A 50-Minute Sequence · Thumb-Safe

Forearm Flow

A full-body practice built around forearm-based weight bearing, strap-assisted "grip" work, and quiet hands. Designed for a practitioner whose thumb cannot tolerate pressure or gripping.

The Three Rules

i.

Arrival

~6 min

Easy Seat on BolsterSukhāsana

2 min

Sit cross-legged with hips elevated on a bolster or folded blanket. Hands rest palms-up on the thighs, fingers naturally curled. Settle the breath. Three rounds of slow inhale through the nose, soft sigh out through the mouth — then close the mouth and let the breath become quiet.

Hand note Skip cin mudra (thumb-to-index) if any contact aggravates. Palms-up with relaxed fingers is fine; gravity does the work.

Alternate Nostril BreathingNāḍī Śodhana

3 min

Use the right hand. Close the right nostril with the ring finger pad, inhale left. Switch and exhale right. Continue 8–12 rounds, even breath in and out.

Modification Skip Vishnu mudra entirely — it loads the thumb closing the right nostril. Use the ring finger and pinky pads to close both nostrils alternately, leaving the thumb tucked passively into the palm. If even that's too much, do the breath visualization-only: imagine the airflow switching sides.

Cat–Cow on ForearmsMārjaryāsana / Bitilāsana

8 cycles

From a forearm plank stance — forearms parallel, elbows under shoulders — drop to knees so you're in a forearm tabletop. Inhale, drop the belly, lift the chest and tailbone (cow). Exhale, round high through the upper back (cat). Move with the breath.

Substitution This replaces the standard hands-and-knees version. The forearm contact spreads load across the ulna; zero pressure on the palm or thumb.
ii.

Mobility

~8 min

Seated Forward FoldPaścimottānāsana

2 min

Legs extended, sit bones rooted. Loop a strap around the soles of both feet. Inhale long through the spine; exhale fold forward from the hips. Use the strap to draw the chest toward the thighs without rounding through the lumbar.

Strap technique Don't grip the strap with the fingers. Loop the strap once around the back of each hand so it sits against the wrist, then close the fingers loosely around it. The pull travels through the wrist and forearm — the thumb stays passive.

Seated Spinal TwistArdha Matsyendrāsana

90s each side

Right leg crosses over the left, foot flat outside the left thigh. Left leg can extend or fold. Inhale lengthen, exhale twist right. Left elbow rests outside the right thigh; right hand floats just behind the hip — fingertips brushing the floor, no weight bearing.

Modification Standard cue is "press the back hand into the floor." Don't. Hover the hand instead, or let the back of the hand rest on the floor with no load. The twist comes from the breath and the front-elbow lever.

Threading the Needle

90s each side

From forearm tabletop, slide the right forearm under the left, palm up. Right shoulder and temple settle to the floor. Left forearm extends overhead along the floor or props onto the bolster.

Hand note Standard version threads through with a flat palm pressing down — this asks for thumb stability. The forearm version takes the same shoulder shape with zero hand load.
iii.

Standing

~14 min

MountainTāḍāsana

5 breaths

Feet hip-width, weight even. Crown lifts, shoulders soften back. Arms long beside the body, palms facing forward, fingers spread without effort.

Hand note No prayer at the chest — the standard anjali mudra creates light thumb pressure. Just let the arms hang.

TreeVṛkṣāsana

45s each side

Shift to the standing leg, foot of the other leg to the calf or inner thigh (never the knee). Arms reach overhead, biceps frame the ears. Fingers spread.

Hand note Skip the overhead palm-press. Keep the hands a few inches apart with fingers wide; the upward reach is what matters.

Warrior IIVīrabhadrāsana II

5 breaths each side

Wide stance, front foot turned out, back foot at 90. Front knee tracks over the second toe. Arms extend long parallel to the floor, palms down. Gaze over the front middle finger.

Hand note Fingers stay long but soft — no spike-fingered tension. The arms work isometrically; the hands ride along.

TriangleTrikoṇāsana

5 breaths each side

From Warrior II, straighten the front leg. Reach the front arm long, then hinge at the hip and bring the front hand to a block stacked on its tallest setting outside the front shin. Top arm reaches up.

