Mountain pose - Tadasana

Tadasana or mountain pose helps set the foundation for all the standing poses. It brings the body into the correct posture and alignment and it is important to learn this properly. The tadasana alignment is used in many other asanas so correct learning of it is vital for your asana practice. 

1. Start by standing firmly on your feet. Keep your feet close enough that they are almost touching and parallel to each other. Feel the feet sinking deep into the mat and keep your balance.
2. Your legs should be straight and parallel to each other, calves slightly pulling backwards and thighs slightly pulling upwards.
3. Bring your buttocks slightly in and keep your pelvis neutral and inwards.
4. Keep your spine straight all the way from your lumbar spine to your cervical spine, looking forward.
5. Open the chest by bringing the shoulder blades together.
6. Breathe deeply and keep your balance equally on both sides of the body.

 
Dynamic variation:

1. Inhale and lift both arms up towards above the head all the way towards the ceiling, interlacing the fingers together and turn the palms facing the ceiling.
2. Exhale drop the shoulders away from your ears and keep the chest open.
3. Inhale and come up onto your tip-toes, balancing with yourself by focusing on something static in front of you and by keeping your breath constant and deep.
4. Exhale and bring the feet back to the mat.
5. Inhale and imagine a string pulling you all the way up to the ceiling, so elongate your spine.
6. Exhale and bring the torso and the arms towards the right, without changing the vertical alignment of your body. Stretch the arms and torso down to the right as far as you can breathing deeply in this stretch.
7. Inhale and come back to centre with your arms still up.
8. Exhale and bring the torso and the arms towards the left, continuing to keep your alignment. Stretch the arms and torso down to the left as far as you can breathing deeply in this stretch.
9. Inhale and come back to centre.
10. Exhale and release arms down.

 
Physical benefits:
Improves balance
Improves posture
Strengthens the legs
Elongates and stretches the spine
Stretches the arms in dynamic variation
Stretches the side of the body and the intercostal muscles in the dynamic variation
 
Mental benefits:
Improves focus and concentration
Brings clarity to the mind
Relaxes the mind
 
Contraindications:
Weak ankles (skip the tip toes balancing variation)