Revolved Chair Pose (Parivrtta Utkatasana)
Climbers love to get cozy with the rock. If your hips and adductor muscles are juicy and flexible you can move in closer into the rock allowing more body weight to rest on your feet and less on your arms. Are your shoulders pulling forward from overdeveloped lats? Ah, you need a good chest and shoulder opener to balance out your ripped climber’s back. Revolved chair pose to the rescue. It is simple to do and has many benefits.
• Strengthens hip flexors, the front thighs, adductor muscles (inner thighs), and gluteus muscles.
• Strengthens and stretches calf muscles.
• Opens chest, shoulders, and upper back.
• Improves range of motion in ankles.
• Increases proprioception (awareness of body position) in feet.
Begin in mountain pose. Inhale and raise your arms perpendicular to the ground keeping arms parallel and palms facing inward. Exhale and bend your knees, taking the thighs as near to parallel to the ground as possible as if you’re sitting in an imaginary chair. On an inhale, bring your palms together at the heart and lengthen your spine. On the exhale, twist from the lower abdomen to the right as you place the left elbow across the right thigh pressing the thigh into the left arm and the left arm into the right thigh. Press palms firmly together while firming your shoulder blades against the back. Point your tailbone downward keeping your inner thighs and knees parallel to each other. For a deeper twist look up over your right shoulder. Take a few breaths here before inhaling to rise back up to center returning to mountain pose on an exhale. Take a few deep breaths then repeat on the left side.
Use caution doing this pose if you have lower back pain or shoulder issues.
Download the Yoga Hip Sequence for Rock Climbers