Block technique Rest the back of the hand on the block, or set the heel of the hand on the block with the fingers raised — both unload the thumb. Don't reach for the floor and don't grip the block; let it support, not anchor.

High LungeAśva Sañcalanāsana

5 breaths each side

Front knee over ankle, back leg long and strong. Arms reach overhead, framing the ears, ribs lifted away from the front hip crease.

Transition note Enter and exit by stepping rather than flowing through a vinyasa. No down dog, no chaturanga.
iv.

Floor & Backbends

~12 min

DolphinArdha Piñca Mayūrāsana

5 breaths × 2

Forearms parallel on the mat, elbows under shoulders, hands soft. Tuck the toes and lift the hips toward the ceiling. Heels reach toward the floor; head hangs.

Substitution This is your downward dog. Same posterior-chain stretch, same shoulder load, but the weight pours through the elbow and the meat of the forearm — not the wrist or thumb.

SphinxSālamba Bhujaṅgāsana

8 breaths

Lie prone. Forearms on the floor, elbows directly under the shoulders, palms down or palms together. Press the forearms down (not the hands), draw the chest forward and up. Glutes soft, low back long.

Substitution Replaces cobra and upward dog. Hand orientation is your choice: palms-down with relaxed fingers, or one forearm crossed over the other so the hands rest with no load at all.

Forearm Plank

30–45s × 2

From sphinx, tuck toes and lift the knees. Body in one long line — heels reach back, crown reaches forward, navel draws toward the spine.

Hand note Hands can rest palms-down with soft fingers, or interlace the fingers loosely (no thumb compression). The whole load is at the elbow and forearm.

BridgeSetu Bandhāsana

8 breaths × 2

Lie supine, knees bent, feet hip-width and parallel. Press through the heels, lift the hips. Arms stay long beside the body, palms-up or palms-down with soft fingers.

Modification Skip the traditional interlaced-finger bind under the back. Instead, place a block under the sacrum on its medium height for a supported variation, or simply leave the arms long with no hand engagement.
v.

Inversion & Close

~10 min

Reclining Hand-to-Big-ToeSupta Padāṅguṣṭhāsana

90s each side

Supine. Loop a strap around the arch of the right foot, both ends in the right hand. Extend the leg toward the ceiling. Left leg long on the floor or knee bent. Repeat second variation: right leg opens out to the right side, strap stays in the right hand.

Strap technique Same as the seated forward fold — wrap the strap once around the back of the hand so it bears against the wrist, fingers loose. No big-toe grasp, no clamped grip.

Legs Up the WallViparīta Karaṇī

5 min

Hips a few inches from the wall, legs vertical, sacrum on the floor or on a low bolster. Arms rest in a wide T or relaxed by the sides, palms up.

Inversion note This replaces shoulder stand and headstand. Zero hand load, full inversion benefit, deeply restorative.

CorpseŚavāsana

5–7 min

Lie supine, legs splayed naturally, arms a few inches from the body, palms turned up. Eyes close. Soften the jaw, soften the brow, soften the hands. Stay until the breath disappears into the body.

"The hand that does not grip can still hold everything."

— end of practice —

Pose Library

Tap any pose to jump to its full cue.

Quick Reference — Standard Pose → Thumb-Safe Swap

Plank
Forearm plank.
Chaturanga
Skip. Use a knee-down forearm plank lower if a transition is wanted.
Downward Dog
Dolphin (forearms).
Cobra / Upward Dog
Sphinx.
Side Plank
Forearm side plank — bottom forearm to the floor, top hand on the hip (not pressed into the floor).
Cat-Cow on hands
Cat-cow on forearms.
Bound poses (Marichyasana, etc.)
Use a strap between the hands or skip the bind entirely; the twist still happens.
Hand-to-toe grasps
Strap looped around the foot, wrapped once around the back of the hand.
Wheel / Upward Bow
Bridge with a block under the sacrum, or skip.
Crow & arm balances
Skip until the thumb is cleared. There's no safe substitute.

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