Main Page Display Archives

Invert With Ease

by Trisha Curling | Sep 24, 2026 | Main Page Display

Invert With Ease

BALANCE

INVERT WITH EASE

Feeling good upside down begins before our feet ever leave the floor. It comes from knowing that we have prepared the body well enough to make choices once gravity changes the conversation. In today’s video, Matt helps us invert with ease by exploring the relationship between Forearm Stand and Sirsasana, with particular attention to something worth respecting: how much weight we place into the head and neck. Through shoulder activation, supported entries, L shapes, and tuck variations, we can build the strength and awareness to decide how much load feels appropriate rather than simply accepting whatever the posture gives us. There is no requirement to make an inversion look a particular way for it to be valuable. Instead, we can develop the mechanics that allow strength and comfort to coexist, creating an inversion practice that supports how we actually want to feel.

FEEL GOOD

Feel Good!

Move with greater ease, efficiency, and confidence
Understand the anatomy and biomechanics behind the movements you practice
Use technique to create more freedom instead of forcing flexibility
Build strength and stability where your body needs it
Improve mobility and range of motion through intelligent movement
Recognize the difference between productive challenge and unnecessary strain
Better understand the sensations, restrictions, and patterns you experience in your body
Refine your alignment based on function, not simply what a pose is supposed to look like
Use precise, actionable techniques that you can immediately apply to your practice
Develop greater body awareness and proprioception
Move out of habitual patterns and discover new possibilities in your body
Leave your practice feeling stronger, freer, more capable, and more at home in your body

✋ SIGN ME UP

FOREARM STAND

Headstand offers a larger base of support and may therefore make balancing feel more accessible than Forearm Stand, but protecting the neck remains paramount. Matt suggests beginning with Forearm Stand when we intend to explore movement between the two postures. Here, the head stays lifted as we actively push the shoulders towards the ears, strengthening the muscles that help us press the ground away. One leg can reach upward while the other remains at the wall, giving us an opportunity to repeat the shoulder action without immediately demanding a freestanding balance. Eventually, both legs may leave the wall, but the objective remains the same: keep pushing and create space between the head and floor. Training this strength first gives us something incredibly useful when we transition towards Headstand. Instead of surrendering our weight to the head, we arrive with the capacity to determine how much support we actually need.

WATCH THE VIDEO

INVERT WITH EASE: EXPLORE HEADSTAND & FOREARM STAND

SWITCH BACK & FORTH

Once significant weight settles into the head, pressing back towards Forearm Stand becomes considerably more demanding. Reversing the journey gives us more control. Matt begins with one foot elevated on supportive blocks, cushions, or bolsters, making the entry more accessible while allowing us to establish the push through the forearms and shoulders first. From there, we can gradually release some of that effort and negotiate how much weight moves into the head. To invert with ease becomes less about eliminating effort and more about having options within it. Matt also emphasizes safety on the descent. If blocks are used, the opposite foot should come down first or the legs should straddle wide to avoid landing on them. Foam blocks, cushions, or bolsters may provide a more forgiving setup than cork. The drill becomes a conversation between support, strength, control, and sensation.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

"L" & TUCK VARIATIONS

There is another familiar hurdle waiting for us upside down: the tendency to arch the back. Matt reminds us that whether we are practising Handstand, Headstand, or Forearm Stand, we are working towards moving away from this arch. An L shape offers a clever solution. Keeping one leg lowered helps draw the spine back towards the ground, making it easier to organize the torso without simply sending the body into the wall. Another option is placing both feet lightly against the wall, bending the knees, and gradually reducing contact until the feet are barely grazing it. In Headstand, Matt also explores a tuck, ultimately drawing the knees towards the chest. These shapes change the distribution of our mass, helping us investigate balance rather than using an exaggerated backbend to find the wall and mistaking that support for stability.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

CHOOSE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GRAVITY

Perhaps feeling good in an inversion is not about making it effortless. It is about developing enough awareness to choose where the effort goes. Forearm Stand strengthens our ability to push. Headstand lets us explore how much of that push we want to retain. L shapes and tuck variations help reorganize the spine, while walls and props give us environments where balance can be investigated with greater support. Together, these tools allow us to invert with ease because we are no longer approaching the posture with only one possible outcome. This reflects an important part of the Chromatic Yoga process: learn an action, experience its effect, and then decide how it serves you. When technique creates more choices, we can listen more carefully to sensation and adjust accordingly. Feeling good becomes something we actively participate in creating, even when the practice turns completely upside down.

