Day 4: Strength 4

I loved the “pinning the hips” cue in the twisted lunges - doing so really increased the torque in the pose and felt so good!

I so love the core work in boat pose,  I really feel my muscles the next day.  I use blocks for the side twists to make it easier on my low back.  Back bends are a bit uncomfortable so I need to be more upright.  Attention to keeping the hips even/pinned assists in the poses. 🌾💮

Joan, what seems to hurt in the backbends? Maybe we can find a solution together. 

Nathan I had a herniated disc years ago so my lower back is sensitive.  The standing back bend was too intense, so I stayed upright.  I don't know how I could compensate without causing pain.  I appreciate your concern

Joan, something like that would be tough to troubleshoot here. My only suggestion would to see how you feel keeping tailbone/sacrum anchored down. Not tucked, like a cat pose movement, just drawn down so that the low back stays long and spacious. Also, excessively contracting the glute max in backbends (which externally rotates the hips) can push a lot of load to the lower lumbar. See if any of these notes are applicable for you. 

Thank you, I've become brilliant at protecting my lower back 😊

This is so helpful for me. I love the boat pose prep; it really helped me become more aware of my abdominal wall. This also really helped in the twists. I will remember the ‘pinning the hips’ cue too. I am reading B.K.S. Iyengar’s ‘Tree of Yoga’ and your teaching really illustrates that asana is a whole body experience. I really do feel that my whole body (and mind) is embodying the asana.

Love the way each day is a logical progression from the last in this series. Well-designed progression! Really enjoying the work, Nathan.

In pigeon pose it looks like the calf of your leg is 90% to the body.  Is that true as I have trouble doing that without hurting my knee - any suggestions?

Ali very cool experience. This is exactly what I hope to convey in my teaching. As the body is brought more wholistically into a pose, the minds spreads and becomes still. So happy you’re feeling this!