How to do: Camel Yoga Pose

Camel Pose  (Sanskrit name is Ustrasana)

How to do it

From a high kneel, reach behind you and place your palms on the back of your hips. Your fingertips can point either up or down. Press down through the tops of your feet, send your tailbone towards the floor then lift up through the core. Draw your elbows towards each other, which will open up the front of the chest. Lift your sternum, while keeping the back of your neck long – ie don’t ‘crunch’ your neck or let it fall back. Gaze forward.

 

Coming out of the pose

To come out of the pose, push strongly through the feet and firm your thigh, then engage your core to lift your torso back upright, and then sit back on your heels.

 

Other tips

To make this more comfortable and less challenging you can place a blanket under your knees and place your hands on upright blocks on either side of your shins. Alternatively, to intensify the pose, you can tuck your toes under and bring your hands to your heels. Come up from this though if your back feels compressed. You might want to try Camel with a block placed between your thighs. This encourages the legs to engage and stay active.

 

When should you not do it?

Don’t practice Camel if you are pregnant and avoid it too if you have any spinal conditions. Also be cautious if you have any neck injuries.

 

Destination Yoga has been running truly unique yoga retreats of the highest quality for over 10 years and has an array of fantastic trips on offer, pairing some of the best yoga teachers in Europe with simply stunning destinations – The perfect restorative getaway for individuals or groups of yogis of all abilities.

Head over to the Holidays page to learn about our inspiring trips or check out some of our reviews from guests and press.

Atol Protected

destination yoga is owned and operated by The Healthy Holiday Company Ltd.  All the flights and flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay you will be supplied with an ATOL Certificate. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything booked (flights, hotels and other services) is listed on it.

 

All non flight bookings are insured with Affirma financial protection insurance. Therefore you can be sure that there is no financial risk to your payment for your destination yoga holiday in accordance with our consumer protection obligations.

Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate, see ATOL Certificate