Overview
This is a balancing pose which strengthens the core muscles (abdominal and back), arms and leg muscles.
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Joint Actions
Muscular Actions
Eagle
Garudasana
Overview
This is a balancing posture that involves the intertwining of the upper and lower limbs while maintaining stability on a single leg, therefore requiring focus, strength and length of the limbs.
On the upper limb, the upper back and shoulder muscles are lengthened while the shoulder flexors and adductors are strongly engaging. On the lower limb, the hip external rotators are lengthened while hip, knee flexors and ankle dorsiflexors are strongly engaging to maintain balance.
Joint actions
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Muscular actions
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Nerve
Nerves which may undergo neural tension:
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Radial
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Axillary
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Notes
Upper limb
The ligaments and muscles of the upper arm are lengthened more than the lower arm. As there is a lot of action in various directions in the complex shoulder joint, there could be many potential limiting factors for one to go into this pose. Recap: shoulders are in external rotation, flexion and horizontal adduction.
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Potential limiting factors:
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Anterior deltoid weakness
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Latissimus dorsi tightness (negate if pain does not lessen with shoulder depression)
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Subscapularis tightness
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Infraspinatus & Teres minor tightness
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Tightness of GH ligament(s) (superior, middle, inferior GH ligaments)
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Note that this particular action at the shoulder joint is not needed for normal day-to-day activities. A healthy person with normal ranges and strength, might find trouble with this pose.
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Trouble with bringing elbows up to shoulder height could also be indicative that the forearm stand pose will be difficult for them.
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Lower limb
To achieve the full entwining of the legs so that the ankles may hook, both the standing and lifted leg needs to flex, internally rotate and adduct. This combined joint action of the hip especially lengthens the external rotators of the hips i.e. piriformis, obturator internus, and superior and inferior gemelli. Therefore, tight external rotator may be a limiting factor in achieving this posture. Another possible limiter are the gluteus maximus and tensor fascia latae. As they attached to the iliotibial band, they may be felt as tightness along the lateral aspect of the thigh. As gluteus medius and minimus also contribute to external rotation and insert close to the ITB, tightness in these muscles may also limit the full entwining of the legs.​
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Precautions & Contraindications
Avoid or modify if any of the following conditions are present:
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Hip, knee or ankle injury
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Shoulder, elbow or wrist injury
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Later term pregnancy
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Balance deficits
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Plantar fasciitis
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Low blood pressure
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Hernia