This powerful, dynamic posture builds heat whilst increasing the heart rate and stimulating the circulatory and metabolic systems. It is a great toner for the whole of the legs, the back, and the arms. It can be a challenging pose that requires balancing the willpower to stay in it, with the steadiness and ease of breath that stops it becoming too tense.
It is a great posture to use to warm up for the rest of our practice as well as creating a calm determination to succeed in life. If we try too hard in this pose we soon run out of energy or tense up, so it teaches us to find that moment to moment calm strength, learning to relax within a challenge rather than to battle with it.

1. From Tadasana, stand with feet hip width apart.
2. Inhale, bring your arms up over your head, palms facing each other.
3. Exhale, bend your knees down to a 90 degree angle, keeping the knees in alignment with your feet.
4. Keep your tail bone slightly tucked under so as not to over arch your lower back.
5. Check that your shoulders are relaxed down your back, shoulder blades wide.
6. Keep your spine long, with the neck soft.
7. Breathe!!
8. Hold this pose as long as you wish to, or work in and out of it dynamically.
9. To come out of it inhale to straighten your legs, exhale your arms back down and rest in Tadasana.

In this posture keep your focus on your breath. Often when we are being challenged, either in a pose or in life, we tense up and forget to breathe. This is the exact moment we need to breathe more!

To modify this pose you need only bend your knees a little way, and can lower your arms. Although this is a challenging pose you should still be within your breath.