In many yoga pictorials, we will see all kinds of backbend poses that look beautiful to suffocation, especially various wheel poses. Looking at the graceful young ladies who have exerted their physical strength and beauty to the extreme, how they make people unwilling to yearn for them, but when they want to do the same poses, they will find that even if they have exhausted their power, It is also difficult to push yourself one centimeter away from the mat, and in the end I can only look at the "wheel" and sigh.
Some people say "I have a bad waist, so I can't do yoga wheel pose"; some people say "I can't open my shoulders and I can't do yoga wheel pose"; some people say "I It’s too hard to do yoga wheel pose"; some people say, “I don’t have the strength to do wheel pose.” As a yoga instructor here, you must be fair to wheel pose: maybe everyone thinks about wheel pose It's too demonized. I use the overall thinking to do the wheel pose, and the body cooperates well. The wheel pose is also easy.
Which parts of the body do a beautiful wheel pose need to cooperate?
The old way is to look at the foundation first. In wheel style, both hands and feet are on the ground. Naturally, both hands and feet are the foundation. Since is the foundation, we must "root down" ，Many people forget their feet as soon as they get ready for the wheel pose, only knowing to push their hands hard; in the wheel pose, the hips are in a very extended state, then need to fully extend the pelvic area and the front of the thigh ; The curvature of the body is given to the thoracic spine instead of the lumbar spine, so the chest cavity and shoulders need to be opened, and the back must actively exert force .
Master Iyengar said: bends back, the thoracic spine is bent instead of the lumbar spine . All cases of low back pain in back bending are the result of "overuse of the waist". The lumbar spine needs a strong core strength to protect it, instead of letting it go to the "front line" at every turn. The same is true in wheel pose. In order to bend the waist desperately, it hurts to think about it. Try to activate the back muscles to help the chest cavity fully open and let the thoracic spine bend back!
It is not only the hands that determine the wheel height, but also the feet and pelvis. In order to push the body up, many students either desperately pushed with both hands, and eventually injured their wrists, or desperately pushed their waist up, and eventually suffered back pain. The power of the feet is much stronger than that of the hands. Let the inner side of the feet root down and push the power upwards along the inner thighs to create space for the lower half of the body; The space in the middle of the body is determined by the upward force of the pelvis , please activate the gluteal muscles here to push the pelvis upwards, only pushing the waist up is a high-risk action.
Enough space for the spine. The word space is familiar to you who often read articles. Yoga is the art of "creating space". In wheel pose, to avoid low back pain, in addition to the point of exertion mentioned above, there is also a consciousness in your brain, that is, in wheel pose, your spine has enough space, energy and blood can flow smoothly instead of Stuck in any part. When keeping the wheel pose, you should always keep your body in a feeling of lengthening at both ends. The chest cavity is sent forward, and the front side of the thigh is pulled in the opposite direction. The spine has space for all parts of the body to be truly coordinated and smooth.
The position of the hands and feet is very important. The hands and feet must be able to fully compress the mat to exert full force. If you are ready to do the wheel pose, put your hands to your ears and find that the base of your palm can't stick to the ground, then don't try to be strong, then you need to use a brick to help you padded your arms and open your shoulders, generally appears that your palms cannot stick to the ground , To a large extent, is caused by too tight shoulder blades.
Don’t force your feet. Whether or not the feet can be placed outside the eight characters is a question that many people debate. The traditional practice requires that the feet must not be outside the eight, which is simply too harsh for beginners. In the wheel pose, the hip joint is in the extended state, and the thigh will automatically do external rotation. To counter this force, the adductor muscles of the thigh are very powerful, which many beginners cannot do. Then just don’t force yourself, allow your feet to do a little bit outside, but try to let your knees inward and extend towards the toes to .
To sum up, the wheel pose is a pose that requires many parts to work together, retractable, and not overstepping each other. Although it is complicated, it can be completely avoided if you master a few key points and give enough space. For low back pain, if you feel that reading the text is difficult to understand, then unlock the wheel pose!
Here are some things that will help us to do wheeled:
1. Open the shoulders/upper back
Open the shoulders/up This can reduce the pressure on the thoracic and lumbar spine. As mentioned above, don't be limited to the waist curve. Imbalance will increase unnecessary stress in these places. Stretch your chest and shoulders to bend your body. This simple movement and consciousness will create even the flexibility of the entire spine.
2. Flexible, strong back and strong core
Obviously, you need a flexible back. Practice some basic postures, such as bow pose and locust pose, to increase the strength and flexibility of your back.
3. Strong legs and open quadriceps
Some back bends require us to leave the ground with our legs. Therefore, our leg strength is vital to maintaining the stability of these postures. The depth of the back bend also depends on the flexibility of your quadriceps, especially in advanced asanas that require an ankle grip. Remember, when we bend backward, we stretch the front muscles and contract the back muscles. Therefore, when our back muscles contract, our abdomen and quadriceps are stretched.
Let us put all the knowledge together to do a basic wheel exercise:
- Start lying on your back. Bend your legs so that your feet are hip-width apart and close to your hips.
- Place your palms under your shoulders and point your elbows to the ceiling.
- Push up your feet and palms at the same time, lift your body, and reach the top of your head. If you can hold it here, it means you have the strength to do it well!
- So again, press in with your palm, activate your shoulders, and push up to the ceiling. Hold for 5 long breaths. Exhale, draw your chin into your chest, then lower the nape first, and then lower the torso to release.
A common mistake in this pose is to push the body to the back legs. Don't do this, but push the body to the sky. Our goal is to finally stack our chin, shoulders and chest on our wrists-pushing our chest cavity forward and open further.
