Namaste yogis
Do you hunch over your computer, curl into your armchair or slouch over the steering wheel? You may be setting the stage for lower back troubles. The spine is designed very nicely to hold the weight of our body providing it is kept in its natural curves, so when we lose our good posture there is more strain put on the spine, particularly the lower back which bears all the weight of the upper body. With poor posture habits the lower back can become very stiff and painful. Fortunately the Cat/Cow sequence is a wonderful way of loosening up the spine. This little sequence brings more blood supply to the muscles of the back helping it to become more supple and opening up the tight vertebrae so that they feel a whole lot better.
Cat/Cow Pose
- Assume a table top position with the hands under the shoulders and the knees under the hips. Have some firmness in your abdomen so that your lower back is supported (fig 1)
- As you inhale lift your tail bone and lengthen through the front of your body right up to your chin, lift your chest towards the wall in front. This is called the Cow Pose because it looks and feels like a mooing cow. (fig 2)
- As you exhale it is the opposite move. Your back lifts up towards the ceiling, your tail bone drops down between your legs and your head lowers. This is called the Cat Pose because it is like a bristling frightened cat. (fig 3)
- Repeat this sequence 5 or more times, moving slowly with deep slow breaths.
Namaste
Margaret
