Per a previous blog, I’ve started a daily habit; I’m doing a deconstruction of one yoga pose cue each day. I thought I’d share with the community here today and see how you like it – let me know if you find this useful!
Urdhva Hastasana (Volcano Pose / Upward Salute)
The cue: “Lift the sternum without arching the lower back.”
Breakdown:
The goals are to create extension in the thoracic spine (the section of spine attached to the ribcage) and more importantly prevent hyper-extension in the lumbar spine; the lumbar is not designed for a wide range of motion. We want a well-distributed curve throughout the entire spine.
(1) Stabilize the lumbar spine first. Lift the pelvic floor (mula bhanda) and bring the belly button in and up (uddiyana bhanda) to stabilize that region from below.
(2) Lumbar secured, externally rotate the arms and squeeze the shoulder-blades together to create an opening of the heart-center from the back of rib cage. Note that the engagement of the Uddiyana Bhanda in the midsection helps keep the front of the rib cage anchored “down” so that when the back of the rib cage is pressing forward, the ribs maintain stability and don’t jut outward.
Ethan Freckleton 