Continue exploring practices designed around how you want to feel in Matt’s Feel Good online immersion where intelligent biomechanics and purposeful movement help you build a practice that feels as good as it functions.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: Balance Immersion

← See Previous Story

ONLINE ANATOMY COURSE

Accessible, exciting, and easy to learn
Anatomy and biomechanics for yoga
Appropriate for both teachers and students
Learn joint alignment vs pose alignment
Demystify yoga poses and transitions
Release aches and pains
Learn how to avoid common injuries
Caters to all levels with modifications and props
20 hours Continued Education Credits with Yoga Alliance
20 hours toward Chromatic Yoga Certification and 300 Hour
Lifetime access

TELL ME MORE!

Continue Learning

Invert With Ease

Invert With EaseBALANCEINVERT WITH EASE Feeling good upside down begins before our feet ever leave the floor. It comes from knowing that we have prepared the body well enough to make choices once gravity changes the conversation. In today’s video, Matt helps us invert...

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

Overcome Handstand HurdlesSTRENGTHOVERCOME HANDSTAND HURDLES Getting upside down is often harder than staying there. Matt teaches us that once we confidently arrive in Handstand, the effort can actually become quieter. The real work lies in the entry, where strength,...

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

The Core Of Your Arm Balancesspinal flexionTHE CORE OF YOUR ARM BALANCES Arm balances may appear to be about what is happening in the hands and shoulders, but some of their most important mechanics are taking shape around the spine. When we explore the core of your...

Heart Opening Hints

Heart Opening HintsbackbendHEART OPENING HINTS What if one backbend could quietly teach us how to approach another? This is where Chromatic Yoga becomes particularly interesting. Instead of treating each posture as its own isolated challenge, we can recognize...

Flying Pigeon Patterning

Flying Pigeon Patterningarm balanceFLYING PIGEON PATTERNING Flying Pigeon isn't created by strength alone. In today's video, Matt walks us through the sequence of actions that organize the body before the balance even begins. From the initial relationship between the...

Hip Health Masterclass

Hip Health MasterclassmobilityHIP HEALTH MASTERCLASS Strong hips don't simply happen because we spend more time stretching them. They develop through a conversation between mobility and muscular control, where each action teaches the body how to move with greater...

All Videos

THE FREE TECHNIQUE PACK

When You Subscribe, You Will Get Instant Access to

the Technique Pack: 15 yoga pose breakdowns
exclusive online course discounts
exclusive blogs and videos

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

by Trisha Curling | Sep 10, 2026 | Main Page Display

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

STRENGTH

OVERCOME HANDSTAND HURDLES

Getting upside down is often harder than staying there. Matt teaches us that once we confidently arrive in Handstand, the effort can actually become quieter. The real work lies in the entry, where strength, precision, technique, timing, and skill must meet. For some of us, developing that relationship may take years, and setting that expectation can transform frustration into curiosity. In today’s video, we overcome handstand hurdles by literally building from the ground up. Instead of repeatedly throwing ourselves toward Handstand and hoping everything coordinates at once, Matt breaks the process into drills that train specific pieces of the posture. Core organization, shoulder strength, vertical forearms, hand engagement, and supported Handstand preparation each become something we can practise repeatedly. This is Chromatic Yoga in action: isolate the skill, understand its purpose, repeat it, and gradually integrate it into something more complex.

