fbpx

Yoga Basics: Dolphin Pose The secret weapon to unlocking your stiff shoulders and improving posture!

by

Do you suffer from stiff shoulders or maybe you struggle with standing up straight? 

Well, this Tutorial is for YOU!

Join Jennifer Dixon with Thrive Yoga and Wellness and Thrive Online  for this Yoga Basics tutorial where you will learn all about dolphin pose, a great shoulder strength builder and mobility maker!  The bonus is that you get a little core work in while practicing it too!

This is a basic yoga pose found in many different types of yoga classes and has many different ways you can practice, work with it, and even intensify. Here, Jennifer talks about “best practices” you can do to help keep your back safe and pain-free, based on the alignment you will find in most Ashtanga Yoga based studios.  Other modifications and drills in this pose are on our channel and will be in future videos.

What to Remember When Practicing Dolphin Pose:

  • Place your forearms on the mat about shoulders width distance apart.  Use your muscles to hold them there. (a strap can also be used, but I don’t like that right away since your shoulders may be really really tight.)
  • Plug your toes into the mat and lift your hips like your best down dog.  
  • Don’t worry if your legs are straight or your heels aren’t down.  That’ll come with time
  • Let your head relax and look down your nose or towards your belly button
  • Hold your shoulders down and away from the ears.
  • Draw your bandhas in, (squeeze your abdominal muscles, and try to lift your pelvic floor)
  • Play with pressing your chest towards your thighs to intensify the stretch.
  • Hold this for several breaths.  

Remember, always keep your stomach muscles engaged and try not to tilt that tail bone out. 

 (this cue can reduce back pain)  

If you would like to learn more about Jennifer or if you would like to practice with Jennifer in person and you’re in the Chattanooga, TN area, check us out online. We offer almost 40 classes each week in a variety of modalities from beginners to advanced, to chair and seniors all the way to super physical HIT yoga.  It’s a great studio in the suburbs with ample parking and the community vibe. 

Or if you’re not in the area and still want to practice with me, you can totally do it for free, virtually inside our Thrive Online community.  

In the video, I was practicing on my Mantra Lux Pro mat (this is an affiliate link.)  A Chattanooga Based Yoga and Lifestyle company. 

This post was written by Jennifer Dixon MBA ERYT 500 and Authorized Ashtanga Yoga Teacher.  She is the lead teacher in the Thrive Yoga and Wellness 200 hr Yoga For Every Body Teacher Training program: the Chattanooga area’s ONLY modular 200 hr Yoga Alliance approved Teacher Training program that allows you to train when YOUR schedule allows.  With two semesters each year and plenty of opportunity to practice and train year round, this is the BEST yoga teacher training program for busy folks.  Gone are the stresses about missed training weekends, you don’t have to worry about exhaustion and tears from super long intense weekend training every month–with the Thrive Yoga Teacher Training program, you train when your schedule allows and live your best life now.  Yoga Teacher Training should be fun, come practice with us and let us show you how! Another great perk of training at Thrive? You get an unlimited membership to the studio for one full year while you train! NO ONE ELSE offers this amazing deal (worth $1100!) and it’s the PERFECT way to get the training you want with the practice you need.  Our next semester starts in August of 2019! See you on the mat soon!