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ABDUCTOR MUSCLE ANATOMY AND PELVIC STABILITY

The action of the abductor muscles is to move your legs away from the midline of the body. These muscles also assist in stabilizing the pelvis. A telltale sign that your abductor muscles are extremely flexible or potentially weak is the presence of a significant hip sway when walking. Alternatively, when your abductor muscles are tight, it may be more challenging to adduct the upper thigh bones because of the pull from the tension in the abductor muscles. In order to create pelvic stability, you need suppleness in the abductor muscles. Engaging in opportunities to both stretch and strengthen will help you nurture more supple muscles.

There are 4 main abductor muscles: gluteus medius, gluteus minimus, tensor fasciae latae (TFL), and gluteus maximus. Even though TFL is a hip flexor and gluteus maximus extends the hips, they also abduct the legs when they work together.

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CONNECT TO YOUR ABDUCTOR MUSCLES: 5 UNIQUE VARIATIONS FOR INCREASED STRETCH AND STRENGTH

WARRIOR II AND SIDE PLANK TO PROMOTE STRENGTH

Warrior II

This posture can serve you in ways you may not expect. The technique to create strength in the abductor muscles here is to utilize a self-adjustment. Placing your hand on the outside of your front knee and pressing your hand into your knee and your knee into your hand will work to awaken and strengthen all four abductor muscles.

Side Plank with a Strap

Grab a strap for this one! The strap helps provide the feedback and the self-adjustment required to connect to your abductor muscles. You’ll see in the video that the trick here is to turn your pelvis slightly towards the ground as you push your legs apart (abduct) in order to create the required tension in the strap. Think about pulling the back of your legs apart as opposed to opening your pelvis.

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CHAIR POSE TICK TOCKS

Now, this is a really creative variation! Once again, the strap is your best friend. Sensationally, it will provide more information from your body, which will help you discern which actions you need to implement so as to connect with and activate your abductor muscles. Matt emphasizes that the action of pressing your heels apart provides a slight internal rotation of the femur bones, which helps to ignite the TFL. As you “tick tock” from side to side, you maintain the abduction of the legs in conjunction with that internal rotation so that you can indeed feel the intended contraction and effort from your abductor muscles.

Practicing in this way builds neural pathways in the brain, promoting a healthy mind-body connection. The more you repeat actions like this, you’re teaching and telling your body how to respond more effectively in order to develop greater strength.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

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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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

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

EFFECTIVELY STRETCH IN PIGEON AND EAGLE POSE

Pigeon Pose

To connect to your abductor muscles in Pigeon Pose, it’s about where you place your effort. If the right leg is forward, you’ll push your front thigh bone down and to the right, which will promote strength. This will also send your body to the left, which will also spark a stretch.

Eagle Pose on Your Back

In a standing Eagle Pose, the standing leg needs to be strong and the crossover leg flexible in the abductor muscles. In the video, Matt provides the variation on your back as a way to more easily negotiate the flexibility aspect of the posture.

A golden tip is to hike the hip of the top leg in order to gain more access to the bind, providing more stretch. In the video, you’ll see how Matt adds a lift of the legs to go even deeper with the stretch.

DO MORE THAN THE POSTURE

Throughout his classes, Matt continuously reminds us that it’s not about “just doing the posture” but about your particular intent and the purpose it provides for you as an individual in a given moment.

Ultimately, maintaining the health of your muscles—cultivating both strength and flexibility—will lead you to a stronger, more well-developed asana practice along with those same benefits in your daily life.

You can start practicing in Matt’s Blissful Hips Immersion and learn how to safely and effectively unlock these benefits.

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

Article by Trish Curling

Videos Extracted From: Blissful Hips Immersion

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Appropriate for both teachers and students
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Connect To Your Abductor Muscles

Connect to Your Abductor Muscles 5 Unique Variations for Increased Stretch and Strengthhip stabilityCONNECT TO YOUR ABDUCTOR MUSCLES Once you’ve been exposed to what’s possible in your asana practice, there’s no turning back. What I mean is that it’s possible to...

Pelvic Movement & The Hip Joint

Pelvic Movement and the Hip Joint Understand the Influence in Your Practice and Your Bodyhip mobilityPelvic Movement and the Hip Joint The hips are a combination of challenge, ease, freedom, restriction, strength, and weakness. You could very well be experiencing all...