CHROMATIC YOGA

Chromatic Core Curriculum

30hr Certification
For Yoga Teachers, Pilates Instructors, Fitness Trainers, and Chromatic Yoga Teachers
Anatomically Smart Sequencing
Masterful Verbal Cues
Skillful Visual Demonstration
Self Adjustments
Elements of Voice

✋ SIGN ME UP

CORE DRILL

Before the feet travel overhead, we can teach the torso and shoulders what Handstand asks of them. Matt begins with a forearm based core drill, moving between a relaxed arch and an active hollow body position. The chin draws toward the chest, the ribs pull back, and the tailbone tucks as the lower back rounds. Meanwhile, the serratus anterior helps protract the shoulder blades, supporting their movement away from the spine and contributing to the upward action we eventually need in Handstand. Pulling the elbows and knees toward one another intensifies the core engagement before we slowly lower, resisting gravity rather than collapsing into it. Matt repeats the drill and then progresses it by extending the legs with pointed feet. Each repetition teaches us to remove the backbend and maintain the hollow shape. To overcome handstand hurdles, we first make the invisible architecture of Handstand familiar.

WATCH THE VIDEO

OVERCOME HANDSTAND HURDLES: BUILD THE SKILLS TO GET UPSIDE DOWN

VERTICAL FOREARMS

Sometimes the obstacle to Handstand is not strength but geometry. With the fingers gripping the floor and blocks providing feedback, Matt first establishes vertical forearms. From there, the challenge is bringing the rib cage into a more vertical relationship while maintaining the actions we have already practised. If tight hamstrings limit the forward fold, the feet can simply move farther back. What matters is preserving the mechanics rather than forcing a particular distance. Lift the heels, draw the ribs back, lean forward into the fingers, grip, and push through the shoulders. Matt’s familiar lean, grip, push strategy becomes increasingly important as more body weight travels toward the hands. Think of the push as a continuous line of energy travelling through the shoulders, elbows, hands, and ultimately into the fingers. Repeating this transition helps us overcome handstand hurdles by making weight transfer intentional rather than accidental.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

HANDSTAND PREPARATION WITH A CHAIR

A chair gives us the opportunity to experience greater load without immediately demanding the full balance. With one or both feet supported, Matt emphasizes pushing down into the chair to activate the hip flexors while the upper body recreates the strength of his Down Dog push-up action. The outer edges of the hands press firmly down as the shoulders continue to push upward. From here, we can repeatedly lean toward the wall and away from it, noticing how increasing weight in the hands also increases the demand through the shoulders. The heavier the hands become, the more important it is to resist sinking. Matt reminds us to extend the action through the elbows and all the way into the fingers. Repetition turns this preparation into much more than a modification. It becomes a controlled environment where we can practise receiving body weight through the hands while developing the strength required to send it back upward.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

BUILD YOUR ROUTINE

Handstand progress rarely arrives through one heroic practice. It is accumulated through smaller encounters with the skills that challenge us. Core drills teach the hollow body. Vertical forearms establish our foundation. Leaning, gripping, and pushing teach us how to manage weight, while the chair allows us to rehearse Handstand mechanics with greater support. Repeating each drill within a practice gives the nervous system another opportunity to recognize the pattern and the muscular system another reason to adapt. Eventually, the goal can be some form of Handstand practice each day, but not at the expense of burnout. Some days may be strong, while others may involve only a few deliberate repetitions. Consistency does not require intensity every time. Slow, small, repetitive practice can create profound change. When we overcome handstand hurdles this way, progress becomes less about conquering Handstand and more about patiently becoming prepared for it.

Continue developing the skills behind your practice through Matt’s Chromatic Yoga Training, where progressive sequencing and biomechanics turn challenging poses into movements we can understand, practise, and progressively embody.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: 10 Day Handstand Workshop

← See Previous Story See Next Story →

ONLINE ANATOMY COURSE

Accessible, exciting, and easy to learn
Anatomy and biomechanics for yoga
Appropriate for both teachers and students
Learn joint alignment vs pose alignment
Demystify yoga poses and transitions
Release aches and pains
Learn how to avoid common injuries
Caters to all levels with modifications and props
20 hours Continued Education Credits with Yoga Alliance
20 hours toward Chromatic Yoga Certification and 300 Hour
Lifetime access

TELL ME MORE!

