Yoga backbend is my arch enemy and I seldom include it in my classes. Every time I’m required to, I’ll roll my eyes in disdain.
The reason I feel this way could be attributed to the stiffness of my body and the instinct I have to protect my vulnerable heart from openings I am not ready for.
Although I’ve always been afraid of letting go and getting my heart hurt in the process, I could be feeling miserable because I’ve never really allowed myself the experience of it all.
In order to make myself do it, I found poses that would help strengthen my heart chakra and build up my courage and stamina, yet I am still guilty of abandoning my backend practice at every turn.
Why you ask? Well, because it hurts!
Despite being able to perform 20 chaturangas, I ask myself all the time, ‘why does it hurt’ when a simple bridge pose makes me feel like a sloth?
Maybe, what I need to do is to look deeper into my practice, but, wouldn’t I be doing that with an average of five classes a day?
Well, my good side says that’s not enough; for one thing, I need to feel completely free and be guided by my own practice. I need to stop rushing and be more accepting; to have quiet time to replenish my energy.
It’s ironic that I need to accept the fact that performing more backbends will make me more accepting. The way I look at it, acceptance of truth is the height of compassion.
Although doing unfamiliar and uncomfortable things make us feel lost and scared, the truth is performing backbends will decrease your stress levels, increase the flexibility and mobility of your spine and improve your posture significantly.
As oxygen levels increase, this yoga pose enables you to breathe better and helps link your body to diaphragmatic breathing.
Apart from helping to relieve neck and back pains, backbends are important when it comes to alignment of vertebrae and stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system.
Backbends can also help open the shoulders and chest – where many feel tightness due to accumulated tension.
Despite being a scary posture, backbends are strong and energising stretches that stimulate your cardiovascular system — by releasing plasma cells into your bloodstream (making you feel like a magical Tinkerbell!), increase your energy levels and boost your feelings of vitality; that’s why I always feel like a 46-year-old teenager, LOL!
In this week’s video, I’ll share a few backbend poses (without rolling my eyes, I promise) such as Bow Pose, Bridge Pose. Bridge Pose, Camel Pose, Cobra Pose, Cow Pose and Fish Pose. Enjoy!
