Monthly Archives: January 2012

January 13, 2012 · 12:00

Down Puppy

‘Lifeloveandhorses’ blog is about “optimizing health, happiness, and peace” for my horses and myself. Yoga is a good form of exercise to increase strength, stamina, balance and flexibility. This will help towards my goal of riding my horses with confidence. Even with the limited amount of yoga that I have been doing, I can feel a positive difference in my body. I realize that it is very important not to strain and to go at my own pace. Make sure you go at your pace and your abilities when doing yoga and exercises. With that in mind.. today we continue to work through the poses for my New Year goal of doing 10 ‘Sun Salutation’ routines.

Adho Mukha Svanasana – Downward Facing Dog Pose

Adhas = down
Mukha = face
Svana = dog

If legs are not flexible enough, then can bend the knees. I was able to do a full Downward Facing Dog with straight legs to stretch, but the pose put too much strain on my elbows supporting my body. My right wrist also complained afterwards. I took a few days to recover before doing this posture again. I have learned that it is very important to listen to my body and to take things at my pace and avoid straining. Spreading fingers wide is supposed to help distribute the weight on the arms. Until I am stronger, then plan to use modified poses.

Downward Dog with Chair – Yoga for Inflexible People

Uttana Shishosana – Puppy Dog Pose is a cross between Child’s Pose and Downward Facing Dog. Can put a soft pad under the knees.

Even those modified examples of Downward Dog may be too difficult. A blog with good suggestions is: http://dorestorativeyoga.blogspot.com

Restorative yoga is a passive practice in which poses…are held for several minutes at a time, propped with blankets, blocks, and bolsters to minimize the amount of work that the muscles are doing in the pose. – Yogajournal

Supported Puppy Pose ~ Uttana Shishosana

Supported Puppy Pose ~ Uttana Shishosana

Using props of blocks, blankets, straps and bolsters to help in the poses with support is a great idea and will definitely look into this further to avoid injury as I become stronger and more flexible. Yoga doesn’t have to be strenuous. The principles can very gently stretch out the ligaments and tendons and muscles with no strain, even if recovering from an injury.

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January 12, 2012 · 12:00

Hip flexors

‘Lifeloveandhorses’ blog is about “optimizing health, happiness, and peace” for my horses and myself. Yoga is a good form of exercise to increase strength, stamina, balance and flexibility.

Anjaneya

= praise (from root anj meaning honor)
Pronounced: (AHN-jah-nay-ah-sa–na)

Anajaneya pose is a type of lunge that stretches the hip flexor muscles, such as the psoas. The pose is similar to a “runner’s stretch”.

The psoas enable riders to influence their horses with their seats and legs. By mastering the use of these muscles, riders will be able to maintain self carriage, both on and off the horse.

– Tom Nagel, author of “Zen & Horseback Riding“

Anterior Hip Muscles diagram

Hip muscles

The psoas is the only muscle in the body that connects the legs to the spine. One action of the psoas is flexing the thighs at the hip enabling us to raise our knees. It assists in thigh rotation and adduction, helps to stabilize the pelvis, move the lower back, and links by connective tissue to the diaphragm.

The iliacus is another hip flexor that connects the legs to the pelvis. It joins into the thigh bones with the same tendon as the psoas muscle and often called the iliopsoas together.

These hip flexor muscles lie deep in the body behind the abdominal and pelvic organs.

Stretching the hip flexors is important for horseback riders, as well as for runners.

Yoga instructor Sage Roundtree describes a Low Lunge exercise.

This is an interesting interactive tool for learning about the human anatomy.
http://www.getbodysmart.com/ap/muscularsystem/menu/menu.html

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January 11, 2012 · 12:00

Horse outing

Over the holiday I most definitely ate way too many cookies and delicious dinners with family and friends, but I don’t regret it. Life is too short to miss eating holiday cookies with family. A few sugar coma days are okay, but perhaps it is time to bring out my former Weight Watcher member knowledge to re-group. I don’t dare weigh myself. No doubt my body is quite skilled at processing cookies into more fat.

