Yoga Poses for Your Solar Plexus Chakra

The solar plexus is the third chakra in the auric body and when in balance, encompasses the qualities willpower, confidence, personal power, determination, ambition, strength and ability to transform one's desires into physical reality.

The colour associated with the solar plexus is yellow and associated element is fire. Physically, this chakra is located just above and behind the navel, in the abdominal region. The Sanskrit name for the third chakra is Manipura. When out of balance, the solar plexus underactive manifests as shyness, lack of self belief, low self-esteem, lack of willpower, indecision, lack of direction, fear, procrastination, reluctance to act upon one's dreams and nervousness. When overactive, Manipura can manifest as over-assertiveness, aggression, boldness, overbearingness, controlling behaviour and overcompetitiveness.

-YOGA POSES FOR THE SOLAR PLEXUS CHAKRA-

1) PLANK POSE/FOREARM PLANK POSE Plank Pose, or Forearm Plank Pose, is excellent for strengthening your solar plexus. Done correctly and with enough reps, after doing planks your posture naturally corrects itself and you will walk automatically with the chest open, spine tall and shoulders back. This is testimony to the power of the pose and the amazing effect on the solar plexus.

Whilst you are in this pose, push the heels back as if pushing an electrical socket back into the wall behind you, and lengthen your tailbone through your heels to power the pose. Your breath will probably come out ragged; this is a sign the pose is working. Hold for five breaths and rest. Repeat for as many sets as you wish.

2) BOAT POSE (NAVASANA) This is another pose excellent for strengthening your core.

Begin by sitting on your mat in Dandasana and inhale, raising the legs up with bent knees. Raise the arms parallel to the ground at the same time with palms facing the ground to keep the body in balance. As you exhale, raise the legs higher and if you can, straighten them. Hold for 3-5 breaths.

3) WARRIOR I AND II (VRBDHRASANA I AND II)

These strong standing postures strengthen your core, ground you in the present and build your courage and stamina. Challenging to begin with, as you persist you will find yourself feeling lighter in the pose and able to hold the pose for more breaths.

For Warrior I, engage the navel and pelvic floor, as you lower the hips and open up the back leg to power the pose.

For Warrior II, engage the navel and keep the arms raised parallel to the ground to challenge the triceps. Gaze down the fingertips and imagine you are an archer holding your bow between your hands. Use the back hand to pull back your invisible arrow and the front hand to align your arrow at your target. These visuals embody the spirit of the warrior within you and build determination and mental focus

4) REVOLVED TRIANGLE POSE (PRVITTA TRIKONASANA)

The solar plexus is associated with efficient healthy digestion and any abdominal twists in yoga help to tone the digestive system, wringing out toxins and stimulating the abdominal organs with blood flow. If your organs were sponges, doing twists is like wringing them out.

Prvitta Trikonasana is an excellent twist and also builds confidence as you build your balance in this initially challenging posture. Make sure to transfer the weight of the body into the heel of the back foot and only go as far down with the arm pointing to the floor as is comfortable. Open out the shoulder of the arm reaching up into the sky to deepen the twist. Be sure to repeat on both sides!!

5) BOW POSE (DHANURASANA)

This backbend is an excellent pose for stimulating the abdominal organs and digestion, which are functions of the solar plexus. It is best to perform this posture on an empty stomach. Be sure to inhale and pull back the body to open the chest whilst holding onto the ankles or soles of the feet behind. Let the body naturally sink a little with each exhale, as like a bow, before each propulsion forward (on the inhale) there is a slight pulling back.

6) SUN SALUTATIONS (SURYA NAMASKAR)

This short repetitive sequence of yoga poses is exceptional for boosting the solar plexus. It is amazing for synchronizing the movement with the breath. The breath is extremely important for increasing your sense of personal power because it brings you into the present moment, calms and relaxes your mind, expands your chest cavity, lengthens your spine and pulls back your shoulders.

Sun Salutations are also amazing for the Solar Plexus because they get stuck energy flowing, especially if you can do three rounds or more. Stuck or stagnant energy in the body is released when you perform sun salutations, and so the natural Positive lifeforce energy is free to flow through you once again. Try to do a minimum of three rounds of Sun Salutations if you feel frightened or anxious.

Lastly, Sun Salutations are excellent for solar plexus as they build physical strength, agility, tone and power in the body. You will feel light, lithe and agile in your body, fluid and fit like a panther. You do not normally notice in the beginning but after a regular practise of Sun Salutations, after time you will find a newfound sense of power and prowess in your body, E.g. running in the street becomes easier, or lifting heavy things. The combination of lunges, plank pose, press ups (cobra pose) and leg lifts work together to subtly strengthen your muscles and athletic abilities. Sun Salutations are an amazing all-round confidence booster.