Category: Reclining
Level: beginner
Hold: 5–10 breaths per position, per side; 1–3 minutes in a slower practice
Type: Asana
Breath: Inhale to lengthen the leg, exhale to draw it gently closer.

Reclining Hand-to-Big-Toe

Supta Padangusthasana — "reclining big-toe pose (supta = reclining, pada = foot, angustha = big toe)"

Lying on your back, you extend one leg to the ceiling and hold the big toe or a strap around the foot. All the hamstring stretch of a standing fold, with none of the balance work — the floor does the stabilizing.

Step by step

1Lie on your back with both legs extended.
2Draw your right knee to your chest and loop a strap around the ball of the right foot (or hold the big toe with two fingers).
3Straighten the right leg toward the ceiling, pressing the heel up.
4Keep the left leg active on the floor, thigh pressing down, foot flexed.
5Keep both shoulders and the back of your head on the floor — don't pull the leg past the point where your pelvis stays level.
6Stay for several breaths; then, if you like, take the right leg out to the right side, keeping the left hip anchored.
7Bring the leg back to center, bend the knee, and release. Repeat on the left.

Benefits

✓ Stretches the hamstrings and calves thoroughly and safely
✓ Keeps the spine neutral and supported while the legs work
✓ The side variation opens the inner thigh
✓ Builds a clear sense of keeping one leg active while the other stretches

Make it yours

· Use a strap around the foot — reaching the toe with a straight leg is not the point.
· Bend the bottom leg and place that foot on the floor if the lower back arches.
· For the side variation, rest the outer thigh on a block or bolster so the hip can relax.

Take care

In later pregnancy, limit time flat on your back — prop the torso up on a bolster or practice the standing version at a wall.
If your hamstrings are very tight or irritated, keep a generous bend in the raised knee and skip the deepest pull.

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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