My visiting brother isn’t a horse person, but enjoys hiking. We went out for a mid-winter hike along a nearby trail that runs beside a lake. The drought has the lake lower than we’ve ever seen it. My brother led Bangsi. I led Twistur, who was feeling spunky being out on such a beautiful Spring-like day. Twistur became a bit excited watching some other horses being cantered up a hill.  I was unsure whether I could handle even that level of enthusiasm, if was up on his back.  Behavior on the ground will translate to under saddle, so gently reminded Twistur that his job was staying with me. No, Twistur… we were not going running after other horses.  Moved his feet (not yanking on head) by driving him around me in each direction in a few small circles. This provided a “Yes, Ma’am” thinking shift and we proceeded down our path.

We met a family with 2 kids and a dog later on the trail. When leading we will often stop and give kids the opportunity to pet a horse. Our horses seem to enjoy the attention particularly from children. They always are very gentle and stand quite still. Later met the family at the trail head before loading up and the kids really enjoyed having more time to pet the horses. Our horses are sweet and adorable after all!

The day was shirt sleeves weather. Bangsi and Twistur in their Icelandic coats  were sweating, even at our leisurely pace. Bangsi wanted to go slower and slower on the return loop. My brother got Bangsi tolting along beside him (definitely not a trot) to catch back up. That was neat! We had saddled Twistur to have option to ride. The plan was that I could ride being led by my husband giving me a chance to concentrate on my balance and relaxing into the feel of movement.

I’ve taught Twistur to “sidle up” beside me when standing on a step-ladder or spot on trail for mounting. There was a large downed tree by the trail. I put on my riding helmet and managed to climb up and balance on the tree. I asked  Twistur to come along side and he was quite happy to do so. He stood like a rock for me to mount ungracefully and wiggle around searching for my stirrups. He’s such a good horse! We gave him a treat for being patient.

I am not confident and don’t feel secure in riding, so I sang “Oklahoma” by Rodgers & Hammerstein to help me breathe and relax. Twistur didn’t seem to mind me being up on his back. Had a bit of unexpected “touching toes” riding exercise when my hubby failed to realize that even sitting on a 13.2 hand horse that some branches were overhanging a bit low.

Touching toes
Here is an exercise that can help you become limber. You learn to sink into your joints, keeping your balance and improving your leg position. Take the reins in your right hand. Reach down and briefly touch your toes on the left side with your left hand…
Figure 17.17 A-D

– Sally Swift in “Centered Riding 2: Further Exploration”

Unlike from the yoga practice, I didn’t get sore from the riding session. That surprised me, so maybe that meant I wasn’t clinching or straining to sit in the saddle.

We’ve gotten out only twice more, but hope to get out for more horse hikes and rides.

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January 10, 2012 · 01:08

Ron Paul: No longer a dark horse candidate

How to register to vote by state information (form) PDF file:
http://register-vote.com/
http://tinyurl.com/3wbmfsr

Flower Chucker image - man throwing flowers

'Flower Chucker' by London-based graffiti artist Banksy

Like the Flower Chucker, the Ron Paul Revolutionary does not use coercion to affect change. Instead of a Molotov cocktail, he wields the power of the vote, the Viral Media, and the Internet as weapons against tyranny. Instead of violence, it is free speech, freedom of assembly, their labor, their sweat, their money that they use as tactics to cause change.

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January 9, 2012 · 12:00

Bend at the hip joints

‘Lifeloveandhorses’ blog is about “optimizing health, happiness, and peace” for my horses and myself. Yoga is a good form of exercise to increase strength, stamina, balance and flexibility.

Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend)

ut = intense
tan = to stretch or extend
asana = pose
Pronounced: (OOT-tan-AHS-ahna)

Uttanasana is used as a resting position between the standing poses, as in the Sun Salutation series. There are also seated variations of this forward bending pose.

