5 Yoga asanas for strong arms

Yoga is often related to flexibility, so much, that if you practice yoga, you have probably heard things like “I’m not flexible enough to practice it.” Flexibility is essential, that’s a fact, but yoga is not just about it, it’s all about balance. To achieve that harmony, both flexibility and strength need to be worked on. Here we’ll talk about asanas for strong arms.

Generally speaking, men have stronger arms than women so this information can be particularly crucial for women, but it’s valid for everyone. To strengthen your arms is essential in the long term, since the muscles are smaller, they end up losing their vitality sooner, but also because the current lifestyle doesn’t push for our arms.

Yoga, body balance and asanas for strong arms

As we previously mentioned, yoga is not just about flexibility! If you’ve been only working your flexibility, get to know that that’s not the right path.

Yoga is all about getting a healthy body, and by healthy, we also mean balanced. For those who have more strength, maybe they need to focus on flexibility, for those who are more flexible, focus on the force, and for those who are none of it, find your path and work both things.

Either way, a good yoga practice always has different elements. Everyday activities, from tiny movements to lifting weights, require your arms’ muscles, precisely these three: biceps, the triceps, and the deltoids.

The biceps are on the front of the upper arms, and these muscles are responsible for bending your elbows.

The triceps, located along the backs of the upper arms, are responsible for extending the elbows when you straighten your arms.

The deltoids, which form the outer layer of the upper arms, meeting the shoulders, are the ones which allow you to lift your arms to the sides and help to raise your arms to the front.

Some asanas focus on your arms, and are great to work on its strength! Although there are many options, we have chosen five useful asanas for strong arms.

Adho Mukha Svanasana

Adho Mukha Svanasana can be considered the father of the asanas, so complete it is when it comes to working different parts of our body. Although with time it gets easier and more comfortable, even being considered for experienced yogis a resting asana, the downward facing dog is a great way to start working your arms.

Phalankasana

Also known as the plank pose, this is a great one to use even in combination with the downward facing dog. Add it to the transitions between other poses, holding it for a few breaths, and add it to the change from the standing poses to the seated or lying postures.

Our advice is to start with five breathings (long ones) and increase that number every two or three practices, trying to reach at least 20 breathing in Phalakasana.

Chaturanga Dandasana

Chaturanga Dandasana is challenging and not always easy to do it correctly. Make sure you learn how to do it, to get its benefits and not to end up with injuries. One of the most significant ways to benefit from it is to get into Chaturanga as slowly as you can, instead of doing a lot of repetitions.

If your arms or shoulders are not that strong, don’t start with a lot of repetitions of Chaturanga, and make sure you work on doing it on a controlled way.

Vasisthasana

Maybe not so often practised in regular yoga classes, Vasisthasana is excellent to work on your arms strength. It’s great for learning how to stabilize your muscles and most of all, to improve your confidence in yourself.

Start with more straightforward modification, and with time, challenge yourself to get into harder variations of it. If both your right and left side are quite balanced, make sure you stay the same amount of time on each side, and if you have one side much stronger than the other, stay there at least two more breathing for a few months.

Bakasana

With time, you’ll want to include handstands on your arms strengthening practice, but at the beginning, Bakasana or the crow pose is a great way to start. It requires strong arms, stiff wrists and reasonable control of your core. It’s quite challenging for a lot of people and even more than Vasisthasana; it’s a big mental challenge.

If you don’t feel comfortable about doing it by yourself, ask a teacher to teach you the bases and start building your asana from there. It’s said that’s the first step for the handstand and a big step!

Right, now that you know all of these, make sure you never forget the importance of working your arms and add these poses to your yoga practice. Add these asanas for strong arms to your daily routines, and within a few months, you’ll notice the difference.

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