Continue Learning

Invert With Ease

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

Heart Opening Hints

Flying Pigeon Patterning

Hip Health Masterclass

All Videos

THE FREE TECHNIQUE PACK

When You Subscribe, You Will Get Instant Access to

the Technique Pack: 15 yoga pose breakdowns
exclusive online course discounts
exclusive blogs and videos

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

by Trisha Curling | Aug 27, 2026 | Main Page Display

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

spinal flexion

THE CORE OF YOUR ARM BALANCES

Arm balances may appear to be about what is happening in the hands and shoulders, but some of their most important mechanics are taking shape around the spine. When we explore the core of your arm balances, Matt expands our understanding of the core beyond the front abdominal wall. The obliques wrap around the torso, the transversus abdominis creates a corset like layer, while muscles including the QL and erector spinae contribute from the back body. For spinal flexion, the rectus abdominis, external obliques and psoas are particularly relevant. Rather than simply collapsing forward, Matt encourages us to use these muscles to draw the sternum and pubic bone towards one another while actively doming the spine backward. It is the opposite direction of the bowing action we explore in heart opening practices. In today’s video, we build this relationship to spinal flexion progressively before applying it to two arm balances.

CHROMATIC YOGA

Chromatic Core Curriculum

30hr Certification
For Yoga Teachers, Pilates Instructors, Fitness Trainers, and Chromatic Yoga Teachers
Anatomically Smart Sequencing
Masterful Verbal Cues
Skillful Visual Demonstration
Self Adjustments
Elements of Voice

✋ SIGN ME UP

PRACTICE IT IN PLANK FIRST

Plank becomes our laboratory for establishing the shape before adding the complexity of an arm balance. Matt begins with the fingers gripping the ground and the shoulder blades spreading as we push the floor away. From there, draw the front ribs back, scoop the tailbone and pull the pubic bone towards the navel, creating the deepest Cat Pose shape available to you. The challenge is maintaining that flexion as the legs straighten and the body shifts slightly forward. Matt even invites us to experiment with keeping the neck more neutral while the rest of the spine remains flexed. Through the Chromatic Yoga process, we can isolate an important action in a more accessible posture before increasing the challenge. We are not simply preparing the muscles and joints for what comes next. Repetition begins to establish the neurological coordination that allows this rounded spinal position to become increasingly familiar.

WATCH THE VIDEO

THE CORE OF YOUR ARM BALANCES: ADD THESE STEPS TO INCREASE SPINAL FLEXION

CROW POSE

Now the architecture of Plank has somewhere to go. Matt offers the option of sliding directly into Crow Pose, or Bakasana, while preserving the spinal flexion we have just practised. Lift the heels, grip through the fingers and lean forward while continuing to push strongly through the shoulders. The knees slide wide towards the outer arms as the heels draw towards one another. Once the knees are positioned, squeeze them inward and shift the gaze forward. This is where the core of your arm balances becomes tangible. Instead of trying to manufacture Crow only after the feet leave the floor, we have already rehearsed its essential spinal shape. The rounded back, active abdominals and strong push through the hands have a neurological history from Plank. The posture may be different, but the body recognizes the pattern. This is how thoughtful preparation can make a more complex shape feel less like a leap and more like a progression.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

BHUJAPIDASANA

Bhujapidasana asks us to take spinal flexion into an even more compact relationship with the hips and legs. With the feet positioned slightly ahead of the blocks, Matt bends the knees and rounds the spine, encouraging us to make the body into as small a ball as possible. Blocks can be stacked higher when hip or spinal flexion makes reaching the hands difficult. Lower onto the upper arms, point the feet and look forward before squeezing the legs towards one another. Crossing the ankles is an option, but Matt prefers pressing the feet together because it keeps the inner thighs and hamstrings actively participating. Those engagements also build strength that can transfer into other postures. Again, spinal flexion is not a passive folding of the body. The abdominals actively draw us back into the rounded shape while the legs squeeze inward and the hands establish the foundation beneath us. Multiple actions converge to create the balance.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

BUILD THE PATTERN BEFORE THE POSE

Complexity becomes more approachable when we understand what it is made of. Plank, Crow and Bhujapidasana may look quite different, yet the thread running through them is the intentional creation and maintenance of spinal flexion. Matt's approach gives us an opportunity to practise that thread before asking the body to manage everything at once. We learn to dome the spine rather than simply drop forward, coordinate the abdominal muscles with the pelvis and ribs, and then retain those actions as more variables are introduced. This is one of the valuable principles within the Chromatic Yoga process: a skill can be explored, repeated and progressively layered until the nervous system has a clearer map of where we are going. The core of your arm balances, then, is not simply about becoming stronger. It is about creating coordination between strength, shape and awareness so the mechanics we practise can ultimately become the mechanics we trust.

