What makes one posture more difficult than another?

It’s easiest for us to become aware of–and to control–the movement and positioning of our hands and feet. Generally speaking, awareness of the body and the ability to control the muscles diminishes as you move towards the center of your body. That means we build many of our postures from feet, to hips, to stomach…and from hands, to shoulders, to chest. We start with the easy elements and move towards the subtler stuff.

Some postures simply demand more strength, flexibility and aerobic capacity than others. But there’s another factor at work, too. The most difficult postures ‘combine twisting with bending, doing twists and bends when some particular joint is in an unnatural position of stress, coming into a difficult stretch in which strength becomes a primary issue.’ – Anatomy of Hatha Yoga

Both Standing Bow and Triangle fit this description. Standing Bow combines a backbend, a spine twist, and a standing split. Triangle opens up the hips and pelvis, as well as the chest. Take heart, the harder a particular posture is for you to perform, the more benefit you get.