prepping for eka pada galavasana

Steward Noack, House of Indulgence Photography

Check out this fun little video that I put together awhile ago showing a posture progression that prepares for Eka Pada Galavasana, Flying Crow.  I’ve updated this post to include some bullet points after the video indicating which muscles need to be stretched, and which postures you can stretch them in.

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MUSCLES THAT NEED TO BE STRETCHED
The main muscles to stretch as preparation for this posture include:

The Extensors of the Front Hip
The front thigh is deeply flexed in Eka Pada Galavasana, so spending some time stretching the hip extensors (gluteus maximus, posterior fibers of gluteus medius and adductor magnus) first can help you get into it more easily.   A great stretch for the hip extensors is Lizard pose, but these muscles can also be stretched in Balasana (Child’s pose), Malasana (Garland pose) and supine Happy Baby pose.

Lizard Pose

Balasana (Child's pose)

Malasana (Garland pose)

Happy Baby

Photography by Steward Noack, House of Indulgence

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The Medial Rotators of the Front Hip
The front thigh needs to be able to laterally rotate quite a bit in order to get into Eka Pada Galavasana, so we should stretch the muscles that are capable of medially rotating the hip, including the piriformis, tensor fascia latae (TFL) and gluteus medius (anterior fibers).   Remember that the piriformis becomes a medial rotator when the thigh is flexed more than 60° (see our piriformis post for more info on that), so if it’s tight it will limit lateral rotation and pretty much make Flying Crow an impossible endeavor.  While the TFL and anterior fibers of gluteus medius are somewhat on the slack due to the deep hip flexion involved in Flying Crow, we should stretch them none-the-less due to the substantial amount of lateral rotation required for this posture. 

To stretch all of the above muscles you could practice Sukhasana, Thread-the-Needle, the Z-Sit, Ankle-to-Knee,  Supine Ankle-to-Knee, Pigeon and variations,  Gomukhasana and the prep position for Flying Crow.   I’m a big fan of the Z-Sit as it provides a safe, effective way to stretch the piriformis and is a great alternative for those who have knee pain in Pigeon. 

Sukhasana

Thread-the-Needle

The Z-Sit

Ankle-to-Knee

Supine Ankle-to-Knee

Pigeon

Gomukhasana

Flying Crow Prep

Photography by Steward Noack, House of Indulgence

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Hip Flexors (Back Hip)
While the hip flexors (e.g., iliopsoas, TFL, and sartorius) of the back hip aren’t really stretching in Eka Pada Galavasana, if you spend some time stretching them before going into the posture it may make it easier to extend the back thigh at the hip when the time comes.  Some of the postures that stretch the hip flexors include Warrior I, Low Lunge, King Dancer and Bow pose.

Warrior 1

Low Lunge

Dhanurasana (Bow pose)

Natarajasana (King Dancer)

Photography by Steward Noack, House of Indulgence

If you practice the sequence in the video let me know how it goes, and feel free to leave any questions or comments below.

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This post brought to you by: Jason Ray Brown

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10 Responses to Prepping for Eka Pada Galavasana (Flying Crow)
The following responses were copied over from the original blog post:

Anna September 18, 2013 at 1:28 pm
Hi Jason - What a great resource and tool. I have been hoping to take your course over the years, but need to plan for it in my schedule.  Maybe next year. Thanks for such a great outline and sequencing tips.

    Jason Ray Brown September 19, 2013 at 11:19 am
    Thanks Anna! Hope that you can join us for class sometime, when you’re ready.

clavel September 18, 2013 at 7:56 pm
Great work and inspiring! Thank you for the support to the practice

    Jason Ray Brown September 19, 2013 at 11:19 am
    You’re super welcome, Clavel.

Gwadsicat September 19, 2013 at 12:07 am
Amazing! Many thanks!  This will be the week’s focus!   Namaste

    Jason Ray Brown September 19, 2013 at 11:21 am
     That’s great, Gwads. Have fun!

Gwadsicat September 20, 2013 at 12:54 am
Hi Jason, I am Guadalyn Sicat of the Philippines. I would like to share my path to yoga sometime.  I am a physical therapist by profession and also have a yoga studio nearby the clinic.   I would love to take some of your courses.

Alyssa Byrd September 22, 2013 at 6:39 pm
Jason, What an informative site–thanks so much for sharing what you know! Recently I have come into greater awareness of the piriformis, and dysfunctions commonly associated with it. I just finished a yoga internship with a new modality “balanced yoga motions” (BYM) blending traditional yoga and intense small muscle movement for short repeated intervals. On the first day of class we learned that many people walk with piriformis as a primary mover along with gluteus medius, instead of gluteus maximus, which is ideal to power walking as they actually provide an ideal ratio of power and conservation of energy. Your site provides many more valuable perspectives to view the piriformis from. 

many thanks~ alyssa

Sue September 23, 2013 at 2:34 pm
Great fun video. won’t get as far as flying but will do the prep. thanks