Glutes & Hamstrings

Glutes and Hamstrings 8 Skills and Drills for ActivationstrengthGlutes and Hamstrings How many times has your yoga teacher said “feel your glutes” in a particular posture in a yoga class, but you’re not sure exactly what that means or what it’s actually supposed to...

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

Bound Ardha Chandrasana Technique, Accessibility, and ExpressionBOUND HALF MOONBOUND ARDHA CHANDRASANA As Matt shares the 5 Powers of Consciousness from Tantrik yoga philosophy in his current immersion, The Power of Bliss, he reminds us that they are powers that exist...

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets Polish Your Technique for Masterful ActionPOWER YOGASUN SALUTATION SKILL SETS The feeling you get from flowing on your mat to the rhythm of your breath can feel like paradise. There’s a freedom involved in seamlessly flowing from one yoga...

3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

3 Ways to Stretch and Strengthen Your Neck Home In on the Awareness of Your PostureNECK MOBILITYSTRETCH AND STRENGTHEN YOUR NECK A common postural tendency or pattern for so many is slouching, which includes forward head posture due to the amount of time spent at a...

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Pelvic Movement & The Hip Joint

by Trisha Curling | Dec 7, 2023 | Main Page Display

Pelvic Movement and the Hip Joint

Understand the Influence in Your Practice and Your Body

hip mobility

Pelvic Movement and the Hip Joint

The hips are a combination of challenge, ease, freedom, restriction, strength, and weakness. You could very well be experiencing all of these things simultaneously! The hip joint is quite complex—it’s a ball and socket joint that allows you to move in elaborate ways, in your yoga practice and your life off of the mat. This, however, can also make it vulnerable to injury. Understanding your hips and how other areas of your body affect how you move is imperative if your goal is to access your fullest potential in terms of your asana practice and/or movement as a whole. An entry point to such understanding can simply be how you articulate a specific part of your body. In today’s video, Matt highlights the positive impact certain pelvic articulations can have on what you experience in regard to hip mobility.

BLISSFUL HIPS

December 2023 Immersion

Technique-infused yoga classes
Nondogmatic and effective alignment
Improve low back health
Increase hamstring and hip flexor mobility
Improve flexibility of inner thighs and outer hips
Improve posture on and off the mat
12 classes included
Livestream optional; all classes available on demand after livestream’s complete

Registration now open!

THE BENEFITS OF PELVIC ANTERIOR TILT IN DOWNWARD DOG

Downward Dog can easily become a posture that just feels like you don’t have to think about how to do it. After all, how many times have you done this posture? Probably too many to count, right?

Matt offers a new lens through which to consider Downward Dog. It’s no secret that part of the benefit of doing this posture is that you’ll get a stretch in your hamstrings. Increased flexibility in your hamstrings can allow for more freedom of movement of the pelvis around the hip joint. However, it is common for your glutes to take charge as soon as you lift your knees off of the ground to lift your hips up, which may create a more posterior tilt of the pelvis. Maintaining an anterior tilt of your pelvis helps strengthen your lower back and offers a hamstring stretch with more integrity for your body.

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PELVIC MOVEMENT AND THE HIP JOINT: UNDERSTAND THE INFLUENCE IN YOUR PRACTICE AND YOUR BODY

CONTROVERSIAL TRANSITIONS ON THE MAT

There are strong opinions when it comes to transitioning from Warrior III to Half Moon. Some will say you should NEVER do it, and others say it’s fine. The argument is that you’re bearing weight on the femur bone of the standing leg and that it destroys the hip joint. Matt points out that in fact, we do this action often. For example, in the transition from High Lunge to Warrior II, you’ll see him demonstrate the movement of the pelvis around the femur bone. Yes, there is slightly more weight in the Warrior III transition, but it is a natural movement. What you’ll know better than anyone who has an opinion is how the movement feels in your body. Matt explains that if there is pain, it can often be attributed to a lack of strength in the muscles that surround the hip. In the video, he shows you where to place your awareness to begin to minimize the pain.

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HOW THE PELVIS INFORMS A STRETCH

The last posture in today’s video, a Pyramid variation, offers insight into how the direction of your pelvis can inform and transform your experience in a stretch. Instead of just squaring the hips, Matt cues a rotation of the pelvis (with left leg back) in which you turn the left side of your pelvis down towards the ground and towards your right thigh bone. The benefit here is a deeper stretch of the right outer buttocks and hips. Why is this action important? Deepening the stretch of these muscles, which may not be easy to find in your yoga practice, will contribute to the overall health of the hip joint. Achieving increased hip mobility involves increased flexibility. Keep in mind, however, that there are other parts of the equation. Overall hip health and mobility also require strength and body awareness.

