Yoga Stretch for Youthful Gate, Healthy Back and Hips
from the book The Heart’s Way to Happiness and Health by Violeta Bailets
Kneeling Lunge Sequence:
1. Begin on your hands and knees. Step your right foot between your hands. Align your right knee with your toes and point your knee and toes straight ahead. Reach your left leg as far back as is comfortable for your knees. Keeping your left foot in line with the knee, rotate the top of the left foot and shin directly to the ground.
Tip: You can start kneeling on the folded blanket to cushion your knees.
2. Take your hands on the hips and level your hips. Draw your left hip forward and right hip back to level your hips. Tuck pubic bone slightly in to lengthen lower back and prevent lower back from overarching. Shift your hips forward. Expand chest and open shoulders. Hold for 3-5 breaths.
3. Exhale and lower your arms down to the ground, step right foot back to change legs.
Modification 1:
To avoid pulling the back knee, keep the back knee more at a 90-degree angle. This modification can actually more effectively stretch the front of the hips, then more advance pose.
Modification 2: You can also place blocks under your hands.
Caution: Don’t ignore knee pain; discontinue any pose if it doesn’t feel right.
This is a very well written book, and if followed correctly, can make a huge difference in stretching the muscles, to be aligned properly. And if you are aligned properly, your pain will be greatly reduced or eliminated!
ReplyDelete