The Remarkable Role of Fascia

The more I learn about fascia, the more complex and interesting it becomes. I have heard that the nadis are on the fascial plane as well as many acupuncture points. The point of Yin Yoga is to work with the connective tissue: tendons, ligaments, and fascia. Recently I have been studying, practicing, and teaching Somatics (brain-body re-education / neural re-education). So the second paragraph of the Yoga International quote below, stressing that the better we are with our proprioception the less pain we will have, makes perfect sense to me:

A Dynamic Organ of Communication

In addition to creating our literal interconnectedness, fascia also plays the remarkable role of helping the body to sense itself without using the eyes to see itself from the outside. Fascia is full of innumerable sensory nerve endings that are in constant communication with the brain about the body’s position in space. This ability for the body to use “inner vision” to sense itself is called proprioception, which is sometimes referred to as our "true sixth sense." In fact, you are actually using proprioception right now as you read this article. That's because if we didn’t have the ability to sense the body with our “inner vision," we wouldn’t be able to move through life in a controlled way. Without our proprioception we would all probably be lying in helpless, uncoordinated heaps on the floor—it’s really that important of a sense!

Because our fascial system is a major organ of proprioception, the health of our fascia is directly connected to how developed our “inner vision” is.

We all possess an acceptable level of proprioception that allows the body to move through life, but we’re now learning that high-quality proprioception can be an extremely important key to healthy aging. Researchers have recently uncovered a link between increased levels of proprioception and decreased levels of pain in the body. In other words, the more that your brain can sense your body accurately, the less pain you tend to experience. In addition, the more developed your proprioception is, the more skillful your daily movements will naturally become, reducing your chances of injury in the first place (and this becomes increasingly important as we grow older).

~ from Yoga Anatomy: What Every Teacher (and Practitioner) Should Know About Fascia by Jenni Rawlings, posted on Yoga International on February 2, 2015.

ps - if you do a Google search on fascia and look at the images you will get an idea of just how much fascia we have in our bodies. And thank goodness - it's what holds us together!

Myth of Aging Wrap-up

I have been practicing Somatics regularly for about 4 ½ months now and my body is noticeably different. I no longer have the almost overwhelming desire to crack my back and my neck or go to the chiropractor. I have only been to the chiropractor once since September and it is January now. This is amazing to me. I no longer have chronic stiffness in my neck, my ribs are not popping out of alignment constantly, and I rarely have SI joint pain. These three things have been chronic annoyances in my life since about age 20. I cannot say how happy I am to feel so free in my body.

Read more on Somatics.

Myth of Aging ~ Week 6

This week in Somatics we explored twisting and worked to free our shoulders and eyes from being bound together in twists. Warning: this exercise can cause some discomfort. You may feel nauseous or dizzy but your twists will become deeper and more free. Here's a link to a blog which describes why it is a good idea to practice these movements: Essential Somatics.

Picture from Essential Somatics.

To Start
Sit on the floor in a side seated position: both legs off to the left (see image). If you cannot keep both sit bones on the floor, use props under your butt to raise yourself off the floor (like a folded blanket or two) until you can sit evenly - no tipping off to one side. If this does not work in your body then sit on a chair up at the very front edge and walk your feet to the left so you are also seated in a side seated position.

Begin Twisting
With legs off to the left, bring your R arm behind you and your L hand to R shoulder and practice twisting R. Let your L hip lift up. Turn your head R and look R. Look to the wall and notice what your nose is in line with. Practice coming into and out of this twist - slowly. Rest.

Add Opposite Head Movement
Come into your R twist again but this time turn your head L and look L. Practice this a few times. Rest.

Add Moving Head
Come into your R twist again, turn your head and eyes R. Keeping the twist, turn your head and eyes L (look distainfully over your shoulder). Turn your head and eyes back and forth a few times, keeping the head and eyes in synchronicity. Rest.

Add Opposite Head and Eyes
Come into your R twist again, turn your head R while eyes look L. Keeping the twist, turn your head L (opposit direction as your body) while your eyes look R. Turn your head and eyes back and forth a few times, keeping the head and eyes in opposition. Remember to breathe. Rest.

Back to the Beginning
Practice your basic twist again: legs left, R arm behind you and your L hand to R shoulder, twist R. Let your L hip lift up. Turn your head R and look R. Look to the wall and notice what your nose is in line with. Notice if you are twisting more, how does your back feel, how does your neck feel, etc.

Rest and Repeat 2nd Side
Take a break between sides. You might practice a few rounds of Arch and Flatten.

