Inspirations: Back Support

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana~Bridge Pose

Lie on your back, bend knees, bring feet to buttocks.  Make sure feet remain hip width and parallel.  Placing a block between the thighs is very helpful. Inhale, curling tailbone up, lifting the spine, and extending it toward the knees.  If you feel tight or weak, curl spine and hips up and down gently several times, awakening Kundalini energy asleep in the spine. Once you are fully extended, keep hips high, clasp hands under the back, move shoulders closer.  As this is an inversion, keep eyes open. This is an active backbend, energizing, strengthening, invigorating.  Backbends increase prana, helping the emotional body with anxiety, and depression.  With Bridge, the endocrine and nervous systems are supported, which promotes healthier reproductive organs, and eases issues around elimination, PMS, menopause and menstrual cycles.   Do not do backbends with headaches, or nauseas. In this position, the kidneys, a source of vitality, are stimulated as they release from compression, and can be drawn deeper into the abdomen.  Since kidneys work with the adrenals, and stagnation, metaphysically, we are supported in releasing what is old, stagnant, and no longer supports life. As A Supported Pose:  Use a folding chair, and set up in the same way you did for Viparita Dandasana, with legs through back of chair, and bolster or other support under head and shoulders.  With Bridge, add a second chair for your feet as they extend out from back of first chair.  As you did in Viparita Dandasana, grab back of chair, and release back until your shoulders and head rest at the same even level on the bolster, or support.  Back of chair is under upper back, allowing abdomen to relax and extend.  Hold 3-5 minutes, breathing mindfully.  To come out of pose, bend knees, place feet on floor, and gently pull… Read more »

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Viparita Dandasana~Inverted Staff Pose, supported

This pose opens the chest, expands the thoracic, and brings blood to the brain. The supported version of Viparita Dandasana is done with a folding chair. First, place a bolster, and if needed, blocks or pillows at the foot of the chair, where your feet would normally be.  Sit in the chair backwards, extending legs through chairback. Grab back of the chair and slowly extend torso backward over the seat.  If this is uncomfortable, add a blanket or cushion to chair seat.  Middle of back should be supported by chair, legs are straight, and crown of head rests on the bolster.  Hands can move down to back legs of chair, allowing chest a greater opening. Remain 2-3 minutes and breathe into your crown chakra, the Sahasrara~ the thosand petaled lotus, ‘seat of the supreme soul.’  Braincells are not only bathed with blood but metaphysically this is our connection to everything. Visualize a white or clear light cleansing the pituitary and pineal glands. When ready to come out of pose, bend knees, plant soles of feet on floor, and gently pull torso upright, pause before moving on.

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Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

Upward Facing Dog Asana: Urdhva Mukha Svanasana/Upward Facing Dog Pose.   It is easiest to enter the pose from Chaturanga Dandasana, or you can lie on your stomach, with the palms on the floor, above the waist, fingers face forward.  On the inhale lift chest and head, moving them forward, head back. In the full pose, only top of feet and palms remain on the floor.  This is a simple pose, moving from quiet power, into beauty, with Grace. This is a pose that when we move into it intentionally, we remember to lead with the heart, remaining grounded in earth energy, as we stretch for the stars. Health Notes: This pose keeps the spine supple, and is useful for sciatica, lumbago, or slipped discs. The lungs are expanded, helping those with breathing issues, such as asthma.  The arms and legs become stronger, and more blood is circulated in the pelvic area. This pose is the perfect compliment to its counterpart, Adho Mukha Svanasana- Down Dog.

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Seal Pose

Asana: Seal Pose, similar to Sphinx, but Seal is a Yin pose held for 3-5 minutes, with the arms extended straight out in front at the corners of the mat, hands turned out, like Seal flippers. Open legs out and soften, keep buttocks relaxed. Yin poses work the connective tissue, not muscle, so the lower back will begin to feel crunchy, that is correct.  When finishing the pose, lie flat on the mat for a whole minute, and listen to what your back has to tell you.  If you wish more Yin-healing options, check in with Paul Grilley. Health Notes: This is a fabulous Pose for sciatica, and most other back issues.  Give it time, trust its slow, deep process.  Know that when feeling ‘crunchy’ healing is taking place.

