Half moon has to be another of my favourite poses. This is a great balance, but can be a little tricky. To help you with this pose, you will need a brick shaped block - I prefer a cork one as they are much more stable than the foam version.
Below there is a short video in which I demonstrate how to practice doing half moon with the help of a wall. The beauty of using the wall is that it lets you really feel what half moon should be like but without worrying about your balance, so it's a good starting point.
Before you do half moon, you should warm up ham strings and hips! Maybe start in easy pose (legs crossed - for some gentle breathing). Then move into Down Dog and after walking the dog do:-
* Low lunge on both sides
* Warrior two moving into extended side angle (reaching top arm over head)
* Straighten front leg and move into Triangle
* Forward fold - Then try your half moon
In the video against the wall, my standing leg is a little further from the wall than it should be for a perfect half moon (i.e. vertical!) but being slightly further away means that you will be pushing the top leg into the wall. This increases the stability of the pose and allows you to move your head without the worry of falling out of the pose. Once you are in this version, you can hold the pose much longer and build strength into the legs. Start trying to hold for one minute on each side.
The other tip for making half moon easier is to have the foot on your standing leg pointing slightly out to the side instead of directly to the top of the mat - this will increase stability. As you build strength - you can slowly move to the foot pointing towards the top of the mat.
After building some strength against the wall, move back onto your mat and then try to keep your standing leg really straight. Also then try to lift the back leg a little higher than you think!
If you would like some help with a pose, please drop me a line and let me know!
Namaste,
Tim