The Warrior Yoga Poses: getting deeper into their benefits

The Warrior yoga poses, or Virabhadrasana, are present in pretty much every practice from any yoga school. They are one of the bases of Hatha Yoga standing positions and essential in any sequence.

The physical and mental benefits of the Warrior Yoga poses are countless. One of the reasons why they are so often used is the positive impact they have strengthening the legs while opening the hips, essential steps to perform other yoga poses. Here we are going to tell you all the other positive consequences Warrior asanas can have on you.

There are three Warrior poses, Virabhadrasana I, Virabhadrasana II and Virabhadrasana III. In other schools, they are named A, B and C. We are going to explain to you the most important physical, mental and emotional benefits of each of them.

The Warrior Yoga Poses: physical, mental and emotional benefits

Benefits of Warrior I

Physical

There is a lot of stretching in Virabhadrasana I. It stretches the feet, hamstring, glutes and quadriceps. It facilitates the internal rotation of the legs by strengthening the core. It also makes your legs stronger. If you raise your arms, it will also open your chest, lifting your energy.

Mental

This asana teaches a lot about body awareness. While some people already have a good time and space notion, generally those who come to yoga have a long path to go and Virabhadrasana I is a great help being a mental challenge to keep the correct alignment in the pose. It also develops coordination.

Emotional

Warrior I is a heart opening pose which results in facing your fears, trusting the world and developing courage. It also makes you stand really strong, improving your inner courage.

Even though it can be overwhelming at the beginning, surrender to this pose and enjoy all it has to give you!

Benefits of Warrior II

Physical

Virabhadrasana II is excellent for the legs, glutes and core muscles, while it also strengthens the shoulders and arms. It’s a full body pose, that can be performed in a powerful and hard level if you dare to face the asana.  

Mental

It’s a great pose to practice finding ease within the effort. It offers a unique opportunity to practice finding where you can release tension that you don’t need to hold to perform the asana, being one of the most common spots on your shoulders.

Maintain this awareness on the other poses and in your life: Where are you keeping unnecessary tension?

Emotional

This pose is excellent to learn how to find peace at the moment. Since it’s so often repeated, it will challenge you in many different ways, for example, some days you’ll feel bored about doing it one more time, but at the same time, you can perform it with so many different levels of difficulty, that it will also tell you a lot about how you are feeling in a giving time at a giving moment.

Benefits of Warrior III

Physical

Virabhadrasana III is a balance pose, and it takes a lot of stability to be able to do it well. The standing leg works quite hard to keep the balance of all the weight upon it. The core muscles need to be well engaged.

Mental

Warrior III is physically challenging, and discomfort is usually felt. You definitely need to train your mind to stay present and focused, and it will help you take that to face during stressful situations in life.

Emotional

Virabhadrasana III shows up that run away feeling we have towards intense situations. It will show you the point from where you want to give up and give you a unique chance to become a little stronger every time. The balance it requires on the physical level is mirrored for us in our emotions.

As you can see, Warrior Yoga poses constitute the base for a healthy and flexible body as well as, without being too unintelligible, they force you to stare at your difficulties and emotional barriers. Enjoy them and never underestimate their power just because they seem so basic. 

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