Backbending Flexibility Class

Today will be working on flexibility, focussing on back bending. I don’t typically teach back bending online when I can’t see my students because it’s easy to injure yourself if done incorrectly! Today we are going to learn about and focus on areas of our body that we need to have awareness to safely back bend. 

Those areas are: Open shoulders, upper back and rib cage, stabilizing our pelvis, and opening the hips and hip flexors. We want to balance strength and flexibility, or I call it “active flexibility”.

Props needed: Two yoga blocks, Thera band, rolled up yoga mat.

Let’s start with a warm-up!

• Standing, do hip circles, both directions. 
• Twists moving side to side from hips waist into pecs. Swing arms around body side to side.
• Side stretch, reaching up and over six times both sides.
• Take hands to ribcage. Imagine it’s a buoy bobbing in the water moving your ribs  making circles.
• Take Thera band and do some shoulder rotations by bringing it infront and behind you six times.
• Open Thera band in front of you in T shape, arms out to sides and move through five extensions.
• Now up and over again, a few times before doing some T shape extensions with Thera band behind your back to get a pack stretch and activate the muscles.
• Move through some around the world, making circles around, up, back and overhead a few times,both directions.
• Using rolled up yoga mat, put under rib cage. Shoulders and head on floor. Ribs relaxed and open. Knees bent and pelvis on floor.
• Move through crunches from this shape. Starting from reclined arch to crunch. Knit the ribs in and down. do this 10 to 15 times.
• Lay back into arch position and windshield wiper the knees back-and-forth 10 to 15 times.
• Open up through shoulders and give yourself a big stretch.
• Move yoga mat to lower back with pelvis arched down to floor. Use lower abs to knit iliac crest up to ribs (tuck pelvis up by engaging butt and abs).
• Squeeze butt and lift into a little bridge with no arch of back. Abs, glutes, hamstrings, engaged.
• Tuck pelvis under, engage abs and butt to lift slightly, but keep low back on the yoga mat. From here, slide one leg out to straight and lengthen through hip flexor. Repeat the same thing on the other side, four times each. *Don’t arch the back! Stay engaged.
• Release and shake out.
• Come up onto knees. Find the same tuck of pelvis and engagement of glutes to open the hips and make a straight line from hips to knees.
• Take hands to ribcage and lift it back, staying solid in your foundation. Lift and lower a few times, think of a bungee cord stretching, and retracting.
• Keep ribs neutral, and bend through pelvis and low back. You can think of this as your lower bungee cord. (Just moving pelvis to arch). 
• Now do both motions at the same time, this is what most of us are familiar with when back bending, but it’s good to know how to move through the fall back. Move through this full extension a few times back-and-forth.
• On hands and knees move through some disco kitties/cat cow circles/exploratory movement.
• Sitting back on heels, move hips and pelvis in circles 10 times both directions.
• Come to standing, hips over knees. Tuck pelvis and engage glutes/abs knit ribs. Shift weight to one leg and step back to lunch, pulse need to floor 10 times straighten back knee and bend five times come into lunch and hold. Repeat on other side.
• In forearm plank, move through shoulder rolls
• Down dog hold for a few breaths.
• Lunge pulses, knee to floor and hold. Lift ribs and drop them down a few times.
• Come to passive lunge hands to floor. Repeat other side.
• Take block between your forearms and come to forearm plank. squeeze block, press, arms into floor, flat back, straight legs and engaged core.
• Shoulder circles here maintaining that plank with forearms squeezing block.
• Cat stretch with block between hands, melting heart forward opening shoulders.
• Note that you never want to feel a sharp pain when stretching.
• ‘Thut Activation’: Sit on heels, squeeze block between knees, squeeze butt, small hip thrusts, slowly, more upward from hips, then open with ribs. Hollow body. 10X
