The rib cage is the major limiting factor in all movements of the thoracic spine, and it is a usefull exercise to see how they influence the spine as we breathe.
When we breathe in, the ribs elevate. The lower ribs tend to widen and the upper ribs and sternum lift forwards and upwards. you will feel wider in the lower trunk and deeper from the front to back in the upper trunk.
See if you can feel what happens in the spine in relation to the ribcage as you inhale.
The ribs do indeed lift and push the sternum forwards, but can you also feel the thoracic spine is at the same time pushed backwards? Every inhalation is accompanied by a gentle forward bending of the thoracic spine.
On every exhalation the opposite happens. Try and feel it!
As you breathe out the rib cage moves back in towards the center line of the body and the spine moves into extension.
There is no exception to this action so it makes total sense to move into extension (or back bend) postures as we exhale, if our intention is to access the thoracic spine. Which lets face it, it usually is!
Anything else will be going against the intelligence of the body.
No comments:
Post a Comment