1. Face the Challenge
The Plow Pose, or "Halasana" as it's called in the Sanskrit language, is an advanced yoga posture. There are two ways to begin the Plow Pose, either by lying flat on your back or from a Shoulder Stand. For the first, lie on your back with your arms at your sides, and then bend your knees to your chest. Extend the legs upward, supporting your buttocks and lower back with your hands. Continue to extend the legs up and then back over your head until your weight is on your shoulders and your feet touch the floor beyond your head. Keep the feet together and the legs straight. From a Shoulder Stand, lower the feet together slowly until they rest on the ground beyond your head. Once you are in the Plow Pose let your arms rest on the ground with your hands going toward your feet.
2. Modified for Beginners
There are several ways to modify the Plow Pose to make it more comfortable and more accessible. First, don't worry if you can't get your feet to the floor comfortably. Put a chair behind your head before you start and just lower your feet to the chair. If it's too hard to put your feet together, you can separate them slightly. Place a couple of folded yoga blankets under your shoulders. Position them so that your shoulders are right at the edge of the blanket and your head drops back to rest on the floor.
3. Do a Healthy Squeeze
The yoga tradition holds that stretching or squeezing parts of the body stimulates the tissues and organs in that area. In the Plow Pose the affected areas are the throat and the abdomen. This pose stimulates the thyroid gland, which is located in the throat, and might help people who have low levels of thyroid hormone secretions. The pose also stimulates the abdominal organs and is thought to help alleviate symptoms of menopause and promote fertility.
4. Plow Away Stress
The Plow Pose is a restorative pose, which means it promotes rest and relaxation. Restorative yoga poses offer stress relief and help both the body and mind rejuvenate and recover from fatigue. It does this by stretching the large muscles of the legs and back like a massage, and by increasing blood flow to the head while you are upside down.
5. Not Always Safe to Plow
Some people should not practice the Plow Pose. For example, if you have diarrhea the abdominal stimulation in this pose could make it worse. The pose also puts a lot of pressure on the neck so don't try it if you have a neck injury. Pregnant women should only do this pose if they are already experienced yoga students, and then they should use a chair to support their feet and legs. The Plow Pose can aggravate asthma and high blood pressure, so if you have either of these conditions only do the Plow Pose with the help of an experienced yoga teacher.
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