ALIGN & REFINE: TRANSFORM YOUR PRACTICE with 4 MORE Common Alignment Tips

1) MOUNTAIN POSE: Target areas to watch are the foot muscles, quadriceps, psoas (inner hip), piriformis and abdominal walls. Misalignment in Mountain Pose: is to either 1) lock the knees, 2) feet are dead or 3)swayed lower back 4) collapsed in shoulder Suggestion: Prevent over aching of the low back, lift your thighs up to engage the power of the legs. Keep the low back long by tucking the tailbone and keep the frontal ribs soft. Prevent knees from falling out of alignment by activating the feet. Lift and spread the toes and press ball and heel down so knees stay over the feet. Shoulder blades are relaxed back and down away from the ears. Spread your collarbones and engage your core by lifting ribs up. 2) STANDING FORWARD BEND: Target areas to watch hip joint, legs and spine. Misalignment in Standing Forward Bend: is to lean the weight into the back of the heels causing tension in the hamstrings and spine. Suggestion: Deep hip flexion in this pose compresses the abdomen which makes it hard to breath. More freedom is needed in the back of the rib cage for the movement of the breath. Stack the hips over the font of the heels and lean the weight forward on to the balls of the feet. Keep a micro-bend in the knees (especially if you have a back injury or osteoporosis) this allows the hip joints to relax and the spine to release. Leverage torso up and back.

3) CHAIR POSE: Target areas to watch are the foot muscles, quadriceps, psoas (inner hip), piriformis, shoulders and abdominal walls. Misalignment in Chair Pose: is to either 1) sway the knees to the sides, 2) feet are dead or 3) lower back arched 4)over flexing the hips. Suggestion: Prevent over aching of the low back, lift your thighs up to engage the power of the legs. Keep the low back long by tucking the tailbone and keep the frontal ribs soft. Prevent knees from falling out of alignment by activating the feet. Lift and spread the toes and press ball and heel down so knees stay over the feet. Shoulder blades are relaxed back and down away from the ears. Spread your collarbones and engage your core by lifting ribs up. 4) UPDOG: Target areas to watch elbows, legs and spine. Misalignment in Updog: is to lock the arms or flare the elbows out to the sides which dumps the weight into the wrists causing the low back to jam up and tension to build in the arms. Legs are typically not engaged in this pose but should be. Suggestion: Keep the hands underneath the shoulders and press the palms flat. Keep a microbend in the elbows and hug the elbows into the ribs. To lengthen the low back, pull your flattened hands towards your hips (without lifting them) and press down firmly in the tops of the feet.