Yoga blocks are simple tools. What are yoga blocks? They are firm blocks, usually made of foam, cork, or wood. People use them to help with yoga poses. What are the benefits of using yoga blocks? They make poses easier. They offer support. They help your body get into the right shape. They can also make poses harder when you want a deeper stretch. Anyone can use blocks, especially if you are just starting out. They are great for yoga blocks for beginners. Blocks help you feel safe and strong in new poses.
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Why Blocks Are Your Friends on the Mat
Blocks do many good things for your yoga practice. They are not just for beginners. Advanced yogis use them too. Let’s look at the main benefits of using yoga blocks.
- Support: Blocks bring the ground closer to you. This is helpful in standing poses where your hands need to reach the floor.
- Stability: Using a block can make you feel more balanced in tricky poses.
- Flexibility: Blocks help you hold stretches longer or reach further into a pose. This helps with using yoga blocks for flexibility.
- Alignment: They help keep your body straight and safe. Blocks are great for yoga blocks for alignment.
- Making Poses Easier: You can modify yoga poses with blocks. They change hard poses so you can do them.
- Making Poses Deeper: Sometimes, putting a block under a part of your body lets you stretch more or reach a greater intensity. This helps with deepening poses with yoga blocks.
- Comfort: In resting poses, blocks can support your head, chest, or hips. This helps you relax more fully.
Blocks are simple shapes, but they can change your practice a lot. They meet you where you are today. They help you grow stronger and more flexible over time.
Picking the Right Block
Blocks come in different sizes and materials. Knowing this helps you with choosing yoga block height and type.
- Materials:
- Foam: These are soft, light, and cheap. They are good for supporting body parts like your head or knee. They are less stable for standing support. Good for travel.
- Cork: These are firmer than foam. They offer better support for standing poses. They are heavier and cost a bit more. They feel solid and earthy.
- Wood: These are the firmest and heaviest. They give the most stable support. They can be hard on joints if used for support under knees or hips. They are durable and look nice.
- Size: Most blocks are about 9 inches long, 6 inches wide, and 4 inches thick. But sizes vary.
- Height Options: Blocks have three heights you can use.
- Lowest: Lay the block flat on its widest side. This gives the least lift. Good for under hands in Forward Fold when you need little help.
- Medium: Stand the block on its medium side. This is a common height for many poses. Good for under hands in Triangle Pose.
- Highest: Stand the block on its shortest side. This gives the most lift. Useful when the floor feels very far away. Good for Half Moon Pose.
Having two blocks is most useful. Many poses use two blocks. Some use one. Think about what feels best for your body and practice. Foam is good for starting out. Cork offers more support as you get stronger.
Starting with Blocks: Basics for Beginners
Blocks are wonderful tools for anyone new to yoga. They help you feel safe and find the right shape. If you are a yoga blocks for beginners, here are some simple ways to start.
- Sitting Taller: Sit on one or two blocks. Put them under your sitting bones. This lifts your hips above your knees. It makes sitting with a straight back much easier. This is great for meditation or seated stretches.
- Hands to the Floor: In poses like Forward Fold (Uttanasana), your hands might not reach the floor. Put blocks under your hands. Use the height that feels right. This lets you keep your legs straighter if you want, or takes pressure off your back. It helps you feel the stretch in your hamstrings more safely.
- Knees on Something Soft: If kneeling is hard, put a folded blanket or a soft foam block under your knees for cushion.
Remember, blocks are there to help, not as a sign you aren’t “good enough.” They help you do the pose right for your body. This prevents strain and builds strength safely. Yoga block placement for support is about finding where the block helps you feel stable and aligned in the pose.
How to Use Blocks in Different Poses
This is where the magic happens. Let’s look at how to use yoga blocks in poses. We will cover common yoga poses using blocks.
Standing Poses
Standing poses often ask you to reach the floor or balance. Blocks are a big help here.
h5 Forward Fold (Uttanasana)
- Purpose: Stretches the back of the legs and back.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place blocks under your hands.
