Steps
- Lie on your back. Bend the knees, feet hip-width, heels close enough that you can touch them with your fingertips.
- Press the feet and the arms down. Lift the hips only as high as the lower back stays comfortable.
- Keep the knees pointing forward, about hip-width.
- Lower slowly, one vertebra at a time if that feels smooth. Rest.
What this pose may help with
These lines describe why people practice the shape. A pose may help with ordinary stiffness or with settling your attention. They are not claims that the pose treats or cures a condition.
- Strengthens the back of the legs and the glutes in a manageable range.
- Opens the front of the hips a little when the lift is modest.
- With a block, it becomes a supported rest.
Common mistakes
- Lifting so high the lower back pinches.
- Knees splaying out.
- Pushing the chin to the chest and compressing the neck.
Modifications
- A smaller lift. Even an inch is useful.
- A block or firm cushion under the pelvis so the muscles can rest.
Safety
- Skip active Bridge with a neck injury. Do not turn the head while the hips are up.
- Knee pain: check foot position, lift less, or skip.
- If you are pregnant and lying flat is uncomfortable, use a side-lying alternative instead.
If you are pregnant, injured, or dealing with back pain, consult a doctor before you follow this page. Stop for sharp pain, numbness, dizziness, or chest pain. This is movement education, not a diagnosis or a treatment. Read the medical disclaimer.
Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana, said SET-oo BAHN-duh sar-vahn-GAHS-uh-nuh) is listed here as a Beginner Supine pose. The body area it emphasizes is Back. Lying on your back, you press the feet down and lift the hips a little. A block under the sacrum turns it into a rest.
Read the steps in order. Set the pose up before you try to deepen it. The first mistake called out on this page is: Lifting so high the lower back pinches. That line is there because the usual error is doing too much, not because a tighter shape is a better practice. The modifications keep the same idea when the full shape does not fit today. Use them on purpose. They are part of the pose, not a demotion.
People practice Bridge Pose for a plain reason: Strengthens the back of the legs and the glutes in a manageable range. That “may help” is a description of why the shape is in a beginner library. It is not a claim that the pose treats, cures, or prevents a condition. Skip active Bridge with a neck injury. Do not turn the head while the hips are up.
If you are pregnant, returning from an injury, or your back has been painful, consult a doctor before you practice Bridge Pose. A safety note on a website is education. It is not clearance. Sharp pain, numbness, dizziness, or pain that runs down a leg is a reason to stop and get care, not a reason to hold the shape longer. The medical disclaimer on this site says the same thing in more detail.
When you are done, come out slowly. One calm repetition you can repeat tomorrow is the point of the page. Pair Bridge Pose with a short routine from this site if you want a sequence, and keep the timer as a guide you are allowed to pause.