Continue building your understanding of biomechanics, intentional movement, and progressive sequencing with Matt’s Chromatic Yoga Training, October 8th to 10th, 2026.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: Anatomy Of Arm Balances Immersion

← See Previous Story See Next Story →

ONLINE ANATOMY COURSE

Accessible, exciting, and easy to learn
Anatomy and biomechanics for yoga
Appropriate for both teachers and students
Learn joint alignment vs pose alignment
Demystify yoga poses and transitions
Release aches and pains
Learn how to avoid common injuries
Caters to all levels with modifications and props
20 hours Continued Education Credits with Yoga Alliance
20 hours toward Chromatic Yoga Certification and 300 Hour
Lifetime access

TELL ME MORE!

Continue Learning

Invert With Ease

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

Heart Opening Hints

Flying Pigeon Patterning

Hip Health Masterclass

All Videos

THE FREE TECHNIQUE PACK

When You Subscribe, You Will Get Instant Access to

the Technique Pack: 15 yoga pose breakdowns
exclusive online course discounts
exclusive blogs and videos

Heart Opening Hints

by Trisha Curling | Aug 13, 2026 | Main Page Display

Heart Opening Hints

backbend

HEART OPENING HINTS

What if one backbend could quietly teach us how to approach another? This is where Chromatic Yoga becomes particularly interesting. Instead of treating each posture as its own isolated challenge, we can recognize repeating actions and use one shape to inform the next. In today’s video, Matt provides us with some heart opening hints through Bow Pose and Wheel Pose, revealing connections between shoulder positioning, spinal extension, glute activation, and the direction of force through the legs. Bow teaches us to lengthen the front body while the legs actively reach back and up, while Wheel asks us to translate similar intentions into a completely different relationship with gravity. The shapes may look unrelated in some ways, but the muscular conversations are surprisingly familiar. When we learn to recognize these patterns, our practice becomes less about memorizing poses and more about developing movement intelligence that travels with us across the mat.

CHROMATIC YOGA

Chromatic Core Curriculum

30hr Certification
For Yoga Teachers, Pilates Instructors, Fitness Trainers, and Chromatic Yoga Teachers
Anatomically Smart Sequencing
Masterful Verbal Cues
Skillful Visual Demonstration
Self Adjustments
Elements of Voice

✋ SIGN ME UP

ACTIVATION IN A HIP OPENER

Before moving into deeper backbending, Matt offers us a heart opening hint within a hip opening position similar to a modified Monkey or Lizard Pose. We flex the back foot and actively draw the heel toward the buttocks, recruiting the hamstrings to create an active quadriceps stretch. From there, the shoulder moves up, back, and around as the hand reaches for the foot. Once we have the bind, the stretch could easily become passive, but Matt encourages us to keep participating. Pressing the foot back into the hand activates the quadriceps while rolling the shoulder back creates more opportunity for the chest to open. The glutes also contribute to the organization of the pelvis and back leg. This exchange between effort and openness is important. We are not simply pulling ourselves farther into a stretch. We create opposing forces that provide both information and support as the front body begins to expand.

WATCH THE VIDEO

HEART OPENING HINTS: DISCOVER HOW TWO BACKBENDS INFORM EACH OTHER

FOREHEAD ON BLOCK OPTION

Bow Pose gives us another opportunity to examine the difference between forcing an opening and preparing the body to receive one. Lying on the belly, Matt first has us wiggle the rib cage away from the pelvis, deliberately creating more length through the front body. With the knees bent, the forehead can rest on supportive foam blocks or a folded blanket while we reach back for the feet. The arms externally rotate and the shoulders move up and back, preparing the chest before elevation begins. From there, the glutes help lift the legs, the big toes reach upward, and the quadriceps kick the feet back as the heart travels forward. These heart opening hints also include an internal check in. Matt asks us to soften and consider how we want to feel. Repeating Bow becomes an opportunity to adjust the experience rather than automatically pursue more depth.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