To Finish
You might want to take another round of Arch & Flatten and Arch & Curl or add on a few other movements from the cat stretch (see links below for review).

Enjoy!

Read more:
Myth of Aging Week 1
Myth of Aging Week 2
Myth of Aging Week 3
Myth of Aging Week 4
Myth of Aging Week 5 

Note: After this class I had a big SI joint adjustment when I laid down. It didn't hurt but I felt it and I heard it. It felt like my whole pelvis went "kla-klunk!" and settled into place. Weird but good.

Myth of Aging ~ Week 5

This week in Somatics we learned Inversion/Eversion - rotating your legs from the hip sockets while allowing a natural arch and curve to happen in each side of your back.

Jodi started us off doing one leg at a time and later we combined the movements to move our legs together in mirroring and then synchronizing. Sound confusing? I'll break it down.

To Start
Lay on your back with your knees bent and take a couple of Arch & Flattens and Arch & Curls. When you feel ready, straighten your legs and make sure they can slide freely along the floor (move your sticky mat out from under your legs if you were using one).

Rotating Legs Outward and Inward
1) Rotate your R leg as far outward as you can - moving from the hip to the foot not the foot to the hip - and then reverse that movement and roll your R leg as far inward as you can - again, moving from the hip socket. Rest in neutral. Repeat 3-5 times on the R and then 3-5 times on the L, remembering to rest completely (no holding any tension or anticipating your next move) between each rotation.

Rotating Outward with Lift/Bent Knee
2) Rotate your R leg as far outward as you can and draw your leg toward your body, letting your knee bend and open to the side - as if you were doing one half of bound angle pose. Slowly release the leg back to straight. Pretend that your leg is immobile from the knee down. Let all the movement originate from the hip on both the drawing in and the straightening out. Repeat 3-5 times on the R and then 3-5 times on the L, remembering to rest completely between each movement.

Rotating Inward with Lift/Bent Knee (the Marilyn Monroe)

3) Rotate your R leg inward (from the hip socket) as far as you can and draw your leg toward your body, letting your knee bend and skimming your R leg up your L leg into a "Marilyn Monroe" leg, as shown. Again, pretend that your leg is immobile from the knee down. Let all the movement originate from the hip on both the drawing in and the straightening out. Repeat 3-5 times on the R and then 3-5 times on the L, remembering to rest completely between each movement.

Rotating Both Legs Outward with Lift/Bent Knees (Bound Angle)
4) We are doing the same movement as in step 2 but we are doing it with both legs at the same time, legs mirror each other. Rotate both your R & L leg as far outward as you can (from the hip sockets) and draw your legs toward your body, letting your knees bend and fall outward - as if you were coming into a loose bound angle pose. Slowly release the legs back to straight. Pretend that your legs are immobile from the knee down. Let all the movement originate from the hip on both drawing in and straightening out. Repeat 3-5 times, remembering to rest completely between each movement.

Rotating Both Legs Inward with Lift/Bent Knees (Knock-Knees)
5) This is the same movement as in step 3 but we are doing it with both legs together, legs mirror each other. Rotate both your R & L legs inward (from the hip socket) as far as you can and draw your legs toward your body, letting your knees bend and skimming your feet along the floor - feet will probably slide outward, accentuating a "knock-kneed" look. Again, pretend that your legs are immobile from the knees down. Let all the movement originate from the hips on both the drawing in and the straightening out. Notice how your back is moving. Repeat 3-5 times remembering to rest completely between each movement.

Rotating Both Legs Together with Lift (Skiing / double Marilyn Monroe)
6) This is a combination of steps 2 & 3 moving both legs together in synchronicity, not mirroring. From the hip sockets, rotate both legs to the R (R leg outward & L leg inward). Keeping legs glued together, draw your legs up and to the right, letting your knees bend and sliding your feet along the floor. Send the legs out straight again, rotate both legs to the left, draw the legs up and to the left, sliding your feet along the floor. Again, pretend that your legs are immobile from the knees down. Let all the movement originate from the hips on both the drawing in and the straightening out. Notice how your back is moving. Repeat this skiing motion 3-5 times remembering to rest completely between each movement.

To Finish
You might want to take another round of Arch & Flatten and Arch & Curl or add on a few other movements from the cat stretch (see links below for review).

Enjoy!

Read more:
Myth of Aging Week 1
Myth of Aging Week 2
Myth of Aging Week 3
Myth of Aging Week 4
 

Myth of Aging ~ Week 4

This week in Somatics we learned "The Washcloth." Think: ring yourself out. Yep, all about twisting. Previously we had learned to contract one area while simultaneously relaxing another area (like in Arch & Curl where you engage the belly and relax the back and then switch and engage the back and relax the belly - see week 1 & week 2).

