Lower back, hips and knees

Paschimottanasana: Blanket Under Pelvis

The most accessible seated forward fold: a blanket under your pelvis creates a forward tilt that protects your lower back and makes this stretch more comfortable for everyone.

How to do it

1. 1

   Fold a blanket and sit on its front edge

   Only the back of your sitting bones is on the blanket. Sitting higher at the back tips your pelvis forward before you have done anything else.

2. 2

   Notice the tilt the height creates

   That forward tilt means the fold can start from the hips instead of the lower back having to round to begin it. Add height until the tilt is comfortable to hold.

3. 3

   Stretch the legs out and lengthen upwards

   A soft knee or a clear bend is fine and does not undo the tilt.

4. 4

   Fold from that tilt, keeping it unforced

   Stop while your spine is still long. A strap around the feet lets your hands rest without reaching.

5. 5

   Stay for one to three minutes

   Come up slowly and take a moment sitting upright before you move on.

What to watch for

Sitting in the middle of the blanket rather than on its front edge. If your pelvis is not lifted and tipped forward, you have lost the one thing this version is for and you are back in the plain seated fold.

Ways to adjust it

• Strap
• Bent knee
• Soft knee

Other ways to do this movement

Every version below is the same movement set up differently, so one of them usually suits.

• Paschimottanasana: Classic + Bent Knee

Before you try it

Move within a range that stays comfortable. Stop if this brings on sharp pain, dizziness, or symptoms that travel down an arm or a leg, and speak to a clinician before repeating it.

From the clinically authored Vinys movement library.