What is Yoga Alignment?

Yoga alignment describes how the body is arranged in yoga postures (asanas). This mainly includes creating straight lines and stacking bones - but it can mean so much more. Alignment isn’t a rigid structure about making a perfect angles and creating that picture-perfect shape. On the contrary— it’s about aligning each individual in a pose, utilizing their bodies’ physical abilities and maintaining certain key principles in an adaptable way. Using key principles, modifications and props (yoga straps, blocks, etc), alignment can be achieved no matter what level of flexibility or mobility, and no matter the individual’s shape or size. The main goals of alignment are to maximize the benefits in each asana and reduce susceptibility to injuries, but it can also relate to creating certain angles and idealist pose shapes with the body that are considered beautiful.

“Alignment is not about perfection,
it’s about what works for each individual and their bodies ”

Not every body will look the same in every pose meaning that alignment isn’t universal, but some of the core principles are. Alignment in yoga can be both functional and aesthetic which is why it’s important to know and understand the differences.

There are two aspects of Yoga Alignment

1.     Functional: Alignment for functional reasons is concerned with biomechanics of each muscle or joint and how they will function optimally. Biomechanics relates to the structure of these body parts and how they inherently move. We use this type of alignment to arrange the body so that each area is not going beyond its own limitations or performing movements that it can’t inherently perform. Functional alignment focuses on safety and optimal performance.

An example of functional alignment would be to keep the head, neck and spine all in one straight line. This example would describe how the spine should inherently line up. This is important for the integrity of the body and for long-term health and mobility. This type of alignment will help maintain stability, increase the flow of energy and allow efficient activation of specific areas of the body. In this example, there is a functional reason for why we align in this particular way.

Another example would be having the arms up overhead while in a standing position. Many individuals may not be able to make a straight line from their wrists all the way down to their ankles. If the arms create a 45 degree angle from the shoulders instead of being perfectly straight up, this does not mean that they are not aligned properly and that it will affect the body negatively. This would be a misconception of functional alignment. For this particular individual, having a 45 degree angle from head would be functional for them and is perfectly okay.

In functional alignment we take into consideration the shape of the bones and muscle tension that may enable or disable us from performing certain movements. A yoga pose using this principle may not always look perfect.

“It is important to note that functionality
is more important than how a posture looks. ”

2.     Aesthetic: Alignment for aesthetic reasons doesn’t concern itself with safety or injury prevention, it is simply concerned with looking attractive. Right angles and perfectly straight lines are not absolutes when practicing yoga. Although many yogis strive to achieve the “full expression” of a pose as they were handed down from ancient yogis, this does not necessarily mean that these shapes are healthy or obtainable for every individual.

An example of aesthetic alignment would be creating a 90 degree angle in the front knee during Warrior 2 (Virabhadrasana II). Being incapable of creating this angle won’t hurt your body or make you any less adept to practice, but it looks good. If the angle is above 90 but the knee still sits over the ankles, we would consider this great functional alignment!

Another example of an aesthetic alignment in Warrior 2 (Virabharasana II) would be a common cue of lining up the heels of both feet or having the front heel lined up with the arch of the back foot. Performing this may be easy for some individuals but may actually cause pain or discomfort for others. This alignment cue is strictly for aesthetic purposes and may be impossible for some to perform based on their bodies. The solution would be to widen their stance instead of lining up the heels. In this case, it doesn’t mean it’s right or wrong— it’s about what is accessible and feels right.

Some yogis may push themselves beyond their bodies’ limits to achieve these sometimes unrealistic shapes, which could definitely lead to long-term issues. Aesthetic alignment plays into the artistic expression of yoga than what is actually required or helpful- but it is still used in many styles of yoga and taught by many instructors.

Now that we’ve discussed the two aspects and understand the differences between them, we should mention that many yoga practices encompass both aspects. It’s not always about functional alignment and it’s certainly not all about aesthetic alignment. Every individual has a different body shape, a different anatomical makeup (think bone structure and muscle length) and different physical capabilities. It’s important to understand and become aware of your own body, what your restrictions are (hint: when/where you feel pain), and where you excel.

Does alignment matter in yoga? Check out this article for further information about alignment and its importance. How do you find out if you’re aligned properly? This article gives great tips!

“Honor your body and be respectful of its limitations. Back off if you feel pain. If you feel ready to move to the next level- do so slowly and mindfully.
This is where the most growth takes place. ”

xx

Yoga Alignment Team