- Stand with feet hip-width apart. Bend from your hips.
- If your hands don’t touch the floor easily, put blocks on the floor in front of you.
- Use any height. Put your hands flat on the blocks.
- Benefits: This lets you keep your legs straighter if your hamstrings are tight. It also helps keep your back long instead of rounded. It takes pressure off your lower back. It helps you modify yoga poses with blocks.
h5 Triangle Pose (Trikonasana)
- Purpose: Stretches legs, hips, spine, and shoulders.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place a block under your bottom hand.
- Step feet wide apart. Turn one foot out, the other slightly in.
- Reach your body over the front leg. Lower your front hand.
- If your hand doesn’t reach your shin, ankle, or the floor easily while keeping your body in one flat line, use a block.
- Put the block outside or inside your front foot. Rest your bottom hand on the block.
- Use the lowest, medium, or highest setting.
- Benefits: This helps keep your torso open and in line over your front leg. It prevents collapsing forward to reach the floor. It supports your bottom arm, helping you feel the stretch in your side body. It helps with yoga blocks for alignment.
h5 Half Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana)
- Purpose: Balances, strengthens legs, opens hips and chest.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place a block under your bottom hand.
- From Triangle Pose, shift weight to the front foot. Lift the back leg. Your bottom hand goes to the floor (or block).
- Place a block on the floor about a foot in front of your front foot, slightly to the outside.
- Put your bottom hand on the block.
- Use a tall height (medium or highest) to help you balance and keep your standing leg strong.
- Benefits: This block provides stability and brings the floor closer. It allows you to focus on stacking your hips and shoulders and lifting your back leg strongly, rather than just trying to reach the floor. Great for balance and yoga blocks for beginners in this pose.
Seated Poses
Blocks can make seated poses more comfortable and help you stretch deeper.
h5 Easy Pose (Sukhasana)
- Purpose: Simple cross-legged seat for comfort or meditation.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Sit on a block.
- Sit on the floor with legs crossed.
- If your knees are higher than your hips, or your back rounds, sit on a block.
- Place one or two blocks under your sitting bones.
- Benefits: Lifting your hips above your knees helps your pelvis tilt forward slightly. This makes it much easier to sit up tall with a straight spine. It reduces strain on your hips and lower back. It’s essential for comfortable sitting, aiding yoga blocks for alignment.
h5 Seated Forward Fold (Paschimottanasana)
- Purpose: Stretches the back of the legs and back.
- Block Use: Using yoga blocks for flexibility. Place a block under your hips or use blocks to support your forehead.
- Sit with legs straight out in front of you. Fold forward from your hips.
- If your back rounds a lot, sit on the edge of a block (or a folded blanket). This helps tilt your pelvis.
- To make the stretch gentler or hold it longer for flexibility: Stack one or two blocks on your legs (thighs or shins). Rest your forehead on the blocks.
- Benefits: Sitting on a block helps maintain a straight back. Resting your forehead on blocks helps you relax into the stretch, which can improve using yoga blocks for flexibility over time.
h5 Staff Pose (Dandasana)
- Purpose: Seated pose with legs straight, focusing on posture.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Sit on a block.
- Sit with legs straight out. Feet flexed. Back straight.
- This pose is harder than it looks! Many people round their backs.
- Sit on one or two blocks to lift your hips.
- Benefits: Lifting your hips makes it much easier to sit tall with a straight spine and active legs. It helps establish good posture from the ground up, aiding yoga blocks for alignment.
Floor Poses
Blocks offer wonderful support and allow for deeper opening in poses done on the floor.
h5 Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana)
- Purpose: Strengthens back, legs, and glutes; opens chest.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support or deepening poses with yoga blocks. Place a block under your sacrum (lower back/pelvis).
- Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Lift your hips.
