engage in Balasana and how does that vary compared to Tadasana or Virabhadrasana 2?

If you would like more information about the Bandhas, reach out and keep your eyes peeled for the blog post which delves into more details around the traditional teachings and how they can be applied to your modern practice.