Water

Do you ever stretch in water? I think it can be really useful and I wish I could do it more often!

I love the feeling of weightlessness. In water you can increase your range of motion – and with greater control – compared to stretching on land. It also gives you the opportunity to elongate the spine, release myofascial patterns, soothe rigidity associated with muscular aches and pains and it’s easier to reach and hold the point of optimal stretch, with less strain.

Handstands are a little easier too...

Liz Koch demonstrating psoas stretches in water

Hip Happy

I like to do this sequence, or a version of it, every week. I find spending quality time stretching, toning and relaxing the muscles of the hips and pelvis has a really positive effect on the rest of my practice and the way my body feels. Releasing these big muscles helps take stress from the smaller joints, like the knees and ankles, brings the pelvis back to a more 'neutral' position and has a direct affect on the diaphragm, freeing the breath. 

As you practice (without judgement!) take the time to notice the affect each movement has on your body so that you can adjust as necessary.

Constructive rest pose 

Be careful not to flatten or exaggerate the curves of the lumbar (low back) or cervical (neck) spine as you lie down, instead focus on allowing the whole of the back edge of the rib cage to settle towards the floor. Once comfortable shift your attention to the support of your bones sinking into the floor and take note of any part of the skeleton that feels as though it is suspended from the floor. Any place where muscular contraction is preventing the bones from surrendering to the pull of gravity. as the psoas muscle continues to relax, the distribution of weight will start to feel increasingly even through the body. Stay here until you feel this happen.

Windshield wiper twist
Lying abdominal twist (shava udarakarshanasana)
Cross leg side lying twist
Sucirandhrasana (Eye of the needle)
Sucirandhrasana twist (Eye of the needle twist)
Supta Padangusthasana 1-2-3
Supta Gomukhasana
Supta Virasana
Malasana
Baddha Konasana
Upavistha Konasana
Supta Baddha Konasana
Savasana

ENJOY!

Image of Mr Iyengar in Supta Padangusthasana found here.

Constructive Rest Pose

A very useful pose!

Recommended Read...

A great introduction to Liz Koch's unique understanding of the Psoas muscle and the importance of maintaining a healthy, fluid core.  Simple diagrams and easy to follow, complete with exercises that will fit into any yoga practice. Extremely interesting, I dip into it on a regular basis!

Sequence: Release the Psoas

Constructive Rest Position
Start in this rest position and let Gravity will do the work!

Lie on your back, bend your knees to about 90 degrees, and place your feet on the floor in line with your hip sockets, 12 to 16 inches from your buttocks. Be careful not to flatten or exaggerate the curves in either your lumbar (lower back) or cervical (neck) spine. Rest your hands and forearms on your rib cage, on your pelvis, or by bringing them to the floor as in Savasana. 

Now that you're in position, shift your awareness to the support of your bones. Begin by sensing the weight of your bones sinking down toward the floor. Take note of any part of your skeleton that feels as though it is suspended, any place where the muscular contraction prevents the bones from surrendering to the pull of gravity. As your psoas continues to release, the distribution of weight will start to feel increasingly even throughout your body.

2. Active Surpine Stretch

 

Starting from constructive rest position and keeping both knees bent, bring your right upper thigh toward your chest. Gently hug your right leg toward your trunk.

Be very careful not to curl your pelvis up off the floor as you move your right leg; the pelvis should remain aligned with the trunk. Sensing into your flexed right hip and softening in the hip socket will help free the right thighbone.

You're now ready to stretch your left psoas. Very slowly walk the left foot farther away from the hips. As the leg extends, keep your awareness on the front of the left hip socket, releasing any psoas tension you notice there. Once you begin to sense the psoas lengthening, follow the sensation all the way up the muscle to its attachment at the 12th thoracic vertebra, located behind the center of your solar plexus.

To amplify the stretch, push your right leg against your right arm as though you were gently kicking up toward the sky. At the same time, resist the push of the leg with your clasped arms. After a few moments, change sides

 

2. Sleeping Pigeon

 

3. Supta Padangusthasana  1, 2, & 3

4. Setu Bandha

5. High Lunge 

 

6. Adho Mukha Svanasana

7. Tadasana

 

Stand with your feet directly underneath your hip sockets, and conduct an inquiry of your sensations. Does your pelvis feel like a stable foundation? Is the rim of your pelvis parallel to the floor? You can check by looking in a mirror, or by placing your hands on top of your hips and following the pelvic rim around to the front of your body, checking to see if both hands are level. Do both your legs transfer weight equally? Are you grounding equally through both feet? If your answer to these questions is "Yes," your psoas should feel released, and you should be able to sense gravity drawing your weight down through your bones.

