Hands-free yoga: Give your wrists a well-deserved rest.

If you haven’t tried hands-free yoga yet, you’re missing out. It’s becoming more and more popular, and for good reasons.

In this guide we’ll look at what hands-free yoga is, who should practice it, and what the benefits are. I’ve also included some fun hands-free yoga challenges for you to try too.

What is hands-free yoga?

It’s exactly what it sounds like. It’s the same yoga you already know and love - just without using your hands. 🚫🖐️ Worried this limits you to Yin or Restorative styles? It doesn’t - you can still enjoy practices inspired by Ashtanga, Vinyasa or Hatha yoga.

You can go totally hands-free, or still use your hands just without weight-bearing - more of a wrist-free approach.

Does this mean you have to skip vinyasa? Not necessarily - you can always substitute it with this seated version instead. 🧘‍♀️

Who can practice hands-free yoga?

It’s suitable for everyone - whether you have an arm amputation, wrist pain, or just like trying new things. It’s equally accessible to both beginners, and yoga teachers, because just like a regular practice, you can personalise it to suit your energy level, experience, or intention.

What are the benefits of hands-free yoga?

It’s a chance to explore familiar asanas in new ways, strengthen muscles you might not usually use, and build balance, control, and awareness without relying on your hands to help.

It’s accessible and inclusive.

Practicing without your hands makes yoga more accessible for people with wrist pain, injuries, or even an amputation. Accessible and inclusive aren’t synonymous with “easier” - hands-free yoga can be as challenging (or not) as you like.

It adds variety.

Mixing up your movements can be just as beneficial as taking a break - not just for your body, but for your brain too.

Traditional yoga sequences use a lot of the same shapes and transitions, so it’s easy to develop patterns the more you practice. Variety helps to prevent your practice from plateauing, and adds awareness back if you tend to switch to auto-pilot.

It helps to identify habits.

Without your hands to lean on (literally), you might notice some hidden movement habits. Hands-free yoga is a mirror for your movement patterns - you may notice that your hands “help” you out when they don’t need to, which can prevent you from focusing on other aspects of an asana.

It offers immediate wrist-relief.

If your wrists hurt, they probably need a rest. Sometimes taking the weight away is exactly what’s required, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a flow class, or powerful practice if you want to.

Even if you don’t have wrist pain, you’ll still enjoy this style of yoga - from typing, carrying heavy bags, or crawling around after your kids, your wrists work really hard throughout the day - they deserve some time off. 💅

Asanas that are harder without your hands.

Sometimes we use our hands out of habit, but we’d benefit more without their help. Here are a few examples of asanas that are usually harder without your hands.

Hands-free yoga transitions.

Many of the transitions in a vinyasa class involve stepping forwards and backwards from Lunges, Planks, and Down Dogs - and this can sometimes result in sore wrists.

Here are three of my favourite wrist-friendly alternatives to move around on your mat.

If you’re trying them for the first time - have fun, but be mindful because they might challenge your mobility in new ways.

Rock and roll.

Cross-legged spin and stand.

Side Lunge to sit down.

So there you have it - hands-free yoga isn’t a watered down version of the “real thing” - it’s the perfect way to add variety to your practice, while giving your wrists the rest they deserve.

Inside my wrist-oration course I’ll teach you a totally hands-free sun salutation, which you can use as a base to create your own wrist-friendly yoga classes. The possibilities are endless - and fun.