AYGMyJune2015

poses for

lower crossed syndrome

Utthita Trikonasana (Triangle Pose) variation

From Warrior II, straighten your front leg. Raise your rear arm straight up and extend your front

arm toward the floor. Don’t force the stretch of the side body; if you feel stiff, place your lower

hand on a block. Press the ball of the back foot down first, then press the same foot’s outside

edge down to stretch tight calf muscles and contract weak muscles along the shin involved in

LCS zone 2. Keep simultaneously pressing the ball and outer edges of the foot into the mat; you

should feel your arch rise slightly. Expand the chest by drawing your shoulder blades towards

your spine and away from your ears to also stretch and engage the muscles involved in UCS.

Stay in the pose for 8 to 10 breaths; repeat on the other side.

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose) presses

Lie on your back, knees bent, feet on the floor. Engage the hips’ internal rotators before raising the

pelvis by pressing your soles into the mat and attempting to drag them apart, allowing the thighs

to roll inwards. Maintain this action and then engage the glutes to lift the pelvis. Place your arms

with palms up alongside your trunk or clasp your hands behind your back for a deeper stretch

of UCS muscles. Contract your glutes to build strength in them while you’re stretching the psoas

(deep-hip flexor) of LCS zone 1. If your hands are at your sides, do this sequence of muscular

engagement, lifting up on exhalation and lowering down on inhalation, 10 to 15 times. If your

hands are clasped, hold for 20 to 30 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 times.

Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose)

Start on your hands and knees, pressing through the palms equally as you extend

the legs, moving your heels toward the floor. Once in the pose, contract the

quads and attempt to lift the tops of your feet toward your shins. This activates

one muscle along the shin (tibialis anterior) and helps stretch tight calf muscles

(gastrocnemius and soleus) of LCS zone 2. Hold for up to 1 minute; repeat 5 times.

Plank Pose on forearms

From a standard Plank Pose – lifting onto toes, arms under shoulders, back straight, abdominals lifted – lower onto your forearms so they’re parallel to the outer

edges of the mat. Your upper arms should be perpendicular to the floor, with elbows below shoulders. Make two fists, turning your knuckles out towards

the edge of your mat. Imagine that your ab muscles are a corset and you’re tightening its laces, which will engage the deep-core muscles (transverse abdominis)

of LCS zone 1. At the same time, fix your elbows onto your mat and gently attempt to drag them towards your feet as you contract your glutes. Let the drag of

your elbows activate and strengthen the exterior abs, or “six pack” muscles (rectus abdominis), and the ab muscles that stabilise you in sideward movements

(internal obliques). Begin by holding for 10 seconds for several reps. With practice, build up to holding for 1 minute and eventually 2 minutes.

81

may/june 2015

yogajournal.com.au

yj43_74-81_FEA Balancing act_272.indd 81 31/03/2015 1:53 pm