Benefits

• Develops correct posture.
• Strengthens your thighs, ankles and feet.
• Tones your abdominal muscles.
• Calms and clears your mind and nervous system.

Cautions

• Headache
• Medical conditions that affect balance
• Insomnia
• Low blood pressure

Steps

Tadasana (tah-DHAS-anna)

tada = mountain

1. Stand with the inner edge of your big toes touching.
2. Align your feet parallel to each other by placing your heels slightly apart, with the second and middle toes pointing forward.  Encourage the toes and bones of your feet to spread and increase in surface area.  Allow your toes to remain soft as you find balance over the four corners of your feet.
3. Feel a gentle grounding of the feet into the earth and allow your thigh muscles to be active without locking the knees. Imagine your sit bones slightly reaching down towards the inside of your heels as the pubic bone slightly lifts towards the navel. Feel a line of energy lifting and lightening your spine through the core, all the way up to the top of the head.
4. Keep your chin parallel to the floor maintaining length through the neck. Feel a line of balance from the top of your head down through the pelvis.
5. As your gaze remains forward, imagine your chest and shoulder blades equally broad and open. Release your shoulders giving space for the neck as the top of your chest bone lightly lifts. Avoid sending your chest and ribs out and forward. Let your arms drape beside your body naturally. Relax your eyes, tongue and facial muscles.
6. Breathe slowly and with fluidity as you hold Mountain Pose for 30 seconds.

Modifications

• If you have difficulty balancing, widen your feet a few inches keeping your second and middle toes pointing forward.
• Stand with your back directly against a wall to find the alignment in this pose. Your heels, sacrum (middle of pelvis), and shoulder blades gently touch the wall. When your body is in proper alignment, your lower back and back of the head should not touch the wall.