300 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

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Learn anatomy, biomechanics, asana techniques
Expand your teaching skills
Masterful sequencing and verbal delivery
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Transformative tools: theming, dharma talks, satsang
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The 200 Hr. Teacher Training: Click Here to See the Next Start Date

HOW TO ACHIEVE OVERALL HIP HEALTH

In the full class, Matt explains that mobility implies that we have strength in a greater range of motion, no matter how elongated a muscle is. There are plenty of opportunities to stretch muscles in an asana practice, but activating them in the practice to build strength will also increase their flexibility over time. It is important to remember this when you are exploring the actions of the pelvis around the hip joint in order to create more flexibility and length in the muscles that surround and support the hip. Exploring these articulations of the pelvis promotes and improves your sense of proprioception and body awareness, helping you unlock your potential. Try these actions in your practice and watch it unfold!

Delve into the possibilities of this complex area of your body in Matt’s current immersion, Blissful Hips.

See you on the mat!

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

Article by Trish Curling

Videos Extracted From: Blissful Hips Immersion

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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

Continue Learning

Connect To Your Abductor Muscles

Pelvic Movement & The Hip Joint

Glutes & Hamstrings

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

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

Glutes & Hamstrings

by Trisha Curling | Nov 30, 2023 | Main Page Display

Glutes and Hamstrings

8 Skills and Drills for Activation

strength

Glutes and Hamstrings

How many times has your yoga teacher said “feel your glutes” in a particular posture in a yoga class, but you’re not sure exactly what that means or what it’s actually supposed to feel like? You can easily lose or misunderstand the connection to the sensations in your body unless you’re intentional about locking in to each action in your asana practice. It’s more than that though—it’s also about learning the techniques to actually make the connection. Learning effective techniques and implementing them can help you to get to know your body in a deeper way, and this can very effectively change how you move. In today’s video, Matt highlights 8 effective ways for you to connect to your glutes and hamstrings in order to strengthen them for better functionality overall.

BLISSFUL HIPS

December 2023 Immersion

Technique-infused yoga classes
Nondogmatic and effective alignment
Improve low back health
Increase hamstring and hip flexor mobility
Improve flexibility of inner thighs and outer hips
Improve posture on and off the mat
12 classes included
Livestream optional; all classes available on demand after livestream’s complete

Registration now open!

LEARN THE TECHNIQUES

An excellent approach to connecting to your glutes and hamstrings is to learn technique. This provides a focus and removes the pressure of trying to randomly figure out where and how to feel what you may believe you’re supposed to feel. It also helps you explore your body in a safe way. In Matt’s approach, instead of just going through a variety of postures that are “prescribed” to fire up your glutes and hamstrings, Matt provides a direct how-to, which means there are articulations and repetitive actions that help you connect with certainty to the sensations in your glutes and hamstrings.

Strength is more than building muscle and resilience; it’s a skill. The skills and drills that Matt offers create a solid foundation for transformation and connection in your body.

WATCH THE VIDEO

GLUTES AND HAMSTRINGS: 8 SKILLS AND DRILLS FOR ACTIVATION

TRANSFORM THESE STANDING POSTURES

In Low Lunge, Matt demonstrates how to access your glutes and hamstrings effectively. To ignite your hamstrings in the front leg, drag your front heel back while creating a posterior tilt in the pelvis. When you also press down the front heel, your glutes will spark up.

In the video, Matt maintains the same actions in Warrior II, Goddess Pose, and the Pyramid variation he demonstrates. Pressing down through your heel and pulling your feet towards each other contracts and activates your glutes and hamstrings.

The Supported Warrior III “leg lift” variation offers specific pelvic articulations that are key to connecting to the sensations in your glutes and hamstrings, and Crescent Pose Slides are an effective glute and hamstring strengthener.

Incorporating these skills and drills will help you understand your body more deeply .

200 HOUR ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING

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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
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SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

GLUTE BRIDGE AND TABLE TOP VARIATIONS

These potentially more “traditional” movements to activate and strengthen your glutes and hamstrings are also executed with different levels and unique articulations in the video.

