Folding Your Way to a Healthy Life

     How hard is it for you to bend over and pick up an object? What does your back feel like when you try to put on your socks & shoes? Do you find yourself struggling with tight hamstrings? When you bend over to grab something off of the bottom grocery shelf is your first word,  Ow!, and coming back up brings out a few more choice epitaphs.... And, (as I sit and type this on my computer) many find that their shoulders are rounded from sitting and working at their computer & even their cell phones. Studies have shown that the frame of the human body is changing due to the way we interact with technology. So, join the millions of us who struggle with our backs & bending, whether it is from a sitting position or from standing. Let's find ways to counteract this dilemma. 

     Patricia, a most beautiful person and an excellent yoga teacher, must have known that I needed to take care of my back when I took myself to my mat in her Slow Flow class. I felt renewed, rejuvenated, and I think re-aligned. I knew that I must note some of the poses she took us through that highlighted the concerns I have heard my own yoga students express in the classes I teach.  

Benefits of Bending Forward
Click on this link to read a very informative article.

TOOLS:
Blanket, Strap, 1-2 Blocks,  Bolster, Wall 

** Warm the hip joints & the back first before performing forward bends/folds. 
** If you suffer from bulging discs or other back issues use the wall for all forward folds, as the wall helps keep your back stable. 
** When doing a seated forward fold use blocks under your knees/do not hyper extend your knees.

GENTLE ALIGNMENT: FORWARD FOLDS

OPENING

C.R. or Seated Meditation

CONSTRUCTIVE REST

 Supine Forward Fold
Supine Child’s Pose

Knee in R/L1/2 Wind Relieving Pose

TABLE TOP

Wide C.P. to Reg. C.P.
Puppy

DD

CNC to Kneeling Seal

Puppy w/Block in hands behind

DD/FF

SUN SALUTATIONS

½ Sun Salutations

Classical Namaskar (lunge)

Standing Seal/Arms behind

FF

STANDING

Squat Series

Warrior II

Side Angle

REPEAT

STANDING

Chair

Crescent

REPEAT

DD

FF

Standing Seal

TABLETOP

Puppy

CP

SEATED/BLANKET/STRAP

Forward Fold/Block under knees

Foot in/Leg out/Strap around foot (REPEAT)

Wide Legged to Seated Fish

Cobbler

Wide Legged/Strap around foot/Side Stretch

BACK

Supine Leg Stretch/Leg up-Foot out

Leg work w/Strap

Happy Baby

Legs up the Wall (wall)

SAVASANA

 Love to hear from you. Thanks: Debra 

BallMindYoga Facebook Page 

Email Address 

Resources:

Kneeling Seal Pose: http://www.yogabasics.com/asana/seated-yoga-seal/

Supine Child’s Pose: http://www.yogabasics.com/asana/joyful-baby/
Kabel, Olga, "Why do we do forward bends in yoga?", http://sequencewiz.org/2015/03/11/why-do-we-forward-bends-yoga/
"The Benefits of Forward Bends," "https://kripalu.org/resources/benefits-forward-bends