Warrior 1

Also known as: Virabhadrasana 1.

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Technique

1. From a standing position, step one foot back and position that foot at about 45 degrees.
2. Bend the front knee to 90 degrees, keeping the toes facing forward and aligning the knee with the ankle and hip.
3. Reach the arms up, rotating the upper arms externally and bringing the palms together.
4. Work to square the hips and shoulders toward the front by grounding the legs strongly.
5. Gaze at the thumbs.
6. Continue reaching the hands up as you rotate the feet to do the other side.

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Form tips

• If the shoulders are tight, separate the hands and reach straight up from the shoulders.
• Minimize the backbend here by dropping the tailbone down and lifting the navel toward the spine.
• Press the front foot down and forward, and the back foot down and back to influence the hips into a square position toward the front.

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Muscles

Individual muscles

• Rectus femoris
• Vastus medialis
• Vastus intermedius
• Vastus lateralis
• Gluteus maximus
• Semitendinosus
• Semimembranosus
• Biceps femoris (long)

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Equipment

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Appears in

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Progressions

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Regressions

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