One of the first ways to really find connection in these variations is to remove your yoga mat! Matt wears socks on his hardwood floor. Wearing socks forces you to dig in a little deeper into the floor to find steadiness.

Matt offers 3 variations of Glute Bridge and 4 variations of Table Top. What’s nice about exploring the different variations is that you have the opportunity to find out where your needs are on each side of the body. This is where growth and understanding take place.

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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

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

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

When it comes to the hamstrings, you may often think about how to become more flexible in that area of the body; what may be neglected is that to create integrity in your muscles, there must be a healthy degree of strength. Strength is often associated with glutes, but why, and how can you strengthen them effectively? If you strengthen your glutes and hamstrings effectively, you support your ability to propel your body forward in your daily movement. Applying these safe and effective techniques will contribute to your hip health and thus your overall health.

Register for Matt’s December 2023 Immersion Blissful Hips in order to learn and to expand your current toolbox for strength!

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

Article by Trish Curling

Videos Extracted From: Hip Mobility 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

Continue Learning

Connect To Your Abductor Muscles

Pelvic Movement & The Hip Joint

Glutes & Hamstrings

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

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

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

by Trisha Curling | Nov 16, 2023 | Main Page Display

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

Technique, Accessibility, and Expression

BOUND HALF MOON

BOUND ARDHA CHANDRASANA

As Matt shares the 5 Powers of Consciousness from Tantrik yoga philosophy in his current immersion, The Power of Bliss, he reminds us that they are powers that exist within us and are present all around us. You can see a brief breakdown here. These teachings can be applied when discussing Bound Ardha Chandrasana, and there is a lot to say. In the full class, Matt describes this pose as one of the most challenging (this is subjective of course), but that leaves room to interject discussion of the 2nd power of consciousness, Bliss (Ānanda-Śakti), into the conversation. When considering what Bliss means when it comes to Bound Ardha Chandrasana, you’ll also have to also make room for how technique (or knowledge, Jñāna-Śakti), accessibility, and expression play a role.

THE POWER OF BLISS

November 2023 Immersion

Moderately paced Power Yoga classes
Perfect blend of movement, alignment, and technique
Inspirationally themed to give meaning and power to each practice
Tantrik philosophy: The 5 Powers of Consciousness
Teachings of the Yoga Sutras
12 classes included
Livestream optional! All classes available on demand after livestream's complete

Registration now open!

WHAT IS YOUR DEFINITION OF BLISS?

I was asked this question once by my osteopath, and I gave an answer about a feeling, a moment in time when I felt happy. Starting to delve deeper into philosophy in my 300 Hour studies with Matt has definitely challenged my previous answer.

Matt explains the teachings so well, stating that Bliss (yes, with a capital B) is not a feeling of just finding happiness, or of “being in a state of bliss” because things are going the way you want them to at a particular moment or in life. Rather, it is the awareness (Cit-Śakti) that even in struggle, you can experience Bliss because you are here, in the human experience. Your mere being is an expression of Bliss itself and all that your experiences encompass.

If Bound Ardha Chandrasana is challenging and you’re feeling frustrated in the process, Bliss is actually present.

WATCH THE VIDEO

BOUND ARDHA CHANDRASANA: TECHNIQUE, ACCESSIBILITY, AND EXPRESSION

GROWTH AND EXPRESSION

The same is true if Bound Ardha Chandrasana comes to you quite naturally. Bliss is also present in this state. This is where we come to understand that it’s more about where we are along the journey of Bound Ardha Chandrasana and not about the achievement of the posture itself. It’s about the knowledge we are gaining and about each individual experience. Your ability to express yourself fully in any variation of the posture is what contributes to the deepening of your relationship with the practice of yoga and the power that exists within you.

On the Chromatic Path to the posture, there are variations and preparations for you to learn from, sit with, and grow with. Matt’s classes offer a plethora of options for you to carve your own path.

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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

VARIATION AND PREPARATION

In today’s video, Matt starts off by demonstrating the techniques involved in Bound Side Angle. Important cues like the internal rotation of your arms, along with bowing deeply forward, create an accessibility to the bind that you may not have thought possible. Now, working this way in Bound Side Angle or even Bound Triangle (which he also demonstrates) doesn’t necessarily make the pose “easier.” This approach just offers options and access points for you to explore. The postures are opportunities for you to explore the techniques, gain knowledge, and discern what is appropriate for you to express at any given time. Matt offers the option for you to explore a half bind, or none at all. When you play the video, you’ll hear him discuss the importance of finding the love within yourself to express outwardly in the form or variation you’ve chosen.

