Bridge Pose for Strength & Resilience

Personal practice notes: this week I have mostly been practicing bridge pose for strength and resilience. It's great for both physical and mental wellbeing.

Bridge pose has been prescribed as part of my rehab

I've had a much reduced yoga posture practice over the last few weeks as a result of knee surgery. One of the exercises I've been given for rehab by my physio is bridge pose. Luckily this is a yoga posture with which I already have a long and thoughtful relationship.

What is bridge pose?

Bridge Pose is known as Setu Bandhasana or Setu Bandha Sarvangasana in Sanskrit and is a well loved pose found often in yoga classes. It's also practiced in non-yoga based pursuits including pilates as well as in the gym, where it's known as the good old hip thrust and usually weighted with a plate or a barbell.

Essentially, Bridge Pose involves lying on your back with your feet on the floor at hip distance apart. Pressing into your feet and engaging your core, you enter bridge pose by scooping the tailbone up and raising the hips towards the sky whilst keeping the lumbar spine long and engaging the muscles on the front of the hips and thighs as well as the glutes and hamstrings.

Bridge pose is a power house for the muscles of the hips, core and upper legs, it's a back bending posture in yoga which means it's also good for opening the chest and breathing into the heartspace.

Bridge pose can be practiced in a number of ways in yoga, including one of my favourites where we elevate the feet onto a chair or a step which allows for an adjusted angle of the knees when raising into bridge.

Why practice bridge pose for strength and resilience?

Setu Bandhasana can provide us with a good measure of overall core strength and activation. For people who are very flexible in the lower back, it may be 'easy' to do bridge by shooting the hips up without really engaging the core but over extending into the lower back. For people who are struggling with core strength it may be a struggle to lift up very far at all. When practiced regularly and mindfully, setu bandhasana not only strengthens the muscles of the abdomen, lower back, glutes, hips and thighs but also strengthens our mind-body connection which results in a calmer and more grounded attitude both on and off the yoga mat.

The physical strengthening promotes resilience for everyday activities throughout all eras of life and helps us stave off issues such as back pain and hip instability. The less tangible but just as helpful aspect of resilience built by a regular practice of bridge pose forms part of our ongoing mental, energetic and emotional wellbeing.

How do you practice bridge pose for resilience?

At first glance it appears to be a fairly simple posture, but as with many yoga asana practices, we have multiple ways to break it down and modify it in order to find the best options and mindful benefits from our practice.

Working into Bridge Pose with mindful attention

A great way to begin with bridge pose is to pause in constructive rest (soles of the feet on the floor as you lie down and arms by your sides, palms down) for several breaths before doing anything else. Whilst you do this, connect with the sensation of your feet on the mat and your spine long and heavy on the ground. Really notice your body. Notice how you are feeling, your energy levels and the sensations you are experiencing.

Begin to lift up into bridge pose only by tiny and repeated increments. Start with a pelvic tilt where, as you inhale, you barely lift your tailbone off the mat and press your lower back into the mat before returning to the starting position as you exhale. Repeat this whilst noticing how your core engages. Keep your knees into the midline of your body, feel your thigh muscles engage.

After a few lifts press your hips up a bit further with your inhale and then after a few of these, releasing down on the exhale, go to as high as you feel comfortable and hold. Engage your glutes, thighs and lower abdomen. Keep your attention in the sensations and movement of your body. Lower by peeling down slowly, exhaling, keep your core/lower back engaged and let your tailbone land last.

The mindful practice of working in this way, keeping the attention in the body, working with the breath, strengthens the mind/muscle connection and the mind/body connection. Building these connections helps us to adjust and readjust as we practice, but also off the mat it strengthens mental and emotional resilience by allowing us to better notice stress and tension signals and regulate ourselves before they become overwhelming.

What are the benefits of practicing bridge pose like this?

You could practice bridge pose by looking for the highest lift or the longest hold. I would suggest that there are more benefits to be had for strength and resilience in practicing in a mindful manner.

The more mindful the practice, the more we become aware of form/alignment/engagement and how it affects how we feel and what is going on in our bodies. Of course, you often have a yoga teacher to advise you on alignment, but the best guide is always going to be your own attention. What/where feels most strong and supportive? Do you have any particular points of instability or challenge? Can you do anything gently to adjust for them?

With this approach we get to know ourselves better movement by movement. We notice when things change and how to adjust and adapt even when it feels frustrating. We are also less prone to injury because we're working in a mind & body way rather than a mind over matter way. Our practice is likely to take us further because we are not forcing or overpowering anything.

Is there anyone who shouldn't practice bridge pose?

Bridge pose is an excellent practice for the majority of us. However pregnant people (especially third trimester) and those with back problems such as herniated discs should not practice it. It is often given as rehab for back, knee and hip issues but those of us with these should only practice it when instructed by our doctor or physio. The same for anyone who's had recent surgery.

As it's an inversion (the head is below the heart), people with high blood pressure are usually advised against it.

What variations of bridge pose are also good for strength and resilience?

Variation 1- moving bridge with arm raises. Perform the bridge as described above, but rather than holding for several breaths at the top, lower down again and then as you begin to raise the hips once more, raise your arms at the same time, fingers stretched, until at the top of your bridge they are pointing towards the sky. Then lower down, allowing your hips and hands to land simultaneously. The added co-ordination is great for progressing mindful movement.

Variation 2- with a chair or step. Lie on the floor so you can place the soles of your feet on the chair seat or step. Perform the core engagement and tailbone tuck as above until you gradually lift your hips up into bridge pose. This reduces the angle required for the knees and can be useful if you have reduced knee flexion or hip/glute strength.

Variation 3- Holding with a mudra. Once you have mindfully worked your way into holding bridge pose, draw your shoulder blades together and bring your hands to meet on the floor underneath your raised back. You can take Namaskar Mudra (palms together) or Kali Mudra (fingers clasped except both index fingers which are pointing) or any other mudra that works for you. I especially like Kali Mudra as I feel it works for strength, direction and empowerment very well. Release the mudra before you release the bridge pose. May not be a suitable option if you have shoulder issues.

Bridge with Kali Mudra

Variation 4- Single leg bridge. From constructive rest, raise one leg towards the sky, either pointing or flexing the foot but either way holding the leg steady. Pressing into the other foot, slowly work your way towards holding bridge pose with mindful attention. Be particularly aware of the relationship between right and left hip, trying to keep them in line and keep the integrity of your core in place. Slowly lower and repeat on the other side. Can also be practiced as a moving bridge.

Variation 5- Supported bridge. More of a yin pose, this is good for a longer hold during which you mindfully keep your attention on the sensations arising and falling in your body as you hold the position over 2-3 minutes. If the sensations become too intense or you experience pain, carefully move out of the pose rather than tough it out. A good pose for mental resilience.

Have a couple of yoga blocks or thick books nearby as you begin slowly, incrementally, to raise into bridge pose. Once you have the hold, the blocks or books in to support your position. If it feels too intense straight away, remove one block or book. Rest your hips down securely on the prop(s). When some time has elapsed, press into your feet to lift up just enough to slide the prop(s) out again, then peel back down with an exhale.

Supported bridge with books

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