Backbending: Everything Connects to Everything: #7daystretch

prAna and Fit Approach ask us about backbending today, in honor of prAna's #7daystretch #liveinprAna campaign for their fall line. They're also gifting us (aka everyone!) with a 15% off code: LiveInprAnaF15.* Yay fall shopping!

Backbending does not come easily to me. There are some people that have "accordion" spines, which bend and flex deeply and easily. From the beginning, bridge pose was not comfortable or fun. I blamed back problems, which do run in my family. But it was more an issue of not wanting to work on what didn't feel good or natural.

My friend's accordion spine versus … mine

Transformation of one-legged wheel

Transformation of straight legged wheel

It took wanting to work on handstand to put the effort in with my backbends. How do they relate, you ask? When I kick to hard up into handstand, I flip out into wheel pose. But to do that safely and comfortably, I needed to work on my wheel pose so that I could land in it without jarring my spine. So began the backbending…

Practicing flipping out of handstand with a spot

I began to realize how integral backbends are into a lot of poses, especially the ones I wanted to start focusing on! Like dancers, pigeon, and hallowback. As I've gotten deeper in these poses, I've wanted to continue to progress, and have shifted focus to pure backbends like scorpion variation of handstand and forearmstand, forearm wheel, straight arm wheel, and camel. Most of the most dramatic progress I've made has been with backbends (#transformationtuesday).

Transformation of dancer

Transformation of scorpion forearmstand

Transformation of king pigeon

Backbends like wild thing, wheel, and dancers have become some of my go-to #stopdropandyoga poses! And I'm totally loving playing with scorpion and hallowback in my inversions!

The beauty of yoga is you really can't focus on just one pose or area of the body without realizing that everything relates. Everything is interconnected! Take something like scorpion handstand: not only do you have all of the elements of handstand (engaged hands and fingertips, non-hyperextended elbows, shoulders engaged, shoulder blades squeezing together, core engaged, spacious low back, active legs), but you're melting your heart between your shoulders and shifting your gaze forward to counterbalance your legs arching overhead (to the crown of your head in theory) while not letting your core collapse or your back hinge. Oh, and you're inverted on your hands the whole time!

So when you're working on backbending, you're working on probably 65%** of yoga poses, but in different variations. So hop to it and get to bending!

*Code is valid until September 30, 2015, and is not valid for influencers, with gift certificates, or other offers. 

**statistic is completely fabricated to prove a point ;)

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by prAna, but all opinions are my own.