Lolasana(pendant Pose):meaning, Steps, Benefit & Precaution

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July 7, 2022

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Lolasana, also known as the pendant pose, is a type of modern yoga in which you are required to balance your body with your hands. It strengthens a number of major muscle groups in your upper body such as the upper back muscles, core muscles, shoulders muscles, and so on.

Lolasana looks like a simple yoga asana but it requires you to have immense strength in your hands. Along with that, you also need to have a sharp focus to maintain the right Lolasana yoga pose. Some people confuse Lolasana with the crane pose since they look similar but the two types of poses are quite different in practice.

To master the right Lolasana pose, you have to practice a number of other beginner-friendly strength poses first. Once you build enough strength to practice Lolasana yoga for a long time, you will be able to build a strong and muscular body.

Lolasana Meaning

Just like the names of most other yoga asanas, Lolasana also got its name from the Sanskrit language. In Sanskrit, the word “lol” means dangling while the word “asana” means pose. So, the literal meaning of Lolasana is dangling pose.

When a person practices this pose, his or her body hangs in the air with the support of hands. And hence the name “dangling pose.” The name pendant pose for this asana also comes from the fact that the practitioner’s body remains hanging in the air like a pendant.

The first mention of Lolasana is found in the gymnastic manual called Vyayama Dipika. In 1896, Vyayama Dipika depicted this pose as a balancing movement and called it Jhula. Some people suggest that this asana was later adopted by Krishnamacharya and his famous students like Pattabhi Jois and B.K.S. Iyenger.

How To Do Lolasana?

Here is a step-by-step guide that will help you practice the Lolasana yoga pose the right way:

Start the asana by first kneeling over a yoga mat and keeping your head and torso perpendicular to the ground (just like you do in the Vajrasana).
Breathe in, align your body, and place your hands on either side of your knees.
Make space between your shoulder blades and breathe out.
Now, breathe in, engage your core, and thrust it towards your upper back.
Breathe out, raise your upper torso in the upwards direction, and place your palms on the floor.
Combine the stretch of your wrists, upper back, core, and try to lift your body off from the ground.
Push the lower ankle up and ensure that the ankles stay crossed.
Contract your abdomen to give strength to your hands and hold this Lolasana Ashtanga posture.
After staying in this posture for about 30 to 60 seconds, release core muscles, lower down your body and let them touch the ground.
First, uncross your ankles and then your legs.
It is not necessary to stay in the Lolasana yoga pose for 30 to 60. You can optimize the time period of this asana according to your comfort.

Lolasana Benefits

You get the following benefits by practicing Lolasana regularly:

It utilizes abdominal muscle strength and treats respiratory disorders and abdominal disorders.
Practitioners find that their subjective well-being and self-care are improving by sticking to the Lolasana workout.
This asana helps you burn lots of calories by harnessing the movement of core muscles.
The abdominal contraction while doing Lolasana also helps in improving your digestion.

Lolasana Tips

Here is a list of some Lolasana tips that will help you get the best out of this asana:

If you have only tried yoga for beginners until now, you should reach the full Lolasana pose gradually or you will end up overstraining your body.
If you think that the strength in your wrists is not enough, you can keep your feet on the floor while starting the lift. This will reduce the pressure on your wrist muscles.
Lolasana pose yoga is simple to learn but not easy to practice. Joining online yoga classes might help you stay motivated to do the asana.

Lolasana Prep

As we mentioned earlier, Lolasana pose yoga requires a great amount of strength in your hands. Doing some Lolasana prep poses will help you get the flexibility and strength. Here is a list of some easy yoga asanas that can help you with preparation:‍

Lotus Pose (Padmasana)
Downward-facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
Thunderbolt Pose (Vajrasana)

Follow Up Yoga Asanas

Lolasana also paves the way for other yoga asanas that increase the strength and flexibility of your body. Here is a list of some follow-up yoga asanas that you can practice after doing Lolasana:

Four-Limbed Staff pose (Chaturanga Dandasana)
Crow Pose (Kakasana)
Crane Pose (Bakasana)

Precautions And Safety Points

Here is a list of precautions and safety points to save yourself from injuries while practicing Lolasana:

If you have a condition associated with wrists such as DeQuervain’s Syndrome, sprain, dislocations, etc. then you should avoid doing this pose.
Lolasana puts immense stress on the abdomen and hence pregnant ladies should add this pose to their home workouts only after consulting their doctor.
If you have a condition associated with neck, shoulder, or vertebrae, you should not practice this asana until you are completely recovered. Otherwise, Lolasana Ashtanga can worsen your condition instead of treating it.

Modifications

Low core strength makes it difficult to lift your body off the ground. To get over this problem, you can use blocks while doing this asana. Place blocks on either the left or right side of the knees and it will provide enough height for uplifting your body. If you still can not lift your body because of the wiggling of wrists, you can practice Chaturanga Dandasana to develop strength in them.

Conclusion

Lolasana is a great pose to take your yoga workout to the next level. It strengthens your core, wrists muscles, shoulder muscles, upper back muscles, and much more. Do not get discouraged if you can not achieve the Lolasana pose at the start. Practice it regularly and you will be able to lift your body within a matter of days. ‍‍

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