Take 3 Minutes To Wring Out Your Spine With This Yoga Pose

Even if you own the most ergonomic desk chair in the whole wide world, you’re not exempt from the perils of a sedentary lifestyle. From aches and muscle fatigue to reduced metabolism, there’s no shortage of reasons why you should get up to shake it out every few minutes. And when you do, you can try the move Sky Ting studio co-founder Krissy Jones name-dropped as the best yoga pose for being parked in front of your computer.

In an episode of Well+Good YouTube series Good Moves, Jones names Parsva Upavistha Konasana (that’s Sanskrit for side seated wide angle pose) a great one for hitting command-z on nine hours perched at your desk. “If you’ve been doing a lot of sitting, or will be doing a lot of sitting today, this is a really good pose to do to counter that,” says Jones of the asana (or pose) that double as a side bend, twist, and hamstring stretch.

To move into Parsva Upavistha Konasana, come to a seated position and bring your legs into a wide V-shape. Place your left foot on your inner right thigh and place your right elbow or hand inside your right calf. Stretch your left fingers up and over to the right, maybe catching your toes as you do. Engage your core to protect your lower back and spiral your chest up toward the sky so you feel the pose unwinding each vertebra. Stay for as many breaths as you like before switching to the opposite side.

Whether you squeeze this move in between two Zoom meetings or sink into it after you’ve logged out of Slack for the day, your body will thank you kindly.

You can flow through this move (and so many other post-work energizing asanas) below: 

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