Back and Shoulder Tune Up
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Mobility Drill: Upper Thoracic Differentiation
If you suffer from a tight neck, aching shoulders and upper back, this is a go to mobility drill. Often we get locked up and stuck in the upper back. This mobility drill is designed to restore the supple freedom we need in the thoracic spine to move well and feel good.
Something for Nothing
Often we have an intractible, parasitic tension that causes pain. This tension is the bodies’ way of protecting an area. Sometime, relieving the tension can relieve the pain. Most of the time a stretch won’t do it. Instead we will have to teach the tissues to let go. This is a class about learning to let go, with techniques for doing just that.
Chair Yin: Your Nervous System and Your Neck
This is a go to, short practice to relieve neck and shoulder tension naturally. The whole practice can be done from a simple chair. You will engage in some somatic work as well as gentle stretching to increase range of motion and reduce feelings of stiffness. You will also learn about the relationship between these cranky tissues and the nervous systems. Chronic muscle tension in neck and shoulders can be debilitating and painful. But there are holistic strategies that you can use to get some relief.
Back to the Shoulder
This practice will help you to build up your strength in your shoulder and it’s helpers and also confidence. The movements have been combined to maximize your awareness of these relationships so that your body may spontaneously discover more comfortable and efficient patterns of movement. It’s time to take the bubble wrap off of the shoulder. To heal you will need to reintroduce movements that feel powerful and build strength and resilience.
Thoracic Expression
The upper back is an area that can be a big source of tension and even pain. We also have a fair amount of cultural baggage around the appropriate way to hold our upper back. Even in the Yoga world, we tend to favor a stiff and straight upper back above other shapes. But the upper back is capable of so much more, and I believe we suffer when we get locked in to a specific posture or expression.
In this practice, we explore the capacity of the upper back to generate movements, sensations and even emotions. We will use a somatic lesson adapted from Feldenkrais Method® supported by familiar Yin Poses. Your upper back and neck will really benefit from this practice.