The Washcloth got us moving in all directions at once it seemed. There's legs, arms, shoulders, head, belly, back & breath involved so I'll see if I can break it down.

Legs:
Start by laying on your back with your knees bent and feet a bit wider than shoulder distance apart. Let your knees rock slowly from side to side and notice what your hips are doing (one should be lifting while the other sinks more into the floor).

Arms & Shoulders:
Out like a T. One arm rotates up while the other rotates down. For example, R palm turns up, thumb pointing to the wall behind your head while the L palm turns down, thumb pointing to the wall beyond your feet.

Tip: Let your hands receive the twist. Begin each movement from the shoulder. So when you want your palm to turn down, make that happen by rolling your shoulder inward and down toward your belly. When you want your palm to turn up, press your shoulder blade into the ground and roll your shoulder open.

Head:
Just like in a regular twist the head will look in the opposite direction from the way the knees fall.

Belly, Back & Breath / Putting it all together:
While your knees are falling L and your L back of hip is pressing into the floor, your head is looking R, and your R shoulder blade is pressing into the floor, causing your R palm to turn up. The L shoulder is lifting slightly and drawing toward the R hip, causing your L palm to turn down. These movements are creating a slight diagonal arch from the back of the R shoulder to the back of the L hip and a slight diagonal curl from the front of the L shoulder to the front of the R hip.

Taking it to the other side, your knees are falling R and your R back of hip is pressing into the floor. Your head is looking L, and your L shoulder blade is pressing into the floor, causing your L palm to turn up. The R shoulder is lifting slightly and drawing toward the L hip, causing your R palm to turn down. These movements are creating a slight diagonal arch from the back of the L shoulder to the back of the R hip and a slight diagonal curl from the front of the R shoulder to the front of the L hip.

For me, it works best to exhale as I come into the twist and inhale as everything comes back to center. The slower you move and the more mindfully you practice the better the results (relieving pain, increasing range of motion). Sometimes this means that I have to take multiple breaths per side vs. flowing with the twist in a one breath per movement pattern.

Enjoy!

Read more:
Myth of Aging Week 1
Myth of Aging Week 2
Myth of Aging Week 3

Myth of Aging ~ Week 3

In week 1 we learned to use and release our back body muscles. In week 2 we found our front body muscles and this week Jodi guided us in learning to use and release our side body muscles with the Somatic technique, Side Curl.

Why would you want to do this? Maybe you feel like one leg is shorter than the other, or maybe you slump more on one side, or maybe you feel weaker on one side. This practice will help release side body slumping, will strengthen the side bodies, and can lengthen the torso to relieve the experience of having one longer leg (one leg actually being longer is extremely rare - it is more likely that the torso muscles are contracted unequally).

 Here's what we learned. I'll break it down:

1. To start, lay on your L side, head resting on your extended L arm, hips and knees bent at 90 degrees (like you were siting in a straight-back chair and you tipped over sideways).
2. Place your R hand on your R hip and try to use your side body muscles to "hike" your hip up into your hand. Repeat 3-5 times, resting completely after each hip hike.
3. Lay your R arm on top of/along your R side body. Practice pulling your R armpit down toward your R hip using your side body muscles. Repeat 3-5 times, resting completely after each engagement.
4. With R arm still resting on your R side body, draw your R armpit and your R hip toward each other and then slowly release them away from each other, even lengthening at the end of the release. Repeat 3-5 times, again stopping and resting between each rep.
5. Adding load: Bring the R arm up and over head, holding the top of the L ear. Draw your R armpit and your R hip toward each other while at the same time letting your head float up (R hand supports the head) and your R foot float up (knees remain glued together). This should really concentrate the effort into the R side torso muscles. When you release from the contraction, release very slowly and even lengthen the R arm and R leg away from each other, extending them straight away from the body. Rest in this lengthened position.
6. Repeat these steps on the other side.

I'm not noticing any different body habits or patterns changing this week but I feel like this exercise is really good at strengthening my side bodies.

Read more:
Myth of Aging Week 1
Myth of Aging Week 2

Myth of Aging ~ Week 2

Last week I described Arch & Flatten and the Back Lift. These are the exercises needed to help release the "Go" pattern in your body. This is the pattern that looks like military posture: chest out, knees locked, a little bent at the hips and leaning forward, ready to go, go, go!

