Upside-Down Dog: Car Stretch for Scoliosis & TMJ

If you've read my previous posts, you probably know that I like to use my car as a source of stretching inspiration. One of my favorite car stretches to do is to use my roof to do what I consider a modified down dog yoga pose, or what I like to call "Upside-Down Dog."

Hm. Down dog in a seating position? Try it before you dismiss it! I think it's actually a great way to understand the feeling that your shoulders and arms should have when in an inverted, true down dog yoga pose.

Upside-Down Dog Car Stretch Instructions:

1. Seated in your car, at a stop light or while in your driveway, put both palms up on the roof of your car with the thumbs pointed toward each other. The arms should be about shoulder width apart. The elbows should be straight but not locked in a rigid manner. You don't want to bring tension into your upper back while doing this exercise; in fact, you should aim for the exact opposite - upper back relaxation!

2. Relax the neck and allow the head to gently glide backward, giving yourself a double chin. Try to bring the ears in line with your upper arms. When I do this, I feel a release in my upper back and cervical spine (neck) area. The nose and eyes should be directed slightly upward, as if toward the clouds, but try not to raise the chin to achieve this end.

3. To get a deeper stretch, give yourself a slight arch in the back. Remember, the key word is slight! Check out my post about how to do a slight arch. It's important not to push your muscles too much, especially if you  have chronic muscle tightness and misalignment from scoliosis. I like to use the steering wheel to brace my knees and provide a strong base for my slight back arch.

Forward head posture has caused a lot of us to have neck tightness, upper back tension, and a loss of the natural C curve of the cervical spine. This exercise is an easy way to re-train these muscles and help them return to their neutral state. As your muscles learn to relax, try bringing the thumbs closer together, eventually ending up in a lovely seated sun salutation pose.

Beautiful sun salute

We spend so much time hunched forward! Think about it: do you look like any of these people? I know I do...

On a cell phone and laptop (Me: guilty...)

 

 Driving with chin jutting forward (Me: guilty...) 

 Relaxing at home on a laptop, looking downward (Me: guilty...) 

Work. (Who isn't guilty?) 

Turtle back? (Me: guilty...)

Next time you practice yoga, or just want a simple neck stretch, try to remember the feeling that you gave yourself while practicing this "Upside-Down Dog" pose. You can bring this feeling into a variety of yoga poses.

Happy Upside-Down Dog-ing!