Yoga Movements Promote Proper Stretching, Flexibility

By Bruce Cohn, Globe Correspondent  
December 16, 2004
 
The more I work with athletes and others to improve their physical performance, the less I understand how you can separate working on a single fitness component from the whole. This is especially true for flexibility: You can't talk about increasing muscles' ability to stretch without looking at their ability to stabilize force around a joint.

When one muscle shortens, another lengthens, which means we have to look at the whole picture. When I have people lie on their backs and lift one leg to evaluate their hamstring tightness, I also have to consider that the quadriceps in the front of their thighs may not be strong enough to raise their legs as far as I would like to see. This is a muscle imbalance causing flawed movement.

But static stretching is not the answer for a couple of reasons: Too many people do them without staying in alignment and the stretching is mechanical and unfocused. Without proper alignment -- joints in a neutral position, bones stacked along the line of gravitational pull, and muscles at their appropriate length -- it is unclear if you are stretching the muscle, and you may be irritating the tissue that attaches it to bone.
The second component of effective stretching dynamically connects our movements with the environment we are in. We yield and push against the floor, directing the rebounding force through our core and out through the peripheral limbs. Such movements engage the muscles to stabilize and mobilize and require imagination and focus.

A popular technique that incorporates these two principles for effective stretching is yoga. A standard yoga exercise known as the Sun Salutation is a series of movements that link one stretch or posture to another. Engaging the body in movement patterns that force the muscles to both lengthen and shorten, the Sun Salutation can help us avoid static or isolated stretching.

A Sun Salutation series can incorporate as many postures as you want. I asked Cindy Barlow, a certified instructor who has taught yoga in studios and gyms for nine years and specializes in individualized yoga programs, to help me devise a beginning Sun Salutation series. This series targets muscle groups that are the tightest on most people: the hip flexors, quads, and hamstrings.

These yoga postures can be practiced individually or linked together. It is important to connect the movement with abdominal breathing (expand stomach when inhaling, deflate it when exhaling) and to stay focused on proper alignment. Each posture has detailed instructions on how to align your body, but remember that pain is a warning signal that you are poorly aligned.
Before beginning this series, warm your muscles and lubricate your joints by doing some large-scale movements such as shoulder rolls, hip rotations, and knee circles. Activate your deep core muscles by squeezing the area between the thighs known as the perineum and lifting it toward the navel. We will refer to this technique as "engage core lift."  

Here's the series, beginning with the "mountain pose."

1 Mountain pose
Align the feet underneath the hips and parallel to each other. Be sure to evenly distribute your weight on the heels and balls of each foot. Keeping the knees soft, tuck the tailbone so that it is on the same plane as the pubic bone. Roll the shoulder blades down and in to open up the chest. Align the chin above the sternum and tuck it back slightly. Imagine the head filled with helium and lift the crown toward the ceiling, stacking each vertebrae one on top of the other. Engage core lift. Inhale and bring the arms out to the sides forming a "V" shape with the fingertips extended upward. Make sure the shoulder blades are down and in as the chest lifts upward. Hold here for three breaths keeping the eyes focused upward.

2 Forward bend
On exhalation extend the arms out to the sides. Engage core lift. Keeping the spine straight and hinging from the hips, bend forward lowering the fingertips to the floor and relax the head. Bend the knees if you need to. Relax and breathe for three abdominal breaths.

3 Lunge I
(left leg forward) Lifting the head and chest slightly, bend both knees and place both hands on the floor. Engage core lift. Extend the right leg back into a lunge. The left knee should be aligned directly over its heel. Keep the right knee off the floor with back and neck straight. Gently rock back and forth as you take three abdominal breaths.

4 Kneeling warrior
Drop the right knee to the floor and let the top of the foot lie flat. Lift the crown and straighten the spine bringing the torso perpendicular to the floor, arms at your sides, fingertips extended downward. Square off the hips pulling the left butt cheek backward and tuck the right hip under slightly. Engage core lift. Inhale bringing the arms out to the sides and extending the fingertips upward. Roll the shoulder blades down and in and bring the arms into a "V" shape. While in this posture, tighten the right quad and buttocks muscle as you inhale (this lifts the hips slightly), release these muscles and relax as you exhale (this drops the hips downward). Do this for at least three breaths keeping the eyes focused upward.

5 Kneeling forward bend
Bring the palms together over the head, drop them to the chest and then down to the floor on either side of the left foot. Engage core lift. Keeping the spine straight and lifting the tailbone upward, press the hips backward and lift the ball of the left foot off the floor. Hands remain at either side of the ankles. On the in-breath, pull the left heel and hip toward each other activating the hamstrings; on the out-breath release the hamstrings and relax the hips backward, feeling the hamstring and calf stretch. Make sure to keep the back straight and chest lifted slightly. Repeat this at least three full breaths.

6 Downward facing dog
Bring the ball of the left foot back onto the floor and tuck the right toe under. Engage core lift. Now lift the right knee off the floor and pull the left foot back to meet the right. Feet should be at least hip distance apart. Open up the fingers and press the digits into the floor, pushing backward while pressing the tailbone upward, forming an inverted "V". Keep the knees slightly bent at first and then straighten both legs and extend the heels as close to the floor as you can. Rotate the shoulder blades outward, releasing the neck and upper back. Focus attention on your navel and breathe at least three times, keeping the posture dynamic by continuing to press into the floor and lifting the tail.

7 Plank pose
Keep both arms straight, engage core lift and drop the hips so they are parallel to the floor. Continue to engage the core as you hold here for three breaths. (Tailbone is slightly lifted upward.)

8 Upward facing dog
Now drop the hips under and lift the sternum, keeping the neck aligned with a straight spine. Be sure to keep the shoulders pulled down away from the ears. Hold for three more breaths. On an inhalation, lift the tail bone upward again and return to:

9 Downward facing dog
Now continue the salutation using the opposite leg:

10 Lunge II
11 Kneeling warrior
12 Kneeling forward bend
13 Forward bend
In a lunge with the right leg forward and left leg back, tuck the left foot under and lift the left knee off the floor. Straighten the right leg slightly and bring the left foot to meet the right foot, hip distance apart. Hold in forward bend for three breaths. On an inhalation, engage core lift as you bring the arms out to the sides and upward, keeping the spine straight and flow into the Mountain pose.

14 Mountain
Hold in Mountain for three breaths. On the last exhale, slowly and mindfully bring the arms down to your sides and then to your heart. Hold for three breaths bringing your focus to the sensations in the body. This series may be repeated 2-6 times. While each of these postures can be practiced on its own, think of the series as a flow of movements designed to educate your body by developing a movement plan that requires you to stretch and strengthen your extremities while developing the stabilizing muscles of your core.