My basic understanding of the pose:

  • Stand in Mountain Pose – neutral spine & neutral pelvis.
  • Think about the structure of the hip joints in the pelvis. Exhale and reach your chest out and down bending forward from the hip joints, not from the waist, keeping the back straight. Do NOT lock the knees and can bend the knees to ease the stretch. Do NOT bounce and do NOT strain to bend farther than your body is comfortable while keeping the spine straight. Bending half way over is called “Ardha (half) Uttasana”.
  • Breathe and relax into the stretch (for example, 30 seconds to a minute).
  • Exhale lifting the body keeping the spine straight returning to Mountain Pose.
  • Relax and breathe in Mountain Pose.

Using a chair for forward bend:

My husband is unable to bend far enough to lean on a chair. My suggestion is to practice using a wall as a resting spot. I am able to do “Ardha Uttasana”.  I can feel the greatest stretch in the back of my legs (ham strings), as well as my stiff right knee. Bending forwards sitting in my office chair with the spine straight works an upper body stretch without stretch in the knees and lower legs.

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January 8, 2012 · 12:00

Reach for the Sky

‘Lifeloveandhorses’ blog is about “optimizing health, happiness, and peace” for my horses and myself. Yoga is a good form of exercise to increase strength, stamina, balance and flexibility.

Upward Hand Pose

Urdhva = raised (or upward)
Hasta = hand
Asana – pose
Pronounced: (oord-vah hahs-TAHS-anna)

Like most asanas, the principles of movement in Urdhva Hastasana break into three parts: entering the pose, being in the pose, and exiting the pose. Whether you are practicing it individually or as part of a flow series, the pose should be executed with these principles in mind.
– Yogajournal.com

My basic understanding of the pose:

  • Begin in Mountain Pose – standing in neutral spine & pelvis.
  • Inhale and stretch your arms over your head.
  • When you are ready to exit the pose, slowly exhale and bring the arms down.
  • End in Mountain Pose.

The single biggest gift you can give your horse is becoming “live weight,”, whether on the ground or in the saddle. A horse can feel the difference if you’re braced against him or moving with him. When you learn to re-balance your body while remaining upright over your feet with your joints moving freely and without clamping on the horse, you can truly be “in sync” with his motion.

– Peggy Cummings

Peggy Cummings in her book “Connect with Your Horse from the Ground Up” gives examples of slumping vs arching. This is a good video of a woman demonstrating proper sitting / standing in pelvic neutral vs slumping or arching, as well as showing the structure of how the pelvis connects into the spinal column and legs.

* Please make sure to read my Disclaimer page.

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January 7, 2012 · 12:00

Change a habit

I’ve reviewed in the prior posts of the blog the basic structure of the joints and spine. With this knowledge we can visualize the alignment of the skeleton in the body to improve how we move.

Sitting in neutral spine and pelvis, then how do we properly get up and down from a chair in alignment with the least strain on our body? The method of movement suggested by the Alexander Technique requires strength in the legs to lift the body, but won’t strain the back and neck.

Lelia Calder gives a lesson in “The Alexander Technique” in the following video discussing some basic principles and teachings.

In the chair you should sit on your hip bones (ischial tuberosity) and not to slump sitting on your tail bone (coccyx). Talk to your body to ask the neck and shoulders to be relaxed and free. Feel the ribcage’s movement as you breathe expanding out all around to front and back.

Stand with  your feet apart under your hips (hip wide spacing).  Pause and think to not sit your usual method. This is the “choice point” allowing you to take the time to remember you want to change a habit and do something differently.

Ask the neck to relax and the head to free from the occipital joint. Ask the back to lengthen. Use your leg muscles to lower yourself onto the chair. Bend moving the knees forward and hips bend moving back to make a squat and lower into the chair with the head and spine aligned. Muscles are not required to work hard if you are in balance and you have alignment over your spine.

