Side Plank Starfish Yoga (Vasisthasana Starfish) | Yoga Sequences, Benefits, Variations, and Sanskrit Pronunciation | Tummee.com (2024)

Side Plank Starfish is an intermediate to advanced level challenging pose that requires high amount of strength, and balance to perform. Hence, by performing such challenging pose, students may reap the below mentioned benefits:

1. Stretches, Strengthens, Lengthens: Side Plank Starfish is a great pose for strengthening the obliques, gluteus and deltoids by engaging the scapula area. Many students focus a lot on their abs but forget about their oblique muscles which is helpful for stability and its strength is needed for many of the challenging pose. But this pose can be helpful for both being a side arm balance pose. By putting the pressure on the arms, the pose strengthens the arms and shoulders. To hold the hips for balance, internal force is applied on the pelvic area that makes it strong too. As the legs are stretched, the hamstrings, quadriceps, and calves are stretched and strengthened too. Hence, the lower body is toned.
2. Flexibility and Range of Motion: During the practice of Side Plank Starfish, the hamstrings, hips, back muscles, shoulders, are all stretched, when the leg and the arm are raised up and become flexible which support for upcoming challenging poses.
3. Chest, Breathing, and Diaphragm: To let the Side Plank Starfish pose going, the first breath is important for stabilizing the pose in a neutral position. So, the breathe has to be deep and very slow to maintain the pose. This lets the diaphragm extend and the lungs may receive the maximum air.
4. Posture and Alignment: In the Side Plank Starfish, the body at one side is held like a plank on the support of an arm. Therefore, the spine has to be properly maintained, that leads to the correct alignment of the back supporting the side-arm-balance.
5. Awareness and Focus: Side Plank Starfish needs a lot of focus and concentration to do as balancing on the top of a single arm is not a challenging task. This concentration must be maintained throughout the pose which turns out to be helping in improving the memory. Thus, it is a great pose for school going kids and teens.
6. Circulation and Systems: During the Side Plank Starfish pose, the blood rushes down to the arm, leg touching the floor, and to the brain as you gaze up. Therefore, students should do the pose on both sides to help flow the prana across the body from head to toe. It also helps to regulate the body's temperature with good blood flow. As the spine is maintained straight and blood flows to the brain correctly, receiving stimuli and reacting to them becomes easier for the brain.
7. Balance and Emotion: Side Plank Starfish should be performed on both sides for even distribution of pressure and impacts. When this pose is performed on both sides, it improves the alignment of the spine and surrounding muscles. Besides, it also is helpful for both sides of the brain as the blood rushes to the brain while holding it for a long time. Therefore, this pose is not only about physical stability and balance. It also helps in balancing the mind.
8. Preparatory Pose: After mastering the Side Plank Starfish, the students can practice more challenging poses like Side Plank Pose Ii, Kapinjalasana, and Wild Thing Pose.

Yoga teachers should refer to the Side Plank Pose’s Contraindications for Side Plank Starfish Pose as for the both the contraindications are almost same. Additional care which needed to be taken care are explained below:

1. Injury and Surgery: The practice of Side Plank Starfish should be avoided by the students with recent injury or surgery at hips, back, shoulders and deltoid as these are the areas where pressure is maximum in this one side-arm-balance pose.
2. Physical Strength and Weak Body: Students with rheumatoid arthritis, herniated disc, carpel tunnel syndrome, should not practice the pose until the complete recovery.
3. Others: Students who don’t have confidence for balancing poses, should perform this pose near to a wall. Similarly, it is recommendable for the pregnant women to take support of yoga-block and wall support when needed. Yoga teachers should be responsible for teaching their students about the abdominal breathing and core stability before performing the pose.

Side Plank Pose can be recommended to the students prior to this pose. Below mentioned steps can be followed to perform the Side Plank Starfish:

1. Begin the pose from Side Plank Pose on one side, with the hand placed beneath the shoulder.
2. Exhale, raise the leg off the ground, which is on the top of another leg, and hold the pose. Raise the right leg and the right hand. The left leg and the left arm support this starfish alignment.
3. Note that you can control your core and keep those hips lifted to hold the pose for a longer duration.
4. After holding for some time come back to the Side Plank Pose. Then try the steps mentioned above on the other side. Now, raise the left leg and the left arm to perform on the right side. Repeat at least three times on each side.
5. To release from the pose, inhale, bring the arm and the leg down and come back to Adho Mukha Svanasana.
6. Ensure that both sides get the same stretch while keeping the alignment in mind. The shaking of hips and legs in the initial days is a common thing, and with practice, one can overcome this.

Note: Core and Arm strength are important to align to the pose and maintain the balance. Hence teachers should first warm up the students with core strengthening and arm balance poses.

Learn more: Vasisthasana Starfish Steps

Play Sanskrit audio pronunciation for Vasisthasana Starfish