Full boat pose (Paripurna Navasana in Sanskrit) is an intermediate pose that is used in many types of yoga practice. Boat pose is a seated pose that is often used in intermediate and advanced yoga practices.
To start in boat pose, begin sitting on your mat with the legs out straight. Press the hands onto the mat behind the hops and lean back slightly. As you are leaning back, keep the back straight, lengthen the torso and sit back and balance on the tail and sit bones.
Bend the knees and on the exhalation breath, begin to lift the feet off the floor. The calves are parallel to the floor in half boat pose. Move the torso back, but keep the spine straight and don’t slouch the back or shoulders. The arms are out in a line from the shoulders. Beginners can remain here in half boat pose.
In the full boat pose, the body will be in a V shape. Bring the legs up to a 45 degree angle to create a V shape. You will hold the pose for ten seconds to one minute, depending on the level of the class and your own level of fitness.
A yoga strap can help the yoga student achieve full boat pose. If you have trouble keeping the legs straight when raising them up into boat pose, a strap can help. Bend the knees and place the strap around the bottom of the foot. Hold the strap as you lift the legs and pull the strap tight as you continue to raise the legs.
Boat pose is a core strengthening pose. This pose builds the abdominal muscles and is often used in core conditioning and weight loss yoga classes to strengthen and tone the abdominal muscles.
In advanced classes for more challenge and to build strength in the core, a sequence of moving in and out of boat pose is sometimes used. This involves releasing from the pose and bringing the legs and upper body toward the ground and then moving back into boat pose. The movements are coordinated with the breath and repeated several times in a sequence, sitting up into boat pose on the inhalation and releasing to the ground on the exhalation.