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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

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

FROM TECHNIQUE TO BLISS

You could quite easily argue that it’s not a road from technique to Bliss; they actually very much permeate one another. Bliss exists within acquiring the knowledge of the techniques involved in Bound Ardha Chandrasana. Being present in the fullness of each step reminds you of the fact that you have an ability to explore your body in this way and that both your experience in your body and your experience with postures like Bound Ardha Chandrasana will change over time. The intricacies that Matt demonstrates in the video, like where to place your Drishti (gaze), where to place the weight in your feet, how to ignite your glutes—are all part of the power that exists within you. Bask in the glory of this expression in the Power of Bliss Immersion.

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

Article by Trish Curling

Videos Extracted From: Power of Bliss 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

Continue Learning

Connect To Your Abductor Muscles

Pelvic Movement & The Hip Joint

Glutes & Hamstrings

Bound Ardha Chandrasana

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

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

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

by Trisha Curling | Nov 9, 2023 | Main Page Display

10 Sun Salutation Skill Sets

Polish Your Technique for Masterful Action

POWER YOGA

SUN SALUTATION SKILL SETS

The feeling you get from flowing on your mat to the rhythm of your breath can feel like paradise. There’s a freedom involved in seamlessly flowing from one yoga posture to the next. In a Vinyasa or Power Yoga class, you become intimately acquainted with Sun Salutation sequences. What may get lost, however, is the value of technique within your flow. Maintaining an underpinning of technique within your movements on the mat can drastically enhance the actions you take in your asana practice as a whole. If you’ve practiced with Matt before, then you’re more than aware that the techniques and philosophical guidance he offers within his classes can transform your yoga practice. Polishing your technique in Sun Salutation sequences will establish a solid foundation for your body to move with increased assuredness and ease in your Vinyasa or Power Yoga flows.

THE POWER OF BLISS

November 2023 Immersion

Moderately paced Power Yoga classes
Perfect blend of movement, alignment, and technique
Inspirationally themed to give meaning and power to each practice
Tantrik philosophy: The 5 Powers of Consciousness
Teachings of the Yoga Sutras
12 classes included
Livestream optional! All classes available on demand after livestream's complete

Registration now open!

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

Today’s video is extracted from Matt’s first class in his current immersion, Power Of Bliss. He begins the class by providing a broad overview of the 5 Powers of Consciousness from the Tantrik yoga lineage.

“Knowledge,” or Jñāna–Śakti, being 1 of the 5 powers, is the acquisition of skill, technique, and understanding. This can be applied to any aspect of your life. On the yoga mat, it may refer to learning more about your body via the vehicle of yoga postures. It may mean learning about how to execute the postures themselves to maximize strength and flexibility. Matt stresses, however, that when you understand that all 5 powers are connected, then you realize that no amount of knowledge will manifest itself without action or without the will to learn in the first place, but knowledge is essential and helps you be more intentional with your actions.

WATCH THE VIDEO

10 SUN SALUTATION SKILL SETS: POLISH YOUR TECHNIQUE FOR MASTERFUL ACTION

POSTURE SKILLS PART I

There is a plethora of techniques to be explored within Sun Salutation sequences. Fortunately, Matt creates an easily digestible process through which to attain these skills in today’s video.

Standing Chaturanga and Chaturanga

Standing Chaturanga removes the element of strength so you can first align your body for safe and efficient positioning. You’ll learn the placement of the hands and how that connects to the orientation of your shoulders. Practicing on a wall is the next stop before taking it to the mat.

Urdhva Hastasana

Matt teaches that when raising your arms up overhead, elevating your scapulae will help to minimize the risk of shoulder impingement. It will also train your body to utilize muscles like the serratus anterior and trapezius.

Ardha Uttanasana and Uttanasana

One of the most common tendencies in these poses is to misalign your pelvis and ankles. For increased strength, you can also isometrically contract your outer hips and buttocks in both postures.

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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

POSTURE SKILLS PART II

Plank

Planks are inevitable in Sun Salutation A. They may feel challenging, but layering in the techniques Matt teaches will significantly change your experience.

3-Part Cobra and Upward-Facing Dog

3-Part Cobra is unique to Chromatic Yoga. It’s a great way to prepare for spinal extension and what’s required in Upward-Facing Dog. Each step is precise and reveals a true record of your spinal extension.