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January 6, 2012 · 12:00

Yoga on a sheet

While researching easier pose versions of Yogatic’s New Year “Sun Salutation Challenge”, I was struggling to remember to maintain good posture. As with sitting at my desk, it is important to have proper alignment during the poses. Doing the poses is yoga “practice”. For the “Sun Salutation” Challenge see my post from January 1st.

Since starting my blog a couple of weeks ago I had intended to re-start the Namaste Yoga tv show series. Instead I have only done simple stretching mostly in bed. That’s better than nothing, right? I have also practiced feeling how to stand and sit more in skeletal alignment, which has me stretching upwards and tilting my hips and wiggling around. I found my DVDs, but hadn’t used the DVD player in so long that had trouble finding the control. Surprised me when I opened the player to find that there was a Namaste yoga DVD ready to go. How long was that DVD sitting in the player as a thought intention to re-start doing the exercises? My vacuüm is on the fritz preventing proper cleaning of the carpet of the planned exercise area in the den. After reading about yoga, was time to actually DO some official yoga. No more delays, so just laid down a sheet over the carpet. In my PJs before bedtime I intended to finally do some yoga without one more day passing. Surely gentle stretching would be relaxing before sleep.

It was a real eye opener at how stiff that I have become. The warm-up was just barely doable.

This is a clip they have on-line of part of a warm-up series.

Last time I followed the series was probably 4 years ago when I was 25 pounds lighter. My body is much stiffer now. Even “Child’s pose” wasn’t comfortable. My fatter belly blocked bending down and my “caboose” stuck up in the air. My right knee hurt not letting me settle back on my heels.

The standing stretching arms up over head and bending over while deep breathing is a resting period between the poses. My arms got tired. I had to take a break from the ‘rest’. I stopped to watch the serene faces and graceful bodies moving on the tv, as if effortlessly. Wow… I want to be more like those lithe young women. That will take yoga “practice”.

My muscles trembled standing in ‘Warrior Pose’. I wobbled and fell over attempting one-leg balances and held onto a chair. I didn’t try to complete the full set of poses, then finished with the session’s cool-down. The cool-down wasn’t easy either.

Standing and bending over was the easiest exercise, which probably comes from all the times bending with my scoop shovel by the wheelbarrow to clean up horse poop. Picking out horse hooves is also good bending and squatting practice.

The yoga was a work-out. Afterwards I felt unhappy muscles that I’d forgotten that I even had in my body. These weren’t the muscles used in poop scooping. I took an Ibuprofen and climbed into bed putting a warm heating pad on my upper back.  Next morning my left elbow had a sore spot. BUT…in other ways I felt more stretched out and found it a bit easier to sit up in my desk chair. I felt taller. Of course… I still find myself slumping. I’m amazed how often, without realizing, I end up in an awful slouching posture.

I remember that 4 years ago couldn’t do an entire set on the first day of doing the Namaste DVD. It also took time to improve my balance. In my researching easier yoga practice discovered there are programs for doing yoga and even aerobics sitting in chairs. Even on my less optimal health days there will be no excuses to not get in some stretching and exercise. Even a small stretch will help improve my flexibility.

What’s coming up next in my blog:

  • Will include various yoga videos and poses for my personal slowed down “Sun Salutation” challenge. You are welcome to follow along and even join in. Might take me several months of “practice”, but my goal is to actually manage the 10 Sun Salutations with some actual grace.

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January 4, 2012 · 12:01

Neutral Spine Part 2

Correct positioning of your back, starting with your pelvis, is important for your balance, resilience, and comfort.

– Sally Swift in “Centered Riding 2”

Finding Neutral Spine and Neutral Pelvis – Sitting

When you are either arched or slumped – that is, not in Neutral Posture – your back, neck, shoulders, and joints begin to hold tension and may become stiff and painful.

