Doug Keller: Happy Baby Pose – Hip Opening with Proper Alignment

Happy Baby Pose looks deceptively simple, lie on your back and grab your feet, right? Yet without proper alignment awareness, this hip opener can strain your lower back and sacrum rather than releasing your hips. This detailed tutorial teaches you how to practice Ananda Balasana with the precision that makes it genuinely therapeutic.

In this practice, Doug Keller brings his anatomical expertise to a pose that's often glossed over in yoga classes. You'll learn the critical foundation: keeping your entire spine, including your sacrum and tailbone, in contact with the floor throughout the pose. When your tailbone lifts toward the ceiling—a common mistake—you're no longer opening your hips; you're straining your lower back.

The tutorial covers proper hand placement (outer edges of your feet or using a strap if you can't reach comfortably), the gentle action of drawing your knees toward your armpits while keeping your sacrum grounded, and how to use your arm strength to assist the opening rather than force it.

Doug demonstrates the rocking variation that gently massages the lower back, the importance of keeping your head and shoulders relaxed on the floor, and modifications for those with limited hip mobility or lower back sensitivity. This tutorial is essential for anyone who experiences lower back discomfort in Happy Baby, those wanting to use this pose therapeutically for hip opening, or practitioners who want to understand the alignment that makes simple poses genuinely beneficial.

The sacrum-grounding principle transforms this seemingly basic pose. Led by Doug Keller, whose attention to anatomical detail ensures you're opening your hips without compromising your lower back. Subscribe for more hip opening tutorials that prioritize spinal safety alongside mobility.