- For support: Slide a block under your sacrum (the bony plate at the base of your spine, above your tailbone). Choose the height that feels like a comfortable resting place. Relax your weight onto the block. This is Supported Bridge Pose.
- For deepening (more active): Keep lifting hips with legs engaged, perhaps moving the block to a taller setting under the sacrum, or even using two blocks side-by-side for more lift if advanced.
- Benefits: Supported Bridge is very restful. It opens the chest gently and is good for the nervous system. It provides gentle traction for the lower back. It’s a great use of yoga block placement for support. The active version helps deepening poses with yoga blocks by allowing greater hip lift.
h5 Supported Fish Pose (Matsyasana)
- Purpose: Opens the chest and throat.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place one block under your upper back/shoulders and one under your head.
- Lie on your back. Place one block horizontally under your upper back, around the bottom tips of your shoulder blades. Use a medium or highest setting.
- Place a second block under your head. Use a height that allows your neck to be long and comfortable. Often a lower height than the back block works well.
- Lie back over the blocks. Let your arms rest out to the sides.
- Benefits: This pose provides a lovely passive chest opener, counteracting hunching. The blocks fully support your back and head, allowing you to relax into the stretch. It’s a very restorative use of yoga block placement for support.
h5 Reclining Bound Angle Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana)
- Purpose: Opens hips and inner thighs, releases lower back, calming.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place blocks under your knees or outer thighs.
- Lie on your back. Bring the soles of your feet together and let your knees fall open to the sides.
- If your hips or inner thighs feel tight, your knees might be high off the floor. This can strain the hips and back.
- Place a block under each knee or outer thigh for support. Use a height that feels comfortable and lets your legs relax.
- Benefits: Supporting your knees allows your hip muscles to relax and release tension. It prevents strain in the inner thighs and lower back, letting you stay in the pose longer and receive its calming benefits. It’s key for comfortable using yoga blocks for flexibility in the hips.
Other Poses
Blocks can help in many other poses too.
h5 Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana Variation)
- Purpose: Stretches hip flexors, strengthens legs.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place blocks under your hands.
- From downward dog or tabletop, step one foot forward between your hands. Lower your back knee to the floor.
- If your hands don’t reach the floor comfortably on either side of your front foot, use blocks.
- Place one block on each side of your front foot. Put your hands on the blocks.
- Use the height needed to keep your chest lifted and spine long.
- Benefits: Blocks help you keep your upper body upright and strong. This allows you to sink deeper into the hip flexor stretch of the back leg without rounding your back or straining your wrists. Good for yoga blocks for beginners in lunges.
h5 Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana Prep)
- Purpose: Stretches hips and glutes.
- Block Use: Yoga block placement for support. Place a block under your front hip.
- From downward dog or tabletop, bring one knee forward towards your wrist. Let that shin angle across the mat (or parallel if flexible). Extend the back leg straight behind you.
- If your front hip is high off the floor and you feel unstable, or if it strains your knee, place a block under the hip of your bent leg (the side with the knee forward).
- Use the height needed to fill the space between your hip and the floor. You should feel supported.
- Benefits: Supporting the hip takes pressure off the front knee and allows the hip muscles to relax and open safely. It provides stability so you can release tension and work on using yoga blocks for flexibility in the hip.
Refining Your Practice: Beyond the Basics
Once you are comfortable using blocks for support, you can explore how they help with yoga blocks for alignment and deepening poses with yoga blocks.
Enhancing Alignment
Blocks help you feel where your body should be in space.
- Keeping Legs Active: In poses like Downward Dog or Forward Fold, if your legs tend to buckle or you can’t feel the stretch in the hamstrings, try placing a block between your upper thighs. Squeeze the block gently. This activates your leg muscles and helps align your hips over your ankles (in DD) or keeps your legs straight (in Forward Fold).
- Shoulder Opening: In poses like Dolphin or Forearm Stand prep, place a block between your hands or forearms and squeeze it. This helps keep your arms parallel and your shoulders properly aligned and engaged.
