A good headstand starts with a dolphin

It's been a long while since I've been in a yoga class that teaches the headstand (sirhasana). For some reason it seems to be avoided generally in the UK - maybe it's to avoid the comedy factor of a room full of vaguely zen-like individuals toppling over onto each other, or maybe there's a litigous reason associated with the same scenario. Either way, I think the last time I seriously attempted it was in India in 2004. I have, maybe only once, achieved the delightful state of weightlessness that is supposed to come with a well balanced headstand, but if I recall correctly that was for maybe a second or two before a less-than-graceful wobble and a return to earth.

I'm not naturally a well-balanced person (I hear chuckling!), and any asana that requires balance is invariably frustrating for me. But with the headstand there is the added problem of my not having much upper body strength. And this is where the dolphin comes in, designed specifically as a preparatory posture to get those biceps, triceps and shoulders working. For the first time in a long time this morning I incorporated it into my yoga session. I'll await the resulting muscle ache with some trepidation!

There is a long list of benefits associated with inverted postures, and particularly the headstand, including: relieving anxiety; preventing asthma, hay fever and menopausal imbalance (I'm not quite there yet); rectifying glandular disorder; and other things to do with reversing gravity in the spine and the legs. All good reasons to persist methinks...I'll just need to remember that patience is a virtue.