About this video

<p>When it comes to a yoga practice or flow, the shoulders are paramount in transmitting force and energy from one posture to another. However, we must also realize that they don’t transmit force in isolation. Instead, they work together with your scapulae, obliques, pelvic floor, pelvis, and lower leg to support you and create the appropriate force through your practice. You see, the body actually has what we call “kinetic chains”. This means muscle groups are connected via specific lines of fascia. These fascial lines control specific movement patterns. What this means is that muscles work together to perform what seems like a “shoulder exercise”. </p><p><br></p><p>With that being said, when we experience pain during shoulder dominant poses, we have to consider what the current function of our shoulder joints are like, and how they are relating to the rest of the body. The movements performed in this video are contextualized as a means to create more function in the shoulders/rest of the body, teaching you to move with sound biomechanics principles and perform your best at the practice of your choice. </p><p><br></p><p>The practice we chose today is downward dog to forward lunge.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>First movement we have is the kneeling Spider-Man/cobra rotation. We are teaching the hips and pelvis to help stabilize the scapulae and also teaching the wrists how to stabilize with the scapulae as well. The Spider-Man wrist shape is meant to help set your blade down to your hip pocket . The cobra wrist shape retracts your blade into your spine. We are simply seeking to connect these points together as much as possible. Work on drawing your rectum up to your ribs and wrap them around your obliques. When you feel this, you will naturally feel your pelvis tuck under you. When you feel this, reinforce it. You will also feel the lats and middle back engage. Maintain this for as long as you can. And when you lose it, take a deep breath and breathe laterally through your ribs. Re-set and try again.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>Second movement you see will be prone shoulder external rotation. We recommend using a block between your legs to crush as you do this pattern. Think about the same bracing as above, and when you feel the connection to your lat, you reinforce it by dropping the shoulder blade into the rib cage. When this is connected then drive the elbow into the ground and actively lift the forearm off the floor. You can use a blanket or a slider to slide your elbows here. When you lose the connection to the lat and the back of your shoulder, stop there, drop the forearm, and just perform reps here. This means we want you to reconnect and get 10 or so reps. Then reset and try the slide again. Accumulate multiple reps each week. Work up to 10 reps per side total.&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p>The third movement requires a tennis ball, lacrosse ball, or golf ball and a yoga block for your head. We would also recommend a blanket you can fold for your elbow to keep your elbow and shoulder level. You want to place your ball right behind the shoulder joint. Lay on the side you are placing the ball, and keep your back leg up and rooted. Use a supporting arm to put some downward pressure on the arm that is resting on the ball. It will feel uncomfortable but as long as you engage into the ball, and don’t let the shoulder pop up, but rather keep it retracted, as you rotate the arm inward, you will create a whole lot of change. When you feel stuck, go back to your brace, and draw up to your lat and set that down. You should get a few more inches as a result. After getting a few more inches, come back and re-test. Attempt 10-15 reps per arm. </p><p><br></p><p>Perform this everyday for optimal gains. I would even perform these three days in a row, and then follow up with your yoga practice on the fourth day. <a href="https://fwfg.com/programs/connection_vs_position_with_sumair_bhasin" target="_blank">I would recommend watching our “connection vs position” position series to understand some basics of being on your hands.</a> Leave your questions in the comments below, and we look forward to answering them!</p><p><br></p><p>Much love,</p><p>Sumair</p><p><br></p><p>Owner, Trainlifefit</p><p>Functional Human Performance</p><p><a href="http://www.trainlifefit.com" target="_blank"><u>www.trainlifefit.com</u></a></p><p>@trainlifefit</p><p>youtube.com/trainlifefit</p>