This week we learned the antidote to the "Stop" posture: chest slumped, chin jutting, tail tucked, slumping into our desks, slumping into defeat. To combat this slumping posture, we learned how to contract and release our front body muscles with Arch & Curl and Diagonal Arch & Curl.

We began with the basic movement, Arch & Curl. This is done by laying on your back, knees bent. On the inhale the belly rises, the lumbar arches, and the sacrum presses into the floor. On the exhale pull your belly toward your spine, releasing the back muscles and engaging your belly muscles. Draw your lower ribs down and in toward your hip bones, your lumbar flattens to the floor and your tail curls up a little. Relax back to neutral. Repeat 5-10 times.

You can add load by placing the hands behind the head and supporting the head as you take your curl, letting the muscles of the belly lift the head if they are able. Try Arch & Curl without co-contracting. Use only the front body muscles or only the back body muscles.

Next we practiced Diagonal Arch & Curl. Same set-up: lay on your back, knees bent. Hold your L knee in your L hand, R hand behind the head. Exhale and push the belly toward the floor, letting the muscular contraction lift your R shoulder and L hip toward each other. The hand supports the head but does not really lift it. The head will lift when the muscles in the belly are able to engaged in the right way. On the inhale relax the R shoulder and L hip back to the floor and even press the R shoulder and L hip into the floor creating a small diagonal arch. Relax to neutral in between each round. Do this about 3-5 times and then repeat on the 2nd side.

What I've noticed this week is that my sleeping pattern has changed. I don't want as much of a pillow, if any, and I keep waking up on my back with both arms over my head. Usually I am supporting my "stop" pattern by elevating my head (on a pillow) and keeping my arms by my body. Maybe something is changing?

Myth of Aging ~ Week 1

Myth of Aging ~ Week 1

Last Tuesday I started my 3rd Somatic series at Yoga North. I wrote about the first series, Delicate Backs, but got too busy to write about the second series, Soma Yoga for Hips & Legs. Now I'm on to a 7 week practice to learn the full "Cat-Stretch" or "Daily Somatic Essentials" taken from Thomas Hanna's book, Somatics.

Here's the idea behind this movement based therapy:

In the revolutionary Somatics, Thomas Hanna demonstrates that so many problems we accept as inevitable over time-chronic stiffness, bad back, chronic pain, fatigue, and even high blood pressure -need never occur if we maintain conscious control of nerve and muscle, a state which Hanna calls sensory-motor awareness. This gentle, lifelong program can help almost anyone maintain the pleasures of a supple, healthy body indefinitely, with only a five-minute routine once a day.

The Cat Stretch is a short routine (8 exercises) which can be done in 15-30 minutes. We began with the very basic movement, Arch & Flatten. This is done by laying on your back, knees bent. Inhale and arch your spine (belly sticks up) exhale and relax back to neutral - no pushing. The idea is to reconnect your brain with your movement. You want to move very minimally: less is more.

The second exercise we learned is called the Back Lift. I've always avoided doing this one because it is so uncomfortable on my neck. Here's how it's done:

Lay on your belly with your L arm down by your side and your R arm bent and hand up by the head, palm flat down and cheek resting on the back of your hand. Now, this would be ok for me except now you turn your head to face your R elbow and rest your L cheek on the back of the R hand. This feels like a really big neck twist to me and caused a sensation of strain. But I did it anyway (carefully) and by the end of the exercise I was feeling better.

Here's how our teacher, Jodi, broke it down.
1. Laying as described above (L cheek on back of R hand), lift your head and look over your right shoulder for a breath or two. Come back to resting the cheek on the back of the hand and relax your neck completely (no bounce backs). Repeat three times.
2. With your L cheek resting on the back of your R hand lift your R elbow by drawing your R shoulder blade toward the spine. Return to neutral and completely relax. Repeat three times.
3. With your L cheek glued to the back of your R hand, lift your head and arm and look back (tiny twist) over your R shoulder. Return to neutral and rest completely. Repeat three times.
4. Rest your neck by turning it to center and taking Crocodile Pose.
5. Return to L cheek glued to back of R hand.
6. Lift your L leg toward the sky, leaving your head, arm and shoulder still. Repeat three times.
7. Integrate all movements together. Lift your head, R arm and shoulder, and L leg, keeping your L cheek glued to the back of the R hand. Try not to clench your jaw or use unnecessary force. Repeat three times and then relax in Crocodile.
8. Repeat all these steps on the L side.

By the time we were done my neck was ok to turn so far to the right. I was amazed. What is different about Somatics is the practice of actually moving into the contraction (in this case my chronically tight R side of neck), thereby resetting the muscle's spindle cells and allowing them to release.

