Full Wheel
Urdhva Dhanurasana
FULL WHEEL
Teaching an intentional class becomes inevitable when you follow the Chromatic system Matt has created. In Chromatic, we’re following a system that sets up the body for maximum execution within our fullest potential. When it comes to more challenging postures like Full Wheel, it’s imperative to prepare the body for ultimate safety. Full Wheel puts us in a vulnerable shape due to the extreme spinal extension that’s required.
If we’re teaching a yoga class on Wheel, setting up our students for success means that we need to be clear on the step-by-step process of teaching such a layered posture. There are specifics for the shoulders, upper body, and hips that must be highlighted. In the video, Matt offers the cues and formula for a road map to guide our students. It offers the opportunity to direct our students, rather than just mentioning a fleeting option in our class.
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SET UP THE SHOULDERS
Drills like we see in the first part of today’s clip help warm up the shoulders, but they also create increased and lasting shoulder mobility when practiced consistently.
Another important detail is positioning. There is some controversy when teaching Full Wheel about whether to instruct to place the hands wide or closer together. Some say it depends on the student, which is true, but we might also consider the viewpoint Matt offers.
He teaches that having the hands wide in Full Wheel gives more access to the shoulder muscles and to external rotation in the arm bones. This will help practitioners get into the back body more, that is, more into the rhomboid muscles, by squeezing the shoulder blades towards one another, which will trigger erector spinae muscles in the upper back. This upper-back activation increases the backbend, making it more accessible.
WATCH THE VIDEO
FULL WHEEL: TIPS FOR TEACHING THE TECHNIQUES
UPPER BACK VS. LOWER BACK
Of course the low back and pelvis are a part of the equation, but bringing more focus onto the upper back will create accessibility and improved range of motion.
When we watch the video, we see the importance of trajectory. The timing of straightening the arms when coming up into Full Wheel directly influences our push into the upper back versus the lower back. If we lengthen the arms too early, or teach our students to do so, we run the risk of pushing towards the feet and therefore into the lower back. This may cause compression in that area. If we set our students up against a wall, as is shown in the video, we can cue “chest to the wall, then push through the arms.” This will bring the trajectory more upward and encourage the upper back to mobilize.
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FROM THE FEET STRAIGHT INTO THE HIPS
There are 2 terms Matt consistently uses in Chromatic Yoga: Fundamental Action, or focusing on the muscles that are creating the action we need; and Balancing Action, or focusing on engaging the muscles of the opposing action of what our intention is.
When teaching Full Wheel, we cue extension of the hips, which will naturally create external rotation. We do want to employ some internal rotation for counter muscular engagement, but not to the point where we are inhibiting the fundamental action.
Place the feet where they comfortably land; a nice marker is to place the big toes more forward. Ultimately, the placement is about where we have the most power to drive through the heels, so that the hips extend and we activate the gluteus muscles for a more vertical trajectory.
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TEACHING OVER OFFERING
Now equipped with more insight into technique, we have the capability to offer Full Wheel with more intention in our classes. Safely guiding our students is always a priority. When we can offer step-by-step instruction and actually prepare the body for “bigger movements and shapes,” we have more confidence, and so do our students.
There are many who can “get into the shape” with ease, but we can extract increased potential from ourselves and our students when we explore techniques that support muscle engagements that increase mobilization.
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Article by Trish Curling
Video Extracted From: Vinyasa Immersion
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