Nurture The NeckalignmentNURTURE THE NECK The neck is not often the shining star of our yoga practice, yet it is an integral part. Too often, we may only offer more attention if we’re feeling pain in a particular posture. It’s important however, for us to be...
Twist Power
Twist Power
parsva bakasana
TWIST POWER
It’s interesting what unfolds along our journey with our yoga practice. As we grow, learn, and begin to understand more about ourselves things change, we change. Not only do we learn so many things along the way, but in the yoga practice, we also learn to “unlearn” a great deal.
Our approach to twist postures is not separate from this idea. Engaging with twists often looks like a rotation in the spine, potentially without a great deal of thought. We move into the shape based on our individual mobility, not necessarily understanding that we can be much more of an active participant in order to increase our “twist power”.
With more education, we begin to unlearn the twist patterns and processes we typically engage in and begin to add in the element of strength in order to increase our spinal mobility and unleash our twist power.
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Chromatic yoga provides the tools for growth and expansion, due to the step by step approach and the education it provides.
In the first posture Matt teaches from today’s clip, we learn the foundations of how to execute a twist where we’re actually intentional about creating a co-activation of the external obliques, internal obliques and the rotators to create the rotation. Instead of just twisting and hoping for the best, we train our bodies to strengthen and then utilize our muscles to control the twist.
“Twist Power” comes from deliberate action, as opposed to just going through the motions.
Here are the main steps for the twist in the High Lunge variation Matt demonstrates in the video:
- Flex (round the spine)
- Rotate the thoracic without turning through the neck
- Keep the pelvis open while turning through the sternum
- Extend the spine, while opening up the arms
WATCH THE VIDEO
TWIST POWER: ACTIVE STRENGTH IN ROTATIONS
APPLICATION IN REVOLVED CHAIR
Practicing these twist techniques in the previous posture are the perfect “prerequisite” for Revolved Chair pose. Matt demonstrates how to apply the same “twist power” in the following steps:
Revolved Chair Pose (left side)
- Bend the knees deeply
- Round and flex the spine while taking the right tricep to the left thigh
- With the flexed spine, begin to turn the sternum
- Sit low to maintain spinal flexion
- Lift the heart, to layer on some spinal extension
When we layer on these actions, it means that we’re employing the abdominals and back muscles for a deeper, more prominent twist.
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POWER UP YOUR SIDE CROW
After we implement the knowledge of activation of the abdominals and back muscles to steep the patterns into our bodies, we can translate these techniques into potentially more challenging postures.
Here are the key actions for the first attempts at refining Side Crow:
- Place a yoga block between the upper thighs
- Squeeze the thighs together towards the block
- Flex the spine
- Place the hands on the ground out in front
- Walk the feet out to the side
- Bend the elbows and pull the knees tight into the armpit
- Lean the body weight forward towards the fingertips
Here, the feet can stay on the ground in order to get used to the mechanics and demand of Side Crow. To investigate further, Matt demonstrates that we can place a block under the feet and even place our head on a cushion/bolster in front of us while bringing the feet up.
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GO FOR IT
At this point, we know the build up. We’ve taken the step by step within the twist, but also with exploration in various postures (including some Side Crow variations). So what’s next? Now we can really go for it.
We still employ the same techniques and set up with the blocks, but now we can attempt lift of the feet while keeping the head up. What we’ve done is equip ourselves with more confidence from education and practice.
In the full class Matt talks about how the Kleshas (twists of the mind) affect our mindset. Side Crow can be a challenging posture, and it can be easy to tell ourselves that it is impossible to achieve. What’s better, is our focus on the enjoyment of the process, rather than focus on the result, but more than that, we should really go for it, rather than entertaining the limited belief that it could never be possible.
Explore the possibilities in Matt’s current online immersion Revelation today.
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Article by Trish Curling
Video Extracted From: Revelation Immersion
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Nurture The Neck
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