great session Nathan! Although Urdhva Dhanurasana almost hospitalized me, i felt huge intensity :)  I will keep working on it.

Ibrahim! That is a tough pose! Where do you experience the greatest challenge? Low back? Shoulders? Strength?

Ibrahim, that’s a tough question to answer over a forum like this unfortunately. I wouldn’t feel comfortable offering too much advice without seeing you attempt the pose. I want to make sure any options I give are safe. That said, using a chair to help orient yourself to the shape, strength and actions  of the pose is very helpful. 

Hi Nathan, thank you for this class, I really enjoy learning from you. I have a question, I have pain in the knees when I go into full Ushtrasana. Back bend feels great, could go fully into it but I really feel my knees , can you advise what I may do wrong? Thanks for your time x

Hi Szilvia! Great to have you here. I think I need a little more information about your knees. Where is the pain? Is the pain just in kneeling or when you arch back? 

Thank you fir getting back to me, so the pain is more in the outer part of the knee, maybe a little pull under the kneecap. And only feel it on a full arch, very similar pain I feel in Bow pose, when I try to keep my knees in alignment and go higher into the bend. Thanks for giving a thought to it. X

Szilvia, that is a common issue for these poses. My suggestion would be to widen your knees in both poses. I’m guessing that your lateral leg muscles and fascia are causing an exaggerated pull on the outer knee when your hips roll back like ustrasana. 

Thank you, Nathan, for your instruction, I love how clear it is and generally easy to follow. This said, I wasn’t sure I would continue after day 14 which I found too challenging. Two questions for you. First, I don’t foresee being able to push my chest up in wheelbarrow, not for a few years anyway, so is there benefit to just trying to push with hands or is there an alternative strength-building position? Second, is there such a thing as supported boat pose? I have trouble with my neck in that one for a particular reason. Any alternatives? Thank you.

May, congratulations on coming this far in the challenge. Yes it does have some strong practices and can be daunting at times. You know best if moving forward is right for you. You can always pause or review earlier lessons a few times to build strength and then move ahead when you feel you’re ready. This is your challenge and would love to help see you through to the end.