8. Vrksasana

 

9. Trikonasana

 

10. Virabhadrasana 2

11. Eka Pada Rajakapotasana

12.  Ardha Matsyendrasana

13.  Savasana

 

Sources: Yoga Journal , Liz Koch

The pelvis: A keystone for yoga

By Liz Koch

The pelvis is the keystone of our physical structure and the foundation of a centered yoga practice. To feel centered and supported from within, our pelvis needs to be balanced and functioning as part of our torso without torques or twists. A balanced pelvis becomes a base of support for the spine, rib cage and head. It becomes a bowl containing and supporting the organs, nerves and viscera. A balanced pelvis frees the illiopsoas, the core muscle and increases range of motion in the hip sockets, preventing lower back and knee injuries.

The stable pelvis and the psoas muscle work in harmony-they form a partnership. The psoas muscle, a large, massive muscle, bridges the trunk to the leg. When used properly, it is a guide wire and as such, sensitively responds to the movement of the spine and the legs. When misused, the psoas muscle becomes rigid, limiting movement. Over time, misuse shortens the psoas muscle. A shortened psoas flexes and pulls on the pelvis, compressing the hip sockets and destabilizing the lower back.

As in any relationship, a dance occurs between pelvis and psoas. What often shortens the psoas is a destabilized pelvis, one that can no longer properly transfer weight from the trunk to the two legs. The psoas is then called upon to hold the trunk and leg together. Becoming a weight-supporting element, the psoas no longer can function freely as a muscle. It begins to function as a ligament and over time loses its suppleness as a muscle (i.e. begins to shorten).

In yoga asana, overextending, forcing a stretch and poor positioning can all stretch or tear pelvic ligaments, destabilizing the pelvis and shortening the psoas. Ligament damage or the overstretching of ligaments happens when they are under inappropriate tension. The pulling away of the bones one from another pulls, stretches, or tears the ligaments. Like the chicken and the egg koan, looseness in the sacrum and SI-joints calls upon the psoas to help hold the bones together. The body then further compensates by overdeveloping external muscles such as the hamstrings, gluts and adductors. This in turn pulls the bones further out of alignment and engages the psoas in holding the person together.

Proper positioning of the pelvis and releasing, toning and lengthening the psoas muscle is an integral part of stabilizing the pelvis. It is also an essential step in using the proper hip, pelvic and leg muscles, protecting the lumbar spine from compression and thus assuring the accuracy of each yoga posture. Focusing on the pelvis centers the work squarely inside the very core of your being.

The Psoas is...

(A) A remote tribe in Papua, New Guinea. (B) A revolutionary computer operating system. (C) The muscle that is the key to your structural stability.

By Liz Koch

If you guessed C, you're correct. Buried deep within the core of your body, the psoas (pronounced "so-az") affects every facet of your life, from your physical well-being to who you feel yourself to be and how you relate to the world. A bridge linking the trunk to the legs, the psoas is critical for balanced alignment, proper joint rotation, and full muscular range of motion. In yoga, the psoas plays an important role in every asana. In backbends, a released psoas allows the front of the thighs to lengthen and the leg to move independently from the pelvis. In standing poses and forward bends, the thighs can't fully rotate outward unless the psoas releases. All yoga poses are enhanced by a released rather than shortened psoas. (When you reverse your orientation to gravity in inversions, however, the psoas must be toned as well as released to maintain proper spinal stability.) 

Whether you suffer from a sore back or anxiety, from knee strain or exhaustion, there's a good chance that a constricted psoas muscle might be contributing to your woes. Getting in touch with this deeply buried muscle can be humbling at first. You may discover that you've been doing many poses by contracting your core, instead of relying on your skeleton for support and allowing your more peripheral muscles to organize around a toned but flowing and spacious center. But if you persevere, psoas work can add new insight, openness, and stability to your practice. Though your psoas may not be as easy to sense as your biceps or hamstrings, improving your awareness of this crucial muscle can greatly enhance your physical and emotional health.

Liz Koch is a Psoas expert...Read more here

Recommended read...

A great introduction to Liz Koch's unique understanding of the Psoas muscle and the importance of maintaining a healthy, fluid core.  Simple diagrams and easy to follow, complete with exercises that will fit into any yoga practice. Extremely interesting, I dip into it on a regular basis!