BRIDGE PREPARATION

Before Wheel, Bridge Pose lets us rehearse spinal extension without managing the full demand of the final posture. Matt directs us to press the heels into the ground, move the knees away from the face, and use the glutes to elevate the pelvis. Meanwhile, the ribs travel in the opposite direction, toward the face, helping to create an arch that is distributed through the spine rather than concentrated in one area. The arms press into the floor while the heart continues its journey upward. These heart opening hints become increasingly valuable because they teach us where the movement should originate before more load is added. Bridge gives us time to understand the directional relationships: legs reaching one way, ribs another, pelvis lifting, and chest expanding. We are essentially building the neurological map for Wheel while remaining in a position where we can observe the details with greater clarity.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

FULL WHEEL AT THE WALL

The final translation into Wheel makes the importance of sequencing unmistakable. Matt begins from Bridge, allowing the elbows enough width before positioning the top of the head and retracting the shoulder blades. Then comes the detail that can change the experience entirely: legs first, arms second. The legs initiate the movement as we imagine sending the heart toward the wall. Only after that direction is established do the arms contribute more strongly to the lift. Reversing the order can send unnecessary demand into the lower back and SI joint. Here, heart opening becomes a study in timing as much as strength or flexibility. Bow, Bridge, and Wheel have been teaching related actions all along. Chromatic patterning allows us to collect those experiences, recognize what repeats, and apply what we have learned when the physical challenge increases. The deeper skill is knowing which action belongs where and when.

Explore more ways to connect biomechanics, purposeful action, and progressive sequencing through Matt’s Chromatic Yoga Training October 8th - 10th 2026.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: Heart Openers Immersion

← See Previous Story See Next Story →

ONLINE ANATOMY COURSE

Accessible, exciting, and easy to learn
Anatomy and biomechanics for yoga
Appropriate for both teachers and students
Learn joint alignment vs pose alignment
Demystify yoga poses and transitions
Release aches and pains
Learn how to avoid common injuries
Caters to all levels with modifications and props
20 hours Continued Education Credits with Yoga Alliance
20 hours toward Chromatic Yoga Certification and 300 Hour
Lifetime access

TELL ME MORE!

Continue Learning

Invert With Ease

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

Heart Opening Hints

Flying Pigeon Patterning

Hip Health Masterclass

All Videos

THE FREE TECHNIQUE PACK

When You Subscribe, You Will Get Instant Access to

the Technique Pack: 15 yoga pose breakdowns
exclusive online course discounts
exclusive blogs and videos

Flying Pigeon Patterning

by Trisha Curling | Jul 30, 2026 | Main Page Display

Flying Pigeon Patterning

arm balance

FLYING PIGEON PATTERNING

Flying Pigeon isn't created by strength alone. In today's video, Matt walks us through the sequence of actions that organize the body before the balance even begins. From the initial relationship between the foot and armpit to the coordinated engagements of the hips and supporting leg, every movement prepares us for a more stable and efficient arm balance. When we learn the pattern first, lift becomes a natural consequence instead of the primary goal.

CHROMATIC YOGA

Chromatic Core Curriculum

30hr Certification
For Yoga Teachers, Pilates Instructors, Fitness Trainers, and Chromatic Yoga Teachers
Anatomically Smart Sequencing
Masterful Verbal Cues
Skillful Visual Demonstration
Self Adjustments
Elements of Voice

✋ SIGN ME UP

"BOAT PIGEON"

Matt introduces the pattern in what he calls "Boat Pigeon," beginning seated on the buttocks with one ankle crossing over the opposite knee. Before anything else happens, he encourages us to bring the armpit toward the crossed knee, allowing the spine to flex enough to secure the foot around the arm. This initial setup creates the connection that everything else depends upon. Once the foot is firmly wrapped, the armpit hugs the leg while we gradually lean back to explore balance. At the same time, the standing side hip flexors become active, helping lift and stabilize the supporting leg. For those with greater strength and control, extending the free leg adds another layer of challenge while reinforcing the same foundational mechanics.

