The Yoga Magic Bag

I recently bought a sandbag for my home yoga practice, and to use with one-on-one students. Sandbags are often used  to add weight to a pose, or to give  external pressure to our bodies as a way of cueing and /or to provide our bodies with feedback.  Recently, I brought the sandbag back into my yoga practice.  I was craving it’s weight; it makes me feel more grounded and solid.

A yoga sandbag is literally a 10lb sandbag – dressed up in cute fabric:

Often in yoga poses, we talk to our bodies in  a way that makes them feel the ground with more awareness. Sensing our limbs pressing into the ground, and the rebound effect of elongation, length and strength we get from this.  We pay attention to how we stand, sit, or lay, so we can feel rooted or connected to our physical body, and beyond that, to the earth.  It’s this connection that allows us to stand taller and more firmly – literally and metaphorically.  Standing “in our truth” is the essence of “grounding” ourselves.

This is where a sandbag can be helpful – it’s added weight gives the body more of a sense of sinking into itself.  It helps us be more rooted and grounded.  In some poses, adding a sandbag is like having a teachers hands guiding you to move deeper.  It can help to teach what feeling physically grounded feels like.

Maybe my craving for a yoga sandbag comes from my obsession with magic bags. I love magic bags. Partly for the warmth, and partly for the weight. Granted, it’s not 10lbs, but it’s enough to feel a little more secure, and a little more comforted.

I suppose the sandbag is like the Yoga Magic Bag!

I found a great article from the Halfmoon Yoga Product blog, that has photos, descriptions and precautions for using a sandbag in a variety of postures. My personal favorite is legs up the wall with the sandbag on my feet.

Have you tried a sandbag in your yoga practice? Share your thoughts.

Namaste,

Sandy