Many modifications have already taken place over the hundreds of years that yoga has been performed around the world. Although yoga was primarily a belief system and way of living initially, it has become a common form of exercise today.
Although the practice itself is hundreds of years old, utilizing modern technology innovations to enhance it is not harmful. Thus, now, we get to use the yoga wheel. This new tool has helped many yogis enhance their yoga practice further and achieve poses easier than it would be without its assistance.
So, What Is A Yoga Wheel Exactly?
A yoga wheel is a wheel that is about a foot in diameter, which is hollow and flexible. It seeks to improve asanas or poses, stretch the spine and broaden the front of the body’s breadth.
So, what is all the excitement behind this emergence of the yoga wheel, and how exceptional is it?
The yoga wheel can, for starters, qualify as the most innovative yoga tool yet.
A yoga wheel defines the contours of the body and helps to backbend and lengthen the areas that are difficult to reach, such as the neck, shoulders, spine, chest, flexors of the hips, etc.
You can use the yoga wheel with a little bit of creativity to learn forearm stands, build your core, and even challenge your meditation practice.
Furthermore, the yoga wheel is beneficial for yogis of any level.
The yoga wheel is an excellent help for beginners who need assistance in more advanced yoga poses, as opposed to the yoga strap, wherein you will eventually get rid of. It has incredible potential for experienced yogis as they can make use of the yoga wheel to improve their yoga practice, making difficult yoga poses somewhat more complicated.
5 Of A Yoga Wheel’s Wellness Benefits
Let us look a little deeper into the yoga wheel’s many beneficial effects, and perhaps you will make the choice of getting a wheel of your own to ramp up your yoga practice.
1. Great for massage
The yoga wheel is quite useful as a massager. Comparable to a foam roller, the wheel is being used to relieve the tension of the body’s sore muscles, but is especially effective as a back massager.
From a seated position, put the yoga wheel at the base of the spine so that it can roll straight backward. And after that, lay your weight on the wheel, letting it support your back’s weight to maximum gravity. Use your feet to push from the mat and roll the wheel up and down your spine.
2. Enhances your flexibility
Yoga wheels can play a significant role in enhancing your yoga flexibility. It can be used as a tool to help you stretch further into the poses, causing the muscles to extend, strengthen, and loosen the tightness.
3. Helps strengthen the core
A stronger core can be achieved when the yoga wheel is consistently used, and it is one of the most notable health benefits it can offer. Although not usually the first use considered when listing health benefits for the yoga wheel, if the wheel is being used in the proper way, core reinforcement could very well be a result that you can feel right away.
Some possible ways to do this entail: putting your feet on the yoga wheel while planking to necessitate more control with your core in order to maintain balance; placing the yoga wheel under your side while doing a side plank, and using it as a lever to complete an extended leg reach.
4. Improves your balance
Balance is one of yoga’s main elements, but it appears to be one of the most challenging things to master. A yoga wheel will help you out if you feel confident in your present balancing level but still want to push it to the next level or just want a tool that helps get your balance from nonexistent to somewhere.
For more experienced yogis, try balancing with one foot on the yoga wheel while keeping the other foot’s toes straight out with their respective hand in front of you.
Balancing with two feet on the yoga wheel could be an easier starting point if balance is more of a struggle for you.
It will help to achieve the most improvements by using your yoga wheel daily to strengthen your balance.
5. Can lengthen the spine
Like prolonged sitting, sleeping, or spending a lot of time driving a car, everyday activities can make your back tight. Your daily routines can take a toll on the spine; however, thankfully, yoga has multiple poses aimed to lengthen the spine and ease acquired built-up stress.
Here, a yoga wheel will help by getting you to do controlled back bending. The pressure and movement will help cater to the different vertebrates and give your spine the most support.
Sit down with your legs straightly tucked underneath you. Position the yoga wheel directly at the base of your spine, do core tightening, and lean back on the wheel slowly.
Let your spine relax inch and make sure to stretch it out gently. You will be impressed by how much better you can feel from this little spinal stretch.
6. Boosts your endurance
The Yoga Wheel will allow you to remain longer in those backbends (depending, of course, on your present level of experience). It is necessary to maintain the pose for a sufficient period of time For the effects of the pose to settle in. The Yoga Wheel supports your muscles when they get exhausted when doing the poses, empowering you to enhance your stamina to boost your endurance eventually.
7. Provides stability
Along with countless other poses, many backbends entail stability and strength, something of which the Yoga Wheel can actually help with. When leaning backward into the all-challenging backbend, you can use it to complement your balance or use as support during difficult positions, like the Bridge.
Like with any yoga tool that provides your routine with support or variety, always ensure that you practice with safety and security in mind and maintain proper alignment. The yoga wheel is a fantastic accessory for yoga that will help you intensify your practice while safely pushing you into those complex and challenging inversion poses.