Sitting Left Twist

How to do Sitting Left Twist

1. 1Begin seated in Dandasana with your legs extended straight forward on your mat.
2. 2Bend your right knee and slide your right foot along the floor toward your outer left hip, lowering the right knee toward the ground.
3. 3Bend your left knee, lift the foot, and place the left sole flat on the mat just outside your right thigh.
4. 4Place your left fingertips on the floor behind your sacrum to act as an upright pillar supporting your spine.
5. 5Inhale your right arm upward to lengthen your right side body from hip to fingertip.
6. 6Exhale to rotate your torso to the left, hugging your left knee with your right arm or hooking your right elbow outside your left knee.
7. 7Turn your chest, shoulders, and chin gently toward the left while keeping both sitting bones anchored to the earth.
8. 8Hold for five to eight complete breaths, then exhale to unwind slowly back to center before switching sides.

Benefits

• Restores rotational suppleness and functional range of motion throughout the spine.
• Releases deep tension across the outer glutes, piriformis, and iliotibial band.
• Stimulates abdominal organs and supports natural digestion through gentle compression.
• Broadens the collarbones and opens the chest to encourage deeper diaphragmatic breathing.
• Alleviates lower back fatigue associated with prolonged sitting or poor posture.

Common mistakes and cues

• Rounding the lower back

  Slumping into the lumbar spine compresses the vertebral discs, so prioritize sitting tall over twisting deeply.

• Forcing with arm leverage

  Yanking the torso around using elbow pressure strains the shoulder and sacroiliac joint rather than mobilizing the core.

• Lifting the left sitting bone

  Allowing the grounded hip to peel off the mat destabilizes the pelvis and removes the hip stretch.

• Overcranking the neck

  Craning the chin aggressively over the rear shoulder strains cervical vertebrae without adding to the spinal twist.

Modifications and props

• Straighten the bottom leg

  Extend your right leg straight out along the floor if your right knee or hip feels pinched in the folded position.

• Sit on a folded blanket

  Elevate your pelvis on a firm folded blanket or yoga block to tilt your pelvis forward and keep your lower back long.

• Hug the front knee

  Wrap your right forearm around your left shin instead of hooking the elbow if you experience tightness in the shoulders.

• Back hand on a block

  Place your rear hand on a yoga block behind your back if reaching the floor causes your torso to lean backward.

Cautions

• Active spinal disc herniation

  Avoid deep loaded twists if you are recovering from an acute lumbar disc injury, as twisting can aggravate the nerve root.

• Sacroiliac joint dysfunction

  Refrain from binding or over-rotating if you feel sharp pain or instability across the back of the pelvis.

• Second and third trimester pregnancy

  Modify into an open twist toward the right to avoid compressing the abdomen against the left thigh.

If you are working with an injury, pregnancy or a medical condition, check with a qualified professional before practising this pose.

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