Recently after a class I was asked why I don’t teach pigeon pose. Here’s my answer.

I do teach pigeon pose, just not every class. There are many wonderful ways to work with the hips in a yoga class that don’t include pigeon pose, but it has become such the marquee pose for “opening” the hips that when it’s not included folks might feel they are missing out. When we are willing to break our identity a little bit with how we always do or teach something that’s the juice. That’s the yoga. In this case with “open the hips” we and our students get to discover and learn new things. We get to value variety and variability over one targeted “correct” way.

Back to this very valid question.

I (sometimes) don’t teach pigeon pose, because we’ve worked the hips in other ways today. It’s not all hip opening. We and our muscles, tendons, joints are multidimensional. There’s value in closing your hips too.

I (sometimes) don’t teach pigeon pose because, we focused in on another region or action of the body and the hips were less of a focus though never left out. W2, low/high lunge are hip work.

I (sometimes) don’t teach pigeon pose, because I taught pinwheel pose (90/90), or reclined cradle pose.

I (sometimes) don’t teach pigeon pose, because it doesn’t have to be included in every class.

TLDR: If your hips feel tight all the time and stretching isn’t helping, try strengthening. The feeling of tightness can be weakness. Try something else. Try less pigeon.

Pigeon lovers, here ya go.