– Peggy Cummings in “Connect with Your Horse from the Ground Up”

Finding Neutral Spine in the saddle

In the 20th century particularly, styles of riding came into fashion which are greatly removed from the nature of riding and from the natural style of riding.

– Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling in “Dancing with Horses: The Art of Body Language”

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· 12:00

Neutral spine Part 1

When sitting or standing in neutral, the body is most stable, strong, and free so the limbs can be used effectively without restriction.

– Peggy Cumming in “Connect with Your Horse from the Ground Up”

Human skeleton side view (S curve)

Normal spine has an S shape

Tada = A Mountain
Asana = Posture

Mountain pose, Tadasana, is the foundation for all of the standing yoga postures. Tadasana pose is standing with a “neutral spine” where the spine has the natural 3 curves. If you sit or stand up against a wall in neutral spine your head, mid back and pelvis should touch the wall. The outward curving of the spine are called “kyphotic” curves. The inward curving are called “lordotic” curves. In yoga transitions the Mountain Pose will be a position to re-centering and relaxing before moving to another pose. The body as it moves will come in and out of neutral spine and neutral hips.

The bones and muscles in the body are all tied together and affect each other. Over tight muscles can pull the body out of position. This may be from emotional tension or because the muscles have not been properly stretched. Other muscles may have become over stretched.  Imbalanced muscles will pull the body out of position and out of balance putting strain on the spine and joints. Understanding what the neutral position looks like and how the bones align is an important first step to making changes to posture. Stack your head, over your mid back, over your pelvis.

  • The head position affects the spine and the hip position. In neutral spine the head sits evenly balanced over the spine with eyes looking forwards. Imagine a string pulling the spine upwards from the top of your head to lengthen your body.
  • Lift the breastbone.
  • The shoulders are  relaxed and arms hang naturally by the side.
  • The hips can swivel independently from the legs by tilting forwards, sideways and backwards. A tilted pelvis alters the back’s alignment, such as with a flat back or sway back. Neutral spine has a neutral pelvis. In neutral spine the pelvis is in a neutral position. If you imagine the bones of the pelvic girdle as a bucket carrying water, then the hips  in neutral pelvis would not spill the water. The hips are not tipped front or back or to side. A neutral spine is not a rigid position, but is a point of centering and balance.
  • The knees are kept soft, not locked, but straight.
  • How the feet and legs are positioned can affect the tilt of hips and thus the spine. In neutral spine the legs stand under the hips with straight ankles and the feet pointed forwards with body weight evenly carried on them. The body is relaxed. It is important to have proper foot support, so that the feet do not roll inwards or outwards and have a proper foot arch. There are special foot supports that can be inserted into shoes to help.

  • Military posture has a very straight spine.
  • Too much kyphotic curving causes round shoulders or hunched shoulders.
  • Too much lordotic curving is called swayback.
  • Sideways curvature of the spine is called “scoliosis”.

Detailed explanation of muscles used in Tadasana from “Yoga Mat Companion 1: Anatomy for Vinyasa Flow and Standing Poses” by Ray Long, MD, FRCSC.

I found it easier to note the rocking of the hips and feel of neutral spine while lying down.

Finding Neutral Spine – Supine

When you’re in Neutral Posture, your pelvis is neither tipped forward nor backward; your pelvis is aligned over the middle of the seat bones (ischial tuberosity) whether you are standing, sitting on a chair, or on your horse’s back.

– Peggy Cummings in “Connect with Your Horse from the Ground Up”

Finding Neutral Spine and Neutral Pelvis – Standing

Sally Swift suggests a standing “Teeter Totter” exercise. Tip forwards and try to hold the position. Tip backwards and try to hold the position. Let yourself come back to center and feel how much easier it is to be in proper alignment and balance.

Take time to imagine the significance of this contrast on a horse.

– Sally Swift in “Centered Riding 2”

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