- Finding Hip Squareness: In lunges or warrior poses, place a block outside your back foot’s heel. Imagine pressing the back outer heel towards the block to help square your hips forward.
Using a block for alignment isn’t about force. It’s about getting feedback from your body. The block shows you where to engage muscles or shift weight slightly to find a safer, more effective shape.
Making Poses Deeper
Once a pose feels easy with support, blocks can increase the challenge or stretch.
- Deepening Forward Folds: In Seated Forward Fold, instead of using blocks under your head, place a block vertically at your feet. Loop a strap around your feet and hold the ends. Press your feet into the block as you gently pull the strap. This deepens the stretch in the hamstrings.
- Increasing Backbends: In poses like Camel Pose (Ustrasana), instead of reaching hands to heels, place blocks on their tall height behind your feet. Reach your hands to the blocks. This allows you to lean back further and open the chest more if reaching the floor is easy.
- Elevating Limbs: In poses like standing splits, instead of putting your hands on the floor, put them on blocks. This might allow you to lift your standing leg higher, deepening poses with yoga blocks. Be cautious and ensure your supporting leg is strong.
Using blocks to deepen a pose requires awareness. Only go deeper if your body feels stable and ready. Listen carefully for any strain or pain. The block should help you find more space, not just push harder.
Putting It Together: A Table of Common Uses
Here is a quick look at common yoga poses using blocks and how blocks help.
| Pose Name | Common Block Placement(s) | How Blocks Help | Benefit Type(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward Fold (Uttanasana) | Under hands | Brings floor closer, keeps back straight, reduces hamstring strain. | Support, Beginner, Modify, Alignment |
| Triangle Pose (Trikonasana) | Under bottom hand (inside or outside foot) | Supports torso, keeps body in one plane, opens chest. | Support, Beginner, Alignment, Modify |
| Half Moon Pose (Ardha C.) | Under bottom hand (in front of foot, out) | Provides stability, brings floor closer for balance. | Support, Beginner, Alignment, Modify |
| Easy Pose (Sukhasana) | Under sitting bones | Lifts hips for straight spine, aids comfortable sitting. | Support, Beginner, Alignment |
| Seated Forward Fold (P.) | Under hips (edge) or under forehead on legs | Tilts pelvis for straight back; relaxes neck and back for deeper stretch. | Support, Flexibility, Modify, Deepening (subtle) |
| Staff Pose (Dandasana) | Under sitting bones | Lifts hips for straight spine, helps posture. | Support, Beginner, Alignment |
| Bridge Pose (Setu B.) | Under sacrum (lower back) | Supports spine, gentle chest opener (supported); allows higher hip lift (active). | Support, Restorative, Deepening |
| Supported Fish Pose (M.) | One under upper back, one under head | Passive chest opener, fully supports spine and neck. | Support, Restorative |
| Reclining Bound Angle (S. B.) | Under knees or outer thighs | Supports hips and knees, allows hip relaxation. | Support, Flexibility, Restorative |
| Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana) | Under hands (on either side of front foot) | Keeps chest lifted, supports upper body, allows deeper hip stretch. | Support, Beginner, Alignment, Modify |
| Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada…) | Under front hip | Supports hip, takes pressure off knee, allows hip relaxation. | Support, Beginner, Flexibility, Modify |
| Downward Dog (Adho Mukha S.) | Between upper thighs (squeeze) | Activates legs, helps align hips over ankles. | Alignment |
| Camel Pose (Ustrasana) | Under hands behind feet (tall height) | Allows deeper backbend and chest opening. | Deepening |
This table is a quick guide to how to use yoga blocks in poses. Experiment with block heights and placements to find what feels right for you.
Grasping How Height Matters
As we touched on in choosing yoga block height, the three levels of a block are not random. Each height changes the pose significantly.
