How to split (from someone who never practiced it intentionally)
A few days ago, during the #YogaProgressParty challenge on Instagram, I had to share my split progress.
What you should know is that I rarely practice split. Actually, before this challenge, I had practiced it only once, back in September, for a different challenge. It was my first time trying it. And to be honest, I wasn’t really trying because I knew I couldn’t touch the ground. So I just sat on pillows, took a picture, and that was it.
Looking back now, I think I could’ve gone deeper if I had warmed up + stretched properly. But in my mind I was just like, “Let’s get over with it… I know I can’t split anyway and I never will.”
So when the day came and I had to show my split progress, I warmed up and stretched a little bit then sat again on a pillow. I was so comfortable that I thought to myself, “Hey, wait a minute… I think I can go deeper than that!” So I removed the pillow, and slowly but surely I touched the ground. And I was like, “What?! Really?! I can split!!!”
After that, I tried on the other side, and although I struggled a bit more, I managed to do the split as well.
The split had never been on my list of asanas I wanted to achieve. Yet, here I was splitting. How did it even happen?
Here’s the list of asanas I believe helped me to split:
What I practice every day
Malasana
Paschimottanasana (seated forward bend)
Downward facing dog
Marichyasana A
Gomukhasana
What I practice every now and then
Lizard pose
Low lunge
What to keep in mind
There is no secret formula and no magic asana that will get you to do a split faster. So practice as often as you can, be patient and get rid of any expectations.
Some people will manage to do a split in a matter of weeks, others may take years to achieve it. But that doesn’t matter.
What matters is to enjoy your journey. Accept where you are now in your yoga journey and be grateful that your body even allows you to move through different poses either be split of any other ones.
Have a great day and enjoy your practice!