POW - Pose of the Week!

This week's pose: Plow (Halasana) - because I'm only halfway thru my inversions series! There's more to come...

Well, dear readers, it's been quite a week! In the past 7 days, 3 of the 4 members of my family have been bedridden with a high fever accompanied with a runny nose and sometimes nasty cough. The only reason it wasn't all 4 of us is because the youngest one had it first, before Thanksgiving! I'm on the road to recovery...and thinking all the while, I should be practicing my inversions! Won't that clear out my sinuses? Well, it turns out, not really.

Halasana is nice for relieving backaches, stretching the shoulders and strengthening the spine and stimulating those neck glands (Thyroid and Parathyroid). Noses? Not so much. On the plus side, it will calm the mind as you focus, and thereby reduce some of the stress and anxiety you may be faced with this time of year.

I included two images for you this week (shamelessly ripped from the internet) because they show subtle variations...and the first image actually shows improper form! Notice how the model in red seems to be looking down the left side of her body. You should never turn your head while your feet are above your head. Keep your head and neck on the floor to maintain the natural curve of your spine and prevent any strains or injuries!

I think Plow is a slightly easier posture than last week's pose (Shoulder stand)...in fact you can easily transition from one to the other and back again, and FYI all you moms out there, doing this simple maneuver will actually give your abdominals a very nice workout.

Lying flat on the floor with your arms resting alongside you, raise your legs up so you look like a capital "L". Next, keeping an eye on your toes, then knees, and ending with the tops of your thighs, slowly roll your legs forward over your head. Keep your shoulders on the ground, and bring your toes to the floor above your head. As you can see in the first image, you can choose to point your toes or as in the second image, plug your toes. At this point, your hips should be aligned with your shoulders.

Stay here for several breaths, really settling in, OR, using abdominal control, slowly transition back and forth from Halasana and Sarvangasana. In plow, you can choose to clasp your hands together (extra shoulder strengthening) or not, you can choose to raise your hands above your head and gently pull your toes (extra calf stretching), or you can choose to bend your knees so they drape over and hug your ears a bit (extra lower back stretching). Enjoy, and breathe. Maybe those sinuses will open up for you, anyway.

This week, I leave you with a little bit of "tea wisdom":

You can run after satisfaction, but true satisfaction must come from within.