November 2024

King Pigeon

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana

From our teaching team · Jen Villegas

King Pigeon is simply Half Pigeon with a backbend. It's a lovely combination of opening hip flexors, external rotators, chest, spine, and shoulders at the same time. Most people will need a strap to hold their foot, so use this month as an opportunity to incorporate the strap. Pigeon is incredibly easy to prop — encourage students to embrace whatever help their body needs to get the benefits of the pose.

Practice safely

These guides are for general education and are not medical advice or a substitute for in-person instruction. Yoga is physical, and every body is different: practice at your own risk, move within your own limits, and stop if something hurts. Talk with your physician before starting any new physical practice, especially if you are pregnant, injured, or managing a health condition. The safest place to learn any of these poses is in the room with a teacher who can see you, and our teachers adjust for every level in every class.

Step by step

  • Start in Half Pigeon before offering the backbend. Half Pigeon is much more accessible and sets students up for alignment in the legs and hips.
  • If the student needs a prop, first elevate the front hip and thigh. Using blocks, put one block under the right sitting bone and one under the thigh close to the knee. Raising the hip and thigh decreases the flexibility required in the hip flexors and external rotators — it gives a little boost.
  • Second prop option: make a loop in the strap, wrap it around the arch of the foot, and tighten snugly. The long tail of the belt gives something to hold onto if the student can't reach their foot.
  • Whether using props or not, walk hands toward hips and press fingertips into the floor. Press front shin and the top of the back foot into the floor. Lengthen the spine and lift the chest. Take a deep breath and prepare to connect hands with the back foot.
  • Bend the back knee, reach back with the right arm, and take hold of the inner arch (or the strap). If there's enough flexibility to forego the belt, bend the elbow and rotate it toward the ceiling; change the grip so the big toe or outside of the foot is held. If using a belt, allow some of the strap to slide through the hand so the elbow can bend and rotate toward the ceiling.
  • Reach the left arm overhead, bend the elbow, and take hold of the foot (or strap). With both hands connected to the right foot, take a few breaths and refine.
  • Take a moment after the pose to appreciate what you've done. Even if you needed help, the pose is worth trying — and worth savoring.

The best way to learn it is in the room.

Our teachers break down poses like this in every class, at every level. First class is $8.

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