Malasana & Merlot

I've always been a big fan of Malasana (Yogic Squat or "Garland pose"), and I love weaving it into the second half of my classes, once we've warmed up and opened up the hips. My boyfriend, Ben, however, constantly struggles with Malasana (as many people do), so over the past year or so it has become a commonly-discussed pose in our household (dorky, I know, but yes, we do discuss yoga poses at the dinner table). 

Recently, Ben, who is an avid Crossfitter, has become very interested in working on his flexibility in order to increase his mobility for his workouts, and consequently, in his online research he came across more information about the benefits of Yogic Squat. So, once again, over the past few days this pose has become a hot topic around the apartment...

Prompted by Crossfit trainer Kelly Starrett's 10-Minute Squat Test on his blog, Mobility WOD, Ben and I decided to spend our Saturday night in a friendly Yogic Squat challenge + vino (yep, very yogic). Ben wanted to do it because he struggles with squatting and wanted to gauge his ability to hang out in this pose, and I wanted to do it because I LOVE Malasana and wanted to feel/see the ways in which my yoga practice has enabled me to sit in this pose for a long period of time.  

 In Kelly Starrett's video he uses a glass of wine as a "paleo timer," stating that once you're done with your glass of wine, it's been approximately 10 minutes and you can come out of your squat. Ben and I opted to drink wine while sitting in our squats, but to also use timers to ensure that we both rocked out 10 minutes of the pose :) If we came out, we would stop the timer and then start it back up again once we got back into the pose.

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For me, a yogi who absolutely loves hip openers, this challenge was very easy--I was able to sit in the squat very comfortably, sipping on my wine and chatting, for the entire 10 minutes. Poor Ben, on the other hand, would hold it for 30-45 seconds at a time, before falling dramatically to the floor while crying out, panting, and sweating (see documentation below). It was amazing for me to watch him struggle with this pose--one that I find so wonderful-- and was a great reminder about how different our bodies are, how personal our experiences with the poses are, and how important a consistent yoga practice is for keeping the body open, loose, and flexible. 

Ben's squat...looks painful, doesn't it? Sorry for the close-up, it's hard to get a good picture when you're squatting a few feet away from someone :)

Above: Ben falling. At least he's having fun!
Below: Drinking wine in between falls. It was too tough for him while in Malasana :(

As Starrett explains in his video, Malasana helps to increase hip flexibility (mobility) and is a great pose for those who need to open up the hips--one of the reasons why I love it so much (I LOVE HIP OPENERS!)--but this pose is also great for stretching the ankles, inner thighs (groin), and back body, as well as toning the belly and engaging the core. I suggest bringing palms together in prayer position between the legs and then pressing the elbows into the inner thighs/knees to open the legs out a bit wider and increase the stretch. Moving side to side in the pose or adding a twist can also take you deeper. For those who struggle with getting their heels on the floor, rolling up a blanket or towel and placing it under the heels can make this pose more accessible.

My challenge to you? Try the 10-minute squat test. Or, if that's too much, try 5 or 7 minutes in the pose, just to work on opening up the hips and noticing what happens in the body when you spend time in this position. You can skip the wine if you'd like, but it does make it a bit more festive and humorous :)

Check out our inspiration below (from San Francisco Crossfit/Mobility WOD):

Happy squatting!

Namaste,
Mary Catherine