WATCH THE VIDEO

FLYING PIGEON PATTERNING: BUILD THE MECHANICS BEFORE THE LIFT

WORK ON THE ENGAGEMENTS

The strength of this pattern comes from the way several muscular actions work together rather than independently. Matt explains that keeping the pinky edge of the foot actively gripping into the arm prevents the connection from becoming passive. At the same time, the back knee squeezes firmly toward the crossed ankle, creating additional security so the foot is less likely to slide away. As we begin leaning forward, pressing down through the front shin creates an upward response that gradually makes the body feel lighter. Rather than relying on momentum, every engagement contributes to distributing effort throughout the entire body, allowing the arm balance to emerge from coordinated action instead of brute strength.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

HAND PLACEMENT IS CRUCIAL

One of Matt's most practical insights is that even excellent engagements can be limited by poor hand placement. If we attempt to enter the arm balance too early, much of the body's weight remains over the standing foot, leaving very little opportunity to shift forward. Instead, sitting the buttocks down allows the hands to walk farther in front of the body before leaning into the balance. This forward placement creates the space needed for the centre of gravity to travel over the hands. Matt also notes that positioning the knee higher into the armpit often feels more stable than resting it on the triceps, giving the leg a stronger point of contact while making the balance feel more integrated.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

BUILD THE PATTERN, FIND THE BALANCE

Flying Pigeon becomes far less intimidating when we stop thinking of it as a single destination and instead recognize it as a sequence of well organized actions. Each adjustment, from securing the foot first to activating the supporting leg, placing the hands intentionally, and coordinating the body's engagements, contributes to a more balanced and sustainable practice. As these individual pieces become familiar, the transition into the arm balance feels less like a leap of faith and more like the natural result of thoughtful preparation.

Continue to explore biomechanics based progressions like these in Matt's next 30 Hr in person Chromatic Level I training October 8th - 10th 2026.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: Chromatic Yoga 15 Hr. Immersion

← See Previous Story See Next Story →

ONLINE ANATOMY COURSE

Accessible, exciting, and easy to learn
Anatomy and biomechanics for yoga
Appropriate for both teachers and students
Learn joint alignment vs pose alignment
Demystify yoga poses and transitions
Release aches and pains
Learn how to avoid common injuries
Caters to all levels with modifications and props
20 hours Continued Education Credits with Yoga Alliance
20 hours toward Chromatic Yoga Certification and 300 Hour
Lifetime access

TELL ME MORE!

Continue Learning

Invert With Ease

Overcome Handstand Hurdles

The Core Of Your Arm Balances

Heart Opening Hints

Flying Pigeon Patterning

Hip Health Masterclass

All Videos

THE FREE TECHNIQUE PACK

When You Subscribe, You Will Get Instant Access to

the Technique Pack: 15 yoga pose breakdowns
exclusive online course discounts
exclusive blogs and videos

Hip Health Masterclass

by Trisha Curling | Jul 16, 2026 | Main Page Display

Hip Health Masterclass

mobility

HIP HEALTH MASTERCLASS

Strong hips don't simply happen because we spend more time stretching them. They develop through a conversation between mobility and muscular control, where each action teaches the body how to move with greater confidence. In this hip health masterclass, Matt shifts our attention to the external rotators of the hip, exploring how these often-overlooked muscles organize the relationship between the pelvis and femur. Through purposeful external rotation, hip extension, and posterior pelvic engagement, we strengthen the gluteus maximus, the posterior fibres of gluteus medius and minimus, and the deep six rotators, including the piriformis. As these muscles become more responsive, the hips begin to feel supported from the inside out, creating movement that is both stronger and more sustainable.