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Jathara Parivartanasana

Stomach Turning Pose Asana: Jathara Parivartanasana/Stomach Turning Pose. Lie on back, arms outstretched to sides.  Exhaling raise both legs straight up over hips.  Inhale, lift hips up and move them to R.  Exhale, slowly lowering legs down to L hand, try to keep back on floor, and legs together and straight, unless lower back is weak, then bend the knees. Take 5-10 breaths, then slowly raise legs back to center, again with knees bent if lower back complains. Repeat other side by first moving hips to L.  It helps to either hold onto something heavy, like the legs of a couch or a coach as you do first attempts so that shoulders remain flat on floor. *Do not do this pose if you have serious lower back issues, as it strongly pulls on psoas muscle, attached to spine. Health Notes: Jathara tones lower back and abdominal muscles, reducing excess belly fat.  The abdominal organs; pancreas, spleen, liver are fed more blood, along with the intestines, which helps with gastritis.

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Sphinx Pose

Asana:  Sphinx Pose.  Lie on your stomach, lift chest, bringing forearms parallel in front of you, elbows under shoulders, fingers spread.  Gently pull heart forward as well as up.  Either take your focus inward to imagine or remember something exquisite/meaningful. Or find something quite beautiful/unusual to contemplate. Let your vision connect to your breath connect to your heart.  Feel grateful. Thank whatever it is that has brought you this moment of pleasure, perhaps recognition. Health Notes:   If you do Sphinx as preparation for Urdhva Mukha Svanasana/ Up Dog, or Bhujangasana/Serpent Pose, the legs and feet must be strong, pressed down, rotated in & back, with knees lifted.  In all poses, the spine becomes more elastic and rejuvenated. It’s good for sciatica, and slipped discs, helps tone backaches, gives lungs greater expansion, and circulates energy in the pelvic region.

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Padmasana

Seated Cross-Legged Pose Asana Padmasana.   This is helpful to strengthen back muscles if they are weak, and it is a good choice if you do not have gumption  to face the demands of any big new project, year, event, person, idea.  Sit with  legs crossed, hands resting on the knees with palms open in surrender. Allow the quiet to inhabit your body, visualize the waters of your fountain, flowing rivers, rolling ocean.  Let the water carry you forward into new territory. Breathe joy into feeling life flow. Health Notes: As Americans, we are good at pushing the river.  We are not so good at allowing its flow. Our Yang energy is often out of balance to our feminine Yin, and that imbalance creates physical dis-ease.

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Bhujangasana

Serpent Pose Often this pose is learned as part of the Sun Salutation, but it is a great chest opener, and spine strengthener on its own. Lie on your stomach, stretc legs back, tops of the feet on  floor. Bring hands  under shoulders, hugging  elbows into ribs, with thighs and pubis firmly rooted into floor.  On inhale, lift  chest up  as far as possible without lifting hip bones off floor.  Be mindful of creating space in the spine, not crunching lower back.  It helps to press tailbone toward pubis, and pubis toward navel.  Check to make sure shoulders do not lift, rather pull shoulder blades down and into center of back. Health Notes:  Strengthens arms, back, opens lungs, creates a flexible spine.  As in all chest openers,relieves tiredness and stress, and is helpful for asthma and other lung issues.  It moderately stimulates abdominal organs.   If you have back issues or carpel tunnel, do not do the pose or go into it gently, doing small incremental lifts.  It can soothe sciatica and help open tight shoulders.  It is called the serpent pose because one, you look and feel snake-like as you slide up and off the floor, ready to strike, and two, it awakens the kundalini energy at base of spine.

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