Home
Morning Prayer
Meditation
Articles
New Article
Yoga Bytes
A Bit of Yoga You Can do Right Now
The Cowface Pose
We all have habits of body: certain ways we sit or stand, certain ways we move as we walk or reach for a cookie, certain ways we hold our bodies as we talk on the phone, read our email, or play the violin. These habits of body gradually cause certain muscle groups to tighten, others to lose tone.
One area that tends to tighten naturally as we age (and is aggravated by computer work and hunching over the microphone in a radio studio) is out upper chest. As the muscles there shorten over time they draw our shoulder together as though we are expecting to be attacked at any moment. If we don't do something to stretch those muscles so the chest can open up, we allow that rounder shoulder that makes us look old and afraid to develop.
There is a connection between how we hold our bodies and how we actually feel inside. Remember the song from The King and I? "Make believe you're brave, and the trick will take you far. You may be as brave as you make believe you are." I proved it to myself back when I went from slump-shouldered clerk to self-confident assistant manager. Use yoga to look younger and feel younger.
The bizarrely named cowface pose works well to open the chest and counter the habits of body that evolve from hunching forward for any reason. An open chest helps you breathe deeply and well because your lungs have more space in which to expand. The cowface stretches the upper body, particularly the arms, in ways other postures don't. It strengthens muscles in hands, fingers and wrists. I even heard a rumor recently that it eases neck strain as well.
The pictures show how it's done.
You can do the cowface pose sitting in a chair, standing in line or while taking a shower. For the hard core among you, there is a position for the legs as well that we may cover another time.
For the cowface pose arms: Reach straight up over your head with one arm. Bend that elbow so your hand hangs straight down your back. Your upper arm should stay close to your ear. Reach up from behind with your other arm and clasp hands with yourself (or is you can't quite reach -- a common occurrence at first Ñ use a belt or scarf and work your hand toward one another). Repeat on the other side. Shake out any tension you may have picked up.
Below are a couple of stretches that will make the cowface pose easier:
Stretch 1: for the arm that's reaching down from above
Reach straight up over your head with one arm. Bend the elbow so your hand hangs straight down your back. Lift your other hand up and use it to gently push the elbow (pointed at the ceiling) back toward the wall behind you. Hold for a breath or two then repeat on the other side. Shake out any tension you may have picked up.
Stretch 2: for the arm that's reaching up from below
Reach behind your back at about waist height with one arm. Reach behind your back with the other hand and grasp your other wrist and pull that arm across your back. Hold for a breath or two then repeat on the other side. Shake out any tension you may have picked up.
Don't you feel better?
If the exercises above are not possible for you because of illness or injury, do as much ad you can and imagine (in detail) exactly what it would feel like if you could do the rest. Imagination is a powerful thing.
The spirit in me salutes the spirit in you. We're all in bodies together.