- Lowest Setting: Use this when you need just a little lift or support. It’s the most stable base. Good for hands in a gentle forward fold or under your sitting bones if you only need a small boost.
- Medium Setting: This is often the “go-to” height. It provides a good balance of lift and stability for many poses. Common for hands in Triangle or Half Moon, or under the sacrum in Supported Bridge.
- Highest Setting: This provides the most lift. It’s useful when you have tight hamstrings or hips and the floor feels very far away. Essential for some people in Half Moon Pose or under hands in a deep lunge variation. Can also be used under the sacrum for a deeper Supported Bridge if comfortable.
Don’t feel pressure to use a lower height just because it seems more advanced. The “best” height is the one that helps you find the right shape, feel supported, and breathe easily in the pose. As your flexibility or strength changes, you might use different heights.
Tips for Using Blocks Well
- Listen to Your Body: The block is a tool to help you. If a placement feels wrong or causes pain, stop. Adjust the height or position. Or don’t use the block for that pose today.
- Experiment: Try different heights in the same pose. See how it changes the feeling. Does a higher block make it easier? Does a lower block challenge you more?
- Place Blocks Mindfully: Before getting into a pose, think about where the block needs to go. Place it within easy reach. For standing poses, often placing the block before you move into the full pose is safer.
- Press Down for Support: When using a block under your hand for support (like in Triangle or Half Moon), actively press your hand into the block. This helps engage your muscles and provides a stable foundation.
- Relax onto Support: When using a block under your body (like under hips or sacrum), allow your weight to fully rest on the block. This lets your muscles relax and release tension.
- Two Blocks Are Better Than One: Many poses benefit from having two blocks available. This lets you support both hands, both knees, or stack them for extra height.
Using blocks effectively is about making your practice smarter, not harder. They help you build the pose from a place of stability and ease.
Common Questions About Blocks
h5 Can I use books instead of yoga blocks?
Yes, for some uses. Hardcover books stacked can provide height. However, books are not as stable as blocks, especially on carpet. They are also harder to grip if you need to hold them. Books are okay in a pinch for sitting on or under hands in gentle poses, but real yoga blocks are safer and more versatile.
h5 How many yoga blocks do I need?
Having two blocks is most useful. Many poses use a block on each side (like for hands in lunges or triangle) or stacking two for extra height (like under hips). One block is okay to start, but two gives you more options.
h5 What is the best material for a beginner?
Foam blocks are often recommended for beginners. They are lighter, softer, and less expensive. They provide gentle support. As you gain strength and stability, you might find cork blocks more supportive for standing poses.
h5 How do blocks help with tight hamstrings?
In forward folds, tight hamstrings often cause the back to round when reaching for the floor. Using blocks under your hands brings the floor up. This lets you keep your legs straighter (or slightly bent if needed) and hinge from the hips with a long spine. This focuses the stretch safely on the hamstrings. It’s a key way to modify yoga poses with blocks for hamstring tightness.
h5 Can blocks help with balance poses?
Absolutely! In poses like Half Moon or standing balancing poses that involve reaching towards the floor, a block under your hand provides crucial support. It lets you focus on grounding through your standing foot and lifting through your core, improving your balance over time.
h5 Are blocks only for making poses easier?
No. While great for yoga blocks for beginners and modifying poses, blocks are also used for deepening poses with yoga blocks. They can help increase range of motion in backbends or forward folds, or help with alignment cues in advanced poses.
Interpreting Your Growth with Blocks
Blocks can stay with you throughout your yoga journey. At first, they might be essential for reaching the floor or sitting comfortably. As you practice more, you might use them less for basic support but start using them for alignment feedback or to explore deeper variations of poses.
Think of blocks as partners. They meet you where you are. They help you explore your body’s edges safely. They are tools for learning, not crutches. Learning how to use yoga blocks effectively is a step towards mastering your practice. It’s about working smarter, respecting your body, and finding joy in movement. Grab your blocks and see how they can help you today!