Downward-Facing Dog

After practicing the elevation of the scapulae in Urdhva Hastasana, your body is more primed for the same elevation here. The muscle activations create more intensity and more support around the shoulder girdle.

The Jumps

Both forward and back jumps allow for more seamless transitions. There are specific articulations of the ankles and knees that create more fluency when practiced.

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
SPRING ENROLLMENT OPEN! Training begins June 1

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KNOWLEDGE APPLICATION

Learning these techniques brings you closer to what’s required in your own body. Seen through the lens of the 5 Powers of Consciousness, knowledge will create transformation through the awareness that action must take place with consistency. Acquiring more in-depth knowledge of the postures in Sun Salutation A can cultivate deeper understanding and more transformative experiences in other postures. Knowledge is imperative, but it’s the application of that knowledge that helps you reach your fullest potential. The connection of philosophy to your physical practice can also promote deeper self-study, or Svadhyaya.

Learn how to make these deeper connections and polish your technique in The Power Of Bliss Immersion.

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Article by Trish Curling

Videos Extracted From: Power Of Bliss Immersion

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3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

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3 Ways To Stretch & Strengthen Your Neck

by Trisha Curling | Nov 2, 2023 | Main Page Display

3 Ways to Stretch and Strengthen Your Neck

Home In on the Awareness of Your Posture

NECK MOBILITY

STRETCH AND STRENGTHEN YOUR NECK

A common postural tendency or pattern for so many is slouching, which includes forward head posture due to the amount of time spent at a work desk or on a variety of digital devices. Functioning in this way may seem unavoidable due to work/life responsibilities, but welcoming in a level of awareness and actions you can take to shift this pattern will ultimately contribute to greater wellness.

If you’re holding tension in your neck and upper back, the techniques Matt offers in today’s video will help stretch and strengthen the appropriate muscles in your neck. It also means that you’ll find more freedom of movement, which may also lead to less tension. The key component is the awareness that you’ll nurture throughout the process. There isn’t any “fix” without awareness. This part of the equation must also be implemented.

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SVADHYAYA AND AWARENESS

If you want to transform your experience, you must first be aware of your state of being. In my previous blog, Take Action in Flying Pigeon, we touched on the area of understanding the 5 Powers of Consciousness, which Matt explores further in his immersion The Power of Bliss and delves into in greater detail in his 300 Hr. Teacher Training. In Chromatic Yoga, Matt draws on the original teachings of the Yoga Sutras and beyond. He stresses that the key aspect is self-inquiry, Svadhyaya in the Yoga Sutras. This relates back to the first power in the 5 Powers of Consciousness from the Tantik perspective, which is Cit Śakti (the power of awareness itself). The power of awareness leads to the journey of Svadhyaya and therefore the discernment you need to take the right actions.

WATCH THE VIDEO

3 WAYS TO STRETCH & STRENGTHEN YOUR NECK: HONE IN ON THE AWARENESS OF YOUR NECK

TECHNIQUES FOR THE NECK

When you’re experiencing neck tension, it can be quite challenging to shift your awareness from discomfort or pain to the possibility of ease. Part of the formula to create ease is to stretch and strengthen your neck. This is important because the muscles of the neck can become shortened, weak, and tight from constant poor positioning such as forward head posture. Pulling your chin in and your head back and up, without puffing your chest out, can help to stretch the sternocleidomastoid muscle. On each side of the neck, this muscle attaches to both the sternum and the clavicle and then to the mastoid process towards the rear side of your skull.

Adding in rotation can also promote strength and flexibility in your neck. These may be “simple” actions, but it’s imperative to be aware of the execution of these techniques within a given posture.

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3 POSTURES FOR THE NECK

It can be easy to remain on autopilot in any given yoga posture, especially if you’ve executed the posture many times before. Matt outlines how to stretch and strengthen your neck in 3 “basic” yoga postures.

In Warrior II, you’ll see how Matt pulls his head up and back before initiating the next step, the rotation. When the rotation is added, along with the awareness to shorten one side and lengthen the other, what you achieve is an engagement of the sternocleidomastoid on the front side and a lengthening on the back side. What’s even more effective is the self-adjustment of pressing your head into your hand in order to get more in touch with the positioning and sensation. When exploring Pyramid Pose and High Lunge, the experience in both of these postures is changed by adding the same techniques (without the rotation).

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