Yoga Practice:
Mountain Pose

1. Stand with parallel feet, hip-width apart. Distribute weight evenly through the heels, inner and outer edges of each foot. Feel and imagine your center of gravity evenly between your feet.

2. Engage the front of the thighs to straighten the legs without locking or compressing the knees.

3. Lengthen through the spine by reaching down through the tail and up through the crown of the head, lifting the dome of the ribs from the bowl of the pelvis.

4. Roll the shoulders up, back and down, allowing them to rest on the roof of the ribs as you reach down through the fingertips.

5. Relax unhelpful and unnecessary effort. Feel and imagine the weight of the entire body traveling smooth down through the bones and into the ground, while the energy of your muscles travels up through the bones and toward the top of your head.

6. To release, gradually let go of any conscious effort to stand a certain way, and feel the difference within the body.

Injury or surgery to any weight-bearing joints

More than simply standing, Mountain Pose provides an accessible space for students to explore key concepts that they’ll utilize throughout the practice: muscular stabilization, balanced joint space, pathways of weight, and internal bodily awareness.

Encourage a balance of ease and effort-tall but not rigid, relaxed but not supported.

Reaching Mountain: Standing in Mountain Pose, with an inhale, reach your arms out to the sides. At shoulder height, turn your palms upward and continue to reach your arms overhead. To release, on an exhale reach your arms out to the sides again, turning your palms down at shoulder height and bringing your arms back down to your sides.

Never overdo or force any yoga movement. If you begin to experience discomfort or pain, release the posture. Find a variation of the posture that serves your body and practice best.

Practice with self-compassion and non-judgement

Mountain pose can be done standing, sitting in a chair, or using a chair as a prop.