5 Yoga Tips for a More Comfortable Hero Pose

Virasana (Hero Pose) can serve as an alternative pose for those who can’t sit in Sukhnasana (Easy Sitting Pose) for long periods of time. However, in Hero Pose, the challenges for your body are different than they are for Easy Sitting Pose (Sukasana). Anatomical variations that affect your ability to get comfortable in this pose include the level of flexibility in your knee joints, ankle joints, lower spine, front thigh muscles, and even the tops of your feet. However, in general, the five recommendations below for propping and practicing the pose will allow you to sit in Hero Pose comfortably, even if you are stiff in one or more of those areas.

Caution: As with any pose, please come out of this one if you experience pain or anxiety while practicing it. Then try the pose again with different propping. If you simply cannot get comfortable in Hero Pose no matter what you do, practice another pose instead. For long seated sessions, you may find that switching between Hero Pose and Easy Sitting Pose can be helpful. And, of course, sitting on a chair for seated meditation or breathing practices is always a good alternative.

1. Pad Your Shins and Support Your Pelvis

Using padding under your shins makes your knees, shins, and feet more comfortable in the pose (no bones pressing right into the floor!).

Having support under your pelvis is beneficial for those who are less flexible in the knee joints, front thigh muscles, lower spine, and ankle joints. Sitting on a prop allows the pelvis to tilt slightly forward so your lower spine can take its natural curve. This creates a healthier seated position than if your lower back is rounded.

Baxter, who is somewhat less flexible in the knees and fronts of his thighs, always sits on at least one block on its lowest or middle or lower height. But everyone is different, so we suspect you will need to experiment to discover the height that is best for you. And in general, if you feel pain in the pose, you should try again with a higher prop.

1. To come into the pose, start by placing a folded blanket on your mat that’s large enough to support your knees and shins. Then kneel on the blanket, with your knees near the front of the blanket, and your ankles and feet hanging off the back edge. Have your knees hips-distance apart, but splay your shins a bit wider apart in back.
2. Then place a block on its lowest or middle height, or a stack of two blocks, sideways between your feet, so both sitting bones can rest on it. If you want to sit very high on a cushy surface, try sitting on the end of a bolster. Then carefully sit back on the prop. Adjust your pelvis, as you might move it in Marjaryasana/Bitilasana (Cat/Cow Pose), until your lower back feels like it has a nice natural arch.

(back view and side view of Hero Pose using blocks and using a bolster.)

2. Support Your Ankles

Some practitioners have stiff, inflexible ankles. So if your ankles are uncomfortable even with the props shown above, you can use a blanket roll under your ankles to relieve that tension. To improve ankle flexibility in the long run, practice poses such as Balasana (Child’s Pose) and Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose) that stretch your ankles and the tops of your feet. But be aware that the range of motion in everyone’s ankles is different, so it could be that you will be happier using props whenever you sit in Hero Pose.