Each time I have practiced the Back Lift this week it has gotten easier on my neck.

Delicate Backs Week 4

This Tuesday was our final session for Delicate Backs. I have not been to the chiropractor in almost two months. This is a long stretch for me. But I really wanted to see if the somatics work was effective. And after attending for 4 weeks and doing the homework at least 5 times a week I would say yes, it works. My ribs are not popped out, my SI joint is not stabbing me and I've only had one headache this month.

I am now signed up for the next 4-week series: Somatics for Hips & Legs. I've been having an issue with my L knee for many months. I'm curious to see if the somatic work will take care of it. I hope so because I don't like feeling like there is a knife in my knee when I go biking. And I need to bike to help build strength and stability in my legs and pelvis to help stabilize my SI joint.

Everything's connected.

Delicate Backs Week 3
Delicate Backs Week 2
Delicate Backs Week 1


 

Delicate Backs Week 3

Molly worked us into semi-reclined, seated, and kneeling postures. We started off with the standard arch and flatten on our backs but worked on this from a deep awareness of the cervical and lumbar spine. The goal was to free our necks, which would in turn free our backs even more.

After a few rounds of arch and flatten and 6-points practice, Molly brought us up to a semi-reclined position: on our backs, resting on our elbows, knees bent. We worked arch and flatten from here, exaggerating it to arch and curl if our necks would allow such movement. Next up, easy seated arch and curl with a slight twist and special head arc. It's too complicated to describe but the over all effect of the class was to bring more ease and more freedom of movement to our spines and necks.

We worked this same pattern from cat-cow and finally brought ourselves to standing to see how our bodies felt. I felt tall, straight and at ease. It was lovely.

Delicate Backs Week 2
Delicate Backs Week 1

Delicate Backs Week 2

Last week we learned Arch & Flatten and the 6-Points Practice. I tried to do a little bit of both of these at least once a day and sometimes I would do it twice a day, in the morning and before bed. I definitely noticed that my back felt less tense. My R ribs were still acting up (and have been since last Feb) but I felt like something was going right with this new somatics practice.

Last night we added on to our practice, learning to isolate movement in the hips and shoulders. We moved in four directions: up, down, forward and backward. OK sounds simple but have you ever tried to move one hip? Not so easy. Plus, each shoulder is so different. One might move just fine and the other might be frozen.

After isolating these movements while laying on our backs (and practicing them on both the R&L) we were instructed to lay on our sides and repeat the same series of movements. Then we had to really get complicated. We had to move our hips and shoulders at the same time in a rolling fashion, in a complementary pattern. Like this: Laying on your left side move R shoulder forward, R hip back; R shoulder down, R hip up; R shoulder back, R hip forward; R shoulder up, R hip down. Repeat x3-5 then reverse and repeat x3-5 and take the second side. This is called "walking" - although we did not get up. These are the same movements our body makes while we are walking but we generally don't notice.

After class my R ribs were super flared up. Definitely got some stuff moving there. It hurt to breathe. Thankfully, Molly (my teacher) had some time after class to work with me one-on-one. She had me do a couple of very simple movements, engaging and releasing my quadratus lumborum muscle on the R side. Interestingly (to me) Molly told me this muscle has an insertion point in the front, underside of the armpit and runs all the way down to the pelvis girdle. I tend to have trouble with my R neck, shoulder, ribs and SI joint. Wonder if this muscle is a culprit?

This morning I woke up with no rib pain and I could breathe without discomfort too. Yay!

New Somatics Practice

I signed up for "Delicate Backs" - a new class at Yoga North. It's a 4 week Somatic intensive and we met last night for the first time. We learned the 6-Points Practice from the work of Thomas Hanna. We started out with Arch and Flatten, moved to Arch and Curl, and refined with the 6-Points Practice.

Here's what our homework guide says about the 6-Point Practice: "To do this, get a sense of the right shoulder, right hip, tail bone, left hip, left shoulder, and back of the head. Gently alternate pressing and lifting each of these points in succession while focusing on what is working and what is releasing to move them up and lower them down."

This is a super slow, super intense practice. Not intense as in "worked out big time" but rather, intense as in "mind-body connection." Basically, we just laid on our backs on the floor with our knees bent and practiced moving each point individually and in conjunction with each other. It's hard to describe and better to experience. But my feeling is that this will be really helpful in easing chronic muscle tightness and also in creating stability where there is weakness.

I'm challenging myself to a little bit of this work every day - not just going in for the 4 meetings.