• Low Lunge: Lift forward, pull belly in, push hips to floor, tuck toes, use right butt to push right hip forward, low as possible, straightening right knee. Bend knee, untuck toe, hands to front knee, push front hip forward in space (hip flexor). Repeat last step. Take block between hands, knit ribs, push hips forward, then move back-and-forth from this position to hollow body 5X.
• Shoulder Stretch: on hands and knees, tuck elbows under, palms up, extend hips up & reach chest to floor. If working on upper back, extend head looking forward to continue arc. For shoulders, hollow ribs, a head to floor. -Back to low lunge, let chin drop, let back hip sink to floor, then tuck toes on back leg. Engage quads and butt, lengthen top of head. Breathe. Untuck toes, hands to knee, knit ribs in, hips to floor. Repeat last two steps again for 3 count.  Repeat lunges with hands above head.  10 count. 
• Leg Lifts: On belly, hands on either side of shoulders, lengthen legs, point toes, engage abs & butt, pubic bone to floor.  Easy arch ups with upper chest only (lower back). Alternate L & R leg lifts using butt muscle, then both legs.  Reverse boat with arms back & both legs lifted for 5 count.  
• Theraband: Wide grip with arms forward, reach up & back 8X. Hold with arms back 5 count.  
• Sphinx:  Elbows under shoulders, palms flat. Engage legs, pubic bone to floor, press hands & forearms to floor, reach ribs forward. Drop shoulders down, squeeze upper back muscles to engage/ lengthen arched upper back. Continue by rolling from lower ribs, peeling slowly toward upper ribs bringing to floor.  From here, push into hands straightening elbows while keeping body fully engaged. Actively hold & imagine taking weight out of hands. Bend one knee, lift chest reaching head towards foot. Repeat other leg. Cat-cow movement, counter stretch.  With block between knees sitting on heels, pelvic thrusts with hands at sides behind toes, reaching head up to ceiling. Push hips forward. 
• On knees: Hands at sacrum, push hips forward, lift ribs, if accessible reach hands to heels behind you.  Hands back to pelvis & engage ribs & core to come back up (camel).  Hands across chest, lift & lower ribs without letting back lift.  Arms over head grabbing elbows & repeat motion.  
• Go a little further each time as long as you can come back up maintaining knitted ribs without throwing arms forward.  Again with block between hands above head.  
• Kneeling, grab elbows overhead, pelvis forward, lift ribs. Back & forward motion without going to end range. 10X. (Engage, don’t sink into lower back). 
• Against Wall:  With padding under knee, right knee to floor, with leg up the wall, left knee forward, hands with blocks on either side, push hips back to right ankle.  Come forward again into front bent knee.  Push right hip toward floor, exhale.  Come back up, R hip forward, hollow body, lift ribs up & back.  For deeper stretch, arms above head up & back. For deeper stretch, arms above head up & back, hold for 5 count.  Body gyration to juice it up & release.  Repeat other side.
• On Belly: (Birdsnest) Reach back, grab outside ankles, engage butt & lift up, forward with ribs, shoulders back, 5 count.  Release & repeat, grabbing inside of ankles. 
• Against Wall:  Shoulder stretch standing, one arm at a time, karate chop up high, peel arm/ armpit down.  Again facing wall.  Repeat other side.  This time both arms up. (Frisk stretch) Knit ribs in, or lift & arch so upper back gets a stretch.  
• Active shoulder stretch:   With rolled up yoga mat right under shoulders on floor, squeeze block between forearms & reach up, touch fingers to floor behind head.  If accessible, bring fingers further above head across floor.  Here, lift & lower ribs with arms extended above.  
• Yoga Bridge:  Block between knees, pull belly in, squeeze butt up & shoulder blades together, hands together under back.  Push into feet, hips to sky, 10 count.   Slowly roll down, knees side to side.  
• Cool down:  On back, grab knees, roll forward & back.  Active twist, knees together side to side, hold if that feels good.  Deep breaths. Both sides.  Straighten bottom leg for deeper stretch, rock toward & back again.  
• Leg Ticklers: Sitting up from toes to hips, rounding & rolling lower back (hollow body) 10X. Laying on back, leg lifts from full extension to overtop of head 10X. Then cross right foot over left knee, thread right arm thru, interlace hands to stretch into right hip.  Repeat other side.