I had a question from another teacher asking “I have a student who has a heel spur on her right foot and when doing warrior I & II and south-side stretch feels pain into her achilles. Can you advise how to offer alternatives for relief?”
I’m assuming that your student experiences pain in her rear foot. Planting the rear foot during these postures can over-strain the plantar fascia and achilles tendon. You can modify this by coming up on the ball of the back foot (base roots of the toes). While the back heel is no longer “pressing” against the floor, it is still engaged.
You can help her to engage the inner and outer edge of her back heel by cupping her heel and asking her to press into your hands. She can also experiment with pressing the fleshy part of her heel against a wall. Using the wall in this way prevents the achilles from being over stretched and creates a stable base of support.