CHROMATIC YOGA

The Official Online 15Hr. Immersion

12 Chromatic Yoga practices with founder Matt Giordano
Full-spectrum immersion covering all posture categories
Improve your body awareness and advance your practice
Technique, biomechanics, and alignment at the forefront
Life-enhancing and inspirational Chromatic philosophy woven through each class
15 Continuing Education hours with Yoga Alliance
15 Accredited Hours with the Chromatic School of Yoga
Step-by-step instruction for increased accessibility
Improve strength, balance, flexibility, and proprioception
Appropriate variations and modifications for all levels

[cl_product_price id="213492"]

MORE INFORMATION

✋ SIGN ME UP

TRY THESE BACK TO BACK

Matt begins by introducing two complementary movements that encourage both mobility and activation. Straightening the front leg, we gently close the pelvis and "wag the tail," creating a stretch through the iliotibial band while also lengthening the external rotators by moving the sacrum away from their attachment on the greater trochanter of the femur. We then transition into a Humble Warrior variation, where the front outer heel presses firmly into the ground to encourage external rotation of the thigh. As the front glutes and deep rotators awaken, the back leg contributes by pressing into the floor and drawing forward, activating the adductors. Together, these opposing actions transform a familiar stretch into a strengthening practice, reminding us that healthy hips thrive when stability and mobility develop side by side.

WATCH THE VIDEO

HIP HEALTH MASTERCLASS: NOURISH STRENGTH & FLEXIBILITY

HAVE YOU TRIED ACTIVE PIGEON?

This version of Pigeon Pose asks much more of the body than simply relaxing into flexibility. With the back toes tucked, Matt encourages us to square the pelvis while internally rotating the back thigh and externally rotating the front thigh. From there, we actively draw both knees toward one another, allowing the hips to lift before gently rounding the pelvis with a subtle posterior tilt. Pressing the front knee downward while spiralling the thigh outward immediately recruits the gluteal muscles and deep external rotators. Rather than collapsing into the posture, we pulse with intention, building strength exactly where many of us simply expect to stretch. The result is an active expression of a “hip health masterclass”, where muscular engagement becomes the foundation for healthier movement and more resilient hip joints.

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET CERTIFIED & DEEPEN YOUR YOGA PRACTICE

Deepen your yoga practice
Build confidence speaking in front of groups in person and online
Learn foundational class structures and templates
Learn techniques for a wide range of yoga postures
Get certified and highly qualified to teach yoga
Yoga Alliance Globally Recognized Certification Program

LEARN MORE!

LIZARD PIGEON COMBINATION

Matt finishes with a thoughtful progression that blends the openness of Lizard Pose with the rotational demands of Pigeon. As the front thigh externally rotates, the outer heel presses firmly into the floor to reinforce the same muscular actions explored throughout the full class from the immersion. Because the hip is deeply flexed, the piriformis changes its mechanical role, becoming an internal rotator rather than an external rotator, creating an entirely different stretching experience than traditional Pigeon Pose. Moving the foot closer toward the centre of the mat while allowing the knee to open changes the angle once again, inviting different fibres of the hip musculature to participate. Throughout each variation, Matt encourages us to continue reaching the pelvis backward rather than collapsing forward, helping us discover new layers of mobility while maintaining active support through the surrounding muscles.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

GET 500 HOUR CERTIFIED AS A MASTER TEACHER

Master your skill set as a teacher through refined techniques, anatomy, biomechanics, sequencing, philosophy, meditation techniques, theming, yoga business, and much more!

Get 500 hour certified
Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
Learn meditation and breathwork techniques
Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang

LEARN MORE!

RETHINKING HIP MOBILITY

One of the most compelling ideas Matt leaves us with is that healthy hips aren't built by stretching farther, but by teaching the body to participate more fully. As the external rotators, gluteal muscles, and deep stabilizers learn to coordinate with one another, the hip joint begins to move with greater confidence rather than hesitation. Every active rotation, every deliberate press through the heel, and every balanced muscular contraction creates an environment where mobility can develop without sacrificing support. Instead of asking the body to surrender to flexibility, we invite it to become an active partner in the process. Over time, this approach transforms stretching from something we endure into something we intelligently create.

If you're inspired to explore more biomechanics-based practices like these, Matt's Chromatic Yoga Online Immersion offers a wealth of progressive lessons designed to help you move with greater strength, awareness, and confidence.

The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

The 300 Hr. Advanced Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

Article by Trish Curling

Video Extracted From: Chromatic Yoga 15 Hr. Immersion