Urdhva Dhanurasana: A balance of efforts

Urdhva Dhanurasna:  A balance of efforts, by Jules Mitchell, ERYT-500

One of my favorite things about yoga is that the same skills and concepts show up in so many of the poses.  Leeann likes to teach Sirsasana (headstand) in the first master class when she leads a yoga teacher certification course because she can see “who they are” in this revealing pose.

Similarly, I look at what is happening in a student’s shoulders in Adho Mukha Svanasana to inform me about how her shoulder’s will function in Urdhva Dhanurasana (Upward Facing Bow Pose).  Essentially, the actions are the same.

* The shoulders externally rotate

* The triceps powerfully straighten the arms

* The scapulae must abduct and move, with a purpose, from the back body toward the front body.

The simultaneous performance of these actions (and many others), combined with being upside down and backwards,  is what has many students grasping for what is familiar and setting the intricacies of the pose aside. The result? You push and push and push right past the enjoyment of the pose.  You either push past your yoga and muscle through the pose, or you get tired of the confrontation and give up on your yoga.   Either way, you haven’t found your yoga.

What is your yoga?

Disclaimer:  this is an anatomy article so I will leave the philosophic answer for another LCY Mentor to blog about.

What is your yoga, in a yoga anatomy context? I believe it is how you look at your experience in the pose and how you react to it.  We call this Svadhyaya (self study) – and doesn’t need to be complicated.  Basically, can you work right into your physical limitations instead of around them?  With just the perfect amount of effort you balance the tapas (discipline) and Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender).  I guess now would be a good time to mention that another thing I love about yoga is that philosophy and anatomy coexist.

The anatomy, finally. In many of us, the upper trapezius is over developed.  Inheritely, this isn’t a problem.   Until you look further and learn that the serratus anterior is the antagonist to the upper trapezius.  This means that while the upper traps are working, the sarratus isn’t.   If you overuse the upper traps in Downward Facing Dog Pose, chances are you will still overuse them when you are upside down and backwards.  So now what?

First, learn where you serratus anterior is and what exactly it does.  It is a broad muscle that begins underneath the shoulder blades along the medial border.  It’s muscle fibers travel along the inside of the shoulder blade and branch out in a finger like manner, attaching the front sides of the ribs.

To feel the serratus anterior working, try forearm plank.  Push the floor away from you so you can firmly work the shoulder blades and rib cage together.  Don’t worry about rounding your back for this variation, just do what you need to do to feel this muscle that hugs the rib cage engage.  Notice if you feel the upper trapezius muscles work less.

Now that you’ve felt the serratus anterior working, it’s time to turn onto your back.  Lifting up from the floor into a backbend still requires you to recruit the serratus.  The shoulders joint needs the support of the shoulder blades.

Try this variation:
Here you can teach the body the kinesiology of the upward facing bow while using the block to give you some feedback. The block will help you keep the shoulder blades pushing toward the front of the body.  Keep focusing on doing less work in the upper trapezius, thereby freeing the neck, and more work in the serratus anterior to give the chest a good lift. Stay here for about 1 minute.  Repeat.
Now you’re ready to try the full pose.  But what variation is right for you?  What props are best for you?  That is what the Leeann Carey Yoga advanced teacher training certification means by finding your yoga.

Let us guide you.  We have options for you that you will love.  Join us for any of our Yaapana Yoga teacher intensives and you will love what you learn.
Here is a variation of Urdhva Dhanurasana that works for me.

Love,
Jules
Jules Mitchell, ERYT 500

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