Yoga: Relaxing the back - Session #2

In session #1, we started discussing about relaxing back on the floor with a little detail about breathing in this position. Now, let us look into a couple of movements in this position.

Breathing with co-ordinated arms movement:

1. Lied down on your back with legs folded (or, rested on a chair or bolster).
2. Ensure that the entire back is completely rested on the floor. Keep an appropriate neck rest. Chin slightly towards the chest.
3. Keep both arms by the side of the trunk, with palms facing down.
4. Do not stiffen your arms; be relaxed. Breathe normally.
5. Now exhale the breath. As you inhale slowly raise your arms, taking it towards your head and beyond.
6. Remember that as you inhale the chest and the abdominal cavities expand.
7. At the end of inhalation, both arms must be stretched beyond your head.
8. Now, start exhaling the breath and move the arms back to the side of the trunk as you exhale. Exhalation should have ended by the time the palms touch the floor.

Be relaxed while doing this; but do not bend your arms. Co-ordinate the speed of arms movement with breathing. With practice, one can improve the depth of breathing.

It is recommended to do these with the eyes closed.

What to notice?
* As the arms are taken above the head, the chest gets a longitudinal stretch. Just like stretching a balloon helps in filling air easier, longitudinal stretch of the chest aids in more air entering the lungs.
* The shoulders get a good stretch. The entire system is a highly interconnected like a chain, you can observe the lower back (lumbar area) responding to the movement of the arms. The entire back gets a good stretch.

In summary, the movement tones up the chest and the shoulders, gives a gentle stretch to the back muscles, and improves the breathing. Beyond all these, a relaxed deep breathing calms the mind.

Now, let us look into another movement done with co-ordinated arms movement.

1. Keep the arms in line with your shoulders; palms facing upwards.
2. In this position, the chest gets a latitudinal stretch. Therefore, in this position the lungs should be full with air.
3. From here, start exhaling the breath, moving the arms closer to each other.
4. Remember that as you exhale, the diaphragm caves into the chest cavity, causing the chest and the abdominal regions to contract.
5. Exhalation should have ended by the time the palms touch each other.
6. From here, start inhaling; inhalation should end by the time the back of the palms touch the floor.
Close the eyes, focus on breathing and arms movement.

What to notice?
* These sets of movements stretches the chest latitudinally. Deepen your breathing with practice. In fact, in both of the above set of movements (arms along the body, arms across) the abdominal muscles and the back muscles contract just before the arms are lifted. The pectoral muscles (muscles of the chest) get a good stretch, and in turn aids deeper breathing.
* The upper back gets a good stretch in this movement.
* The shoulders get a good latitudinal movement. The shoulder joints is a ball-and-socket system and it is important to give movements in different dimensions to keep the system healthy and intact.

In both of these movements, observe how the entire back (cervical, thoracic and lumbar) muscles respond to the breathing.