Locust

Our bodies in a modern setting, spend most of our days sitting, rounded a little bit forward.  Sitting shortens the front side of our body and the back body is lengthened – becoming weak, tense and slack.

As a function of age, the older we are, the quicker our body deconditions.  We are slowly but surely getting weaker in the back of our body.  We need to strengthen our posterior chain.

Welcome to locust pose!

Why is it a great back strengthener?  Unlike Cobra, you are not using your hands to lift your upper body.  Instead, you are using the back muscles to initiate the lift.

Many don’t like locust pose as you feel you are not going up very far.  But you don’t have to! Less is more in this pose (as with Cobra, but that is another topic for another time!) as the long-term benefits of active engagement are great.  (See blog post titled Thoracic article to learn about how the health of your thoracic spine (upper back) is key to lower back happiness)

 How to do Locust:

1. Begin on your belly, toes untucked and your hands reaching back, palms down.

2. Extend your legs towards the back of the room, initiating the extension from the hip.  See if you can keep all ten toenails pressing down to activate your quadriceps.

3. Rotate your inner thighs toward the ceiling to broaden your lower back.

4.  Keeping your forehead on the mat, draw your shoulder blades down your spine, then in towards your spine – this will initiate the lift of the arms.

5. As your shoulders start to roll back and up away from the floor, your head will start to lift. Keep the back of the neck long by pulling your vocal cords gently into the neck spine for support. Meaning, resist lifting your chin and gazing upwards. Keep your gaze down. As you pull the vocal cords back, expand across the collar bones which will initiate the lift of the chest.

6.  Keep the engagement of the back body and continue to reach your legs to the back of the room as you lift your feet.  If you find you must hold your breath to stay in this pose, you are lifting too high. Lower a bit to find a steady inhale and exhale.

7.  To come out of the pose, slowly release.

Active lengthening backbends that lift the chest and shoulders against gravity without the help of the hands, like locust, will awaken the muscles on the posterior body enough to re-set posture and prevent slumping.