Limber as a Seal

by Cheng-Ling Chen — December 6, 2007

Do you ever have those days when you are burdened with a lower backache? You feel stiff, and with each step or move, your back tightens? When I carry stress in my lower back, I like to practice the Seal Pose.

1. Start in Child's Pose: Drop knees to the floor. Use a blanket for extra padding if you wish. Spread knees as wide as comfortable with big toes touching. Gently lower belly to rest between the thighs and forehead on the floor. Stretch arms in front with palms facing down. Rest here for a few moments, relaxing into your inhales and exhales.
2. Preparation for Seal: Look forward at your hands and turn palms slightly outwards, so fingers are pointing out at a 45-degree angle.
3. Move into Seal: Pushing your palms against the floor, gently ease your torso forward. With legs, thighs, and belly resting on the floor, arch your head and chest upward into a slight backbend. Let your shoulders rise all the way up to the ears. This pose may feel similar to an Upward Facing Dog. However in Seal, instead of actively pushing your neck and head up, you are passively letting them drop into your shoulders.
4. Enjoy Being a Seal: Close your eyes. Let a big sigh out of your mouth. Breathing deeply, move your torso gently from side to side. Feel the pull and release in the lower back. For a deeper stretch, turn to look behind you on the right, then the left. Move as far in either direction as it feels good.
5. Sealing it Thrice: You may find it effective to do three Seals in a row and deepen the stretch each time. To do this, ease back into Child's Pose for a few breaths. When you are ready, move into Seal again.

This is a great pose to release the lower back, warm up the spine, and give yourself a gentle back massage. I like practicing Seal when I wake up. It feels like I am treating my body before I get going and it starts doing all the work for me.