Revolved Half Moon Pose
परिवृत्त अर्ध चन्द्रासन
Parivṛtta Ardha Candrāsana — an advanced twist that works the obliques, hamstrings, gluteus medius.
How to do Revolved Half Moon Pose
Read all of it before starting, and read the cautions further down before starting at all.
From a short lunge with the right foot forward, place the right hand on a block under the shoulder.
Shift the weight forward onto the right foot and lift the left leg to hip height, toes pointing down.
Straighten the standing leg without locking it and level both hips.
Rotate the ribcage to the left and reach the left arm towards the ceiling.
Hold with the gaze forward, lower the back foot with control, and change sides.
Hold: 30–60 seconds each side. Keep the breath moving throughout — if you are holding it, the pose is too much for today.
Muscles worked
Where the effort and the lengthening land. Primary groups do most of the work; secondary groups assist or are stretched.
What Revolved Half Moon Pose does
Described mechanically — what the movement does to muscle and joint. Not a list of conditions it treats, because a pose does not treat conditions.
- Rotates the trunk on a single-leg base, which demands constant correction at the standing ankle and hip.
- Loads the outer hip of the standing leg while the pelvis is held level.
- Lengthens the standing hamstring under a rotated load.
Revolved Half Moon Pose is one of 25 twists in this library and one of 61 poses rated advanced. Poses that rotate the spine around its long axis with the pelvis anchored.
Who should skip Revolved Half Moon Pose, or change it
- Pregnancy — the closed twist and the balance demand both rule it out.
- Disc injury or sacroiliac instability, which this shape provokes readily.
- Recent abdominal surgery.
- Hamstring, knee or ankle injury on the standing side.
- Vertigo or low blood pressure — practise with the back against a wall.
General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts. If you are pregnant, recovering from surgery or managing any health condition, ask your doctor before starting a practice, and learn the pose itself from a qualified teacher who can see you move.
Common mistakes in Revolved Half Moon Pose
What tends to go wrong, and the specific correction — not "engage your core".
MistakeLifted hip rolling open towards the ceiling.
FixTurn the lifted toes down to the floor and level the hips before rotating further.
MistakeBottom hand placed too far forward so the shape stretches out and collapses.
FixMove the block back under the shoulder and shorten the reach.
What a practice like this costs in energy
Nobody has measured a single asana in a metabolic cart. The 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities publishes MET values per style of practice, so Revolved Half Moon Pose is mapped to the nearest published code — 02175, yoga, Power, 4 MET — and the figures below are for a practice of that kind, not for holding this one pose.
| Time practising | 10 min | 20 min | 30 min | 45 min | 60 min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 49 | 98 | 147 | 221 | 294 |
Calculated as MET × 3.5 × 70 kg ÷ 200 kcal per minute — the standard ACSM relationship, shown in full on the method page. Scale it to your own weight by multiplying by your weight in kilograms and dividing by 70. The whole activity dataset, including every non-yoga activity, is at BurnLab.
Questions
How do you do Revolved Half Moon Pose?
From a short lunge with the right foot forward, place the right hand on a block under the shoulder. Shift the weight forward onto the right foot and lift the left leg to hip height, toes pointing down. Straighten the standing leg without locking it and level both hips. Rotate the ribcage to the left and reach the left arm towards the ceiling. Hold with the gaze forward, lower the back foot with control, and change sides. Hold for 30–60 seconds each side.
What does Revolved Half Moon Pose work?
Primarily the obliques, hamstrings, gluteus medius, with the spinal erectors, shoulders, ankles assisting or lengthening. In mechanical terms: rotates the trunk on a single-leg base, which demands constant correction at the standing ankle and hip.
Who should not do Revolved Half Moon Pose?
Pregnancy — the closed twist and the balance demand both rule it out. Disc injury or sacroiliac instability, which this shape provokes readily. Recent abdominal surgery. Hamstring, knee or ankle injury on the standing side. Vertigo or low blood pressure — practise with the back against a wall. This is general information, not medical advice — if any of these apply to you, ask your doctor and learn the pose with a qualified teacher rather than from a page.
Is Revolved Half Moon Pose suitable for beginners?
No. Revolved Half Moon Pose is rated advanced. The shape itself is rarely the problem — arriving at it years too early is. Work through the beginner and intermediate twists poses on this site and learn this one in person.
How many calories does Revolved Half Moon Pose burn?
The honest answer is that nobody has measured a single asana. The 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities publishes MET values for styles of yoga, not for individual poses. Revolved Half Moon Pose sits closest to Compendium code 02175, yoga, Power, at 4 MET — about 147 kcal for 30 minutes of that kind of practice for a 70 kg adult. Holding one pose for a minute is a rounding error either way.
Related poses
More twists — first at the same level, then the rest of the family.
Asana names are traditional. Every step, benefit and caution on this page is written for YogaPath rather than reproduced from any book, studio or other library — see how this site is written. Energy figures derive from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts.