Banana Pose (Bananasana) demonstrated
Category
Reclining
Level
beginner
Hold
3–5 minutes per side (Yin-style)
Type
Asana
Breath
Slow and quiet; direct a few breaths into the stretched-open ribs.

Banana Pose

Bananasana — "a modern Yin name — 'banana pose'; not a traditional Sanskrit word"

A Yin favorite: lying on your back, you curve your whole body into a crescent — feet to one side, shoulders and arms to the same side — and stay a while. A long, lazy stretch for the entire side body.

Step by step

  1. 1Lie on your back with your legs together and your arms overhead.
  2. 2Keeping your hips where they are, walk your feet and legs over to the right.
  3. 3Walk your shoulders, head, and arms to the right as well, curving your body into a crescent.
  4. 4Hold your left wrist with your right hand, or simply rest the arms where they land.
  5. 5Keep both buttocks on the floor — the bend should feel like a long stretch down your left side, not a twist.
  6. 6Adjust the depth until it's clearly felt but sustainable, then settle in.
  7. 7After a few minutes, walk back to center, pause, and repeat on the other side.

Benefits

  • ✓ Stretches the whole side body — obliques, ribs, lats, and outer hip — in one shape
  • ✓ Reaches the side seam of the body that forward bends and backbends miss
  • ✓ Requires no effort to hold, so it suits long, quiet holds
  • ✓ Can ease breathing on the stretched side by opening the rib cage

Make it yours

  • · Rest your head on a folded blanket and keep the arms at a lower angle if the shoulders complain.
  • · Cross the outside ankle over the inside one to deepen the stretch into the outer hip.
  • · Reduce the curve — a shallow banana held longer works as well as a deep one.

Take care

  • If you feel any tingling down the arms, bring the arms lower until it stops.
  • In later pregnancy, long holds flat on the back may not feel good — try a side-lying stretch instead.

This is general practice guidance, not medical advice. If something hurts, ease out of it.

Practiced in

Props that help here

  • 8-foot cotton strap — Extends your reach in hamstring and shoulder work — the honest substitute for grabbing a foot you can't yet reach. Get 8ft, not 6ft. find one
  • Yoga blanket — Folded under the hips in seated poses, under the knees in kneeling ones, under the shoulders for shoulderstand. A firm household blanket works too. find one

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