Intermediate

Temple Pose

Temple deepens the goddess-style squat by folding the trunk forward, shifting more load into the inner thighs and hinging the spine long. The adductors and quads work to hold the wide bend while the hips open. It is a strong groin and hip opener that also builds patience in an isometric hold.

Equipment
Body Weight
Body part
Quads, Thighs
Type
Stretching, Yoga
Muscles worked
Target
Adductor Longus, Adductor Magnus, Vastus Lateralis
Secondary
Gluteus Maximus, Erector Spinae
Tertiary
Rectus Femoris

How to do it

  1. 1

    Step the feet wide and turn the toes out to about forty-five degrees.

  2. 2

    Bend the knees deeply so they track over the toes, sinking into a wide squat.

  3. 3

    Hinge forward from the hips and lengthen the spine parallel toward the floor.

  4. 4

    Press the palms together in front of the chest or reach the forearms down toward the mat.

  5. 5

    Draw the tailbone back and the crown forward to keep both ends of the spine long.

  6. 6

    Hold for several breaths, then press through the heels to rise.

Tips

  • Keep the knees pressing out toward the little toes so they never cave inward.
  • Hinge from the hip crease rather than rounding the low back to lengthen the torso.
  • Push the floor away through the heels to stay lifted out of the knees.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • The torso drops straight down instead of hinging forward from the hips, so the spine rounds and the inner thighs never take the load the forward angle is for.
  • The hips rise as the chest lowers, trading squat depth for reach; the knees should be as bent at the bottom of the hinge as they were at the start.
  • The heels peel up as the trunk comes forward and the weight slides onto the toes, which is the moment the knees start taking what the hips should.
  • The forearms are reached toward the mat before the hips can stay low, so the back rounds to cover the difference; keep the palms at the chest until the hinge holds.
  • The tailbone tucks under at the bottom of the squat, flattening the low back and shutting down the hip opening the pose is built on.

Frequently asked

How long should I hold temple pose?
Five to eight breaths, two or three rounds, with a pause standing tall between them. Choose a depth you can keep for the whole count rather than one you sink into and then abandon. Progress by staying an inch lower at the same count, or by bringing the forearms closer to the mat, and finish the last round with ten small pulses if you want the legs to feel it tomorrow.
How do I make temple pose easier or harder?
Easier: stay upright in the wide squat without hinging, bring the feet a little closer together, and rest the hands on the thighs so the arms carry some of the trunk. Hinging only halfway, with the chest at about forty-five degrees, is a complete version. Harder: lower the forearms to the mat, hold for ten breaths, press the knees outward against your own hands, or lift the heels for part of the hold so the quads work through a shorter range.
What does temple pose train, and when should I pick something else?
The forward hinge shifts more of the load into the inner thighs than an upright wide squat does, so it works as a groin opener and an adductor and quad endurance hold at once, and the long-spine hinge is a pattern worth owning. Pick something else with a groin strain, or with knees that object to deep flexion held still. If leg strength is the goal, a loaded squat progresses much faster; this is a mobility pose that happens to burn.

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