if you're craving for a deeper chest opener, try dolphin! your shoulders are closer to the ground so you're able to leverage more of your shoulder strength to open up da chest. dolphin not only sets you up for inversions, but also can help you lift your suitcases in the overhead compartment in airplanes. i love me a win win situation heh 💡 Priorities: 1/ chest opening 2/ shoulder strengthening 3/ hammies + glute flexibility 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ down dog 2/ puppy

the deeper you get into your paschimottanasana (seated forward fold) or paschi, the smaller acute angle you will be able to make with your body. imagine that you're trying to make the cutest, the most acute acute angle as possible in your paschi. keep your spine straight, and compress on 💡 Priorities: 1/ hammies 2/ hip compression 3/ a sprinkle of IR / adduction 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ elephant walks 2/ half lift 3/ half lift variations in your sun salutations

leveraging the ujjayi breath helps 1/ provide stability for you to transition safely & change your drishti 2/ get deeper into backbends, side bends & twists every time you exhale & pull your navel to your spine - you're engaging your core. engaging your core provides stability so you don't wobble as much. every time you wobble - you risk falling and hurting yourself. i'm not a psychic, but i would assume that you might prefer to live in a world without pain if i can. so bestie - move on your exhale every time you inhale - you have the opportunity to find length in your spine. every time you create space between your vertebrae - you have the oppt to get deeper into your backbends, side bends, and twists. not only will you deepen your practice by leveraging your breath, you can prevent injuring your spine. you can get a transplant for basically every body part except your spine, so treat it well. although i learned a lot from my spinal cord injury - i wouldn't recommend it 🤡 💡 Transformative tips: 1/ pull your navel to your spine on your exhale to provide stability when you transition or change your drishti unless specified by your instructor 2/ backbends - inhale lengthen, exhale engage your glutes to deepen 3/ side bends - inhale lengthen & rotate your ribcage toward the sky, exhale engage your obliques 4/ twists - inhale lengthen & reach the crown of your head to the ceiling , exhale engage your obliques

all balancing poses have a trick to maintain your balance. for tree (vrksasana) - the resistance between your foot & your thigh (or calf) helps maintain the stability for you to stand as tall as possible. ***never place your foot by your knee unless you love pain and want to get a knee replacement once you have stability - stand as tall as you can, like you're getting your height measured at a doctor's office. ever inch counts b/c size matters 🌝 💡 Priorities: 1/ balance - strong standing leg + core 2/ hip external rotation + abduction 3/ chest / lats depending on variation 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ half lotus or janushirshasana depending if you need more external rotation help or abduction 2/ happy baby & half happy baby to even out your legs

Unlike some other balancing poses, balancing in dancer (Natarajasana) is relatively not as bad. imagine that you're like a teeter totter. when you're falling backwards, stretch your front arm towards the sky like you're trying to catch a bouquet at a wedding or answer a question like a teacher's pet. when you're falling forwards, kick harder into your foot like you're a dog trying to break free from the grips of an aggressive toddler 💡 Priorities: 1/ hip extension + internal rotation 2/ balance 3/ back flex + chest 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ anjanyeasana + variations 2/ half frog on the floor 3/ standing half frog + hinge

wring out the tightness in your outer legs & your hammies w/ revolved half splits. working your internal rotation + abduction will help you remain stable, get you into a deeper twist, and work the mobility of your outer hips. source: trust me bruh 💡 Priorities: 1/ hammies + glutes 2/ hip compression + IR + Abduction 3/ chest + spinal twist 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ twisted fold stretch 2/ half splits + variation 3/ block to build muscle memory!

idk how many poses require hip compression, but it's definitely more than i can count on my fingers & toes there are 3 tests you can do on the mat & standing to gauge where your areas of opportunities to compress thy thigh. not completely fool proof, but hopefully it will give you a general direction on what to work on not completely necessary, but i recommend doing the same tests on the mat then standing up. doing them standing can provide a sanity check because you are working against gravity so your muscles need to do extra work. if there is a big difference on the mat & standing - you might also need to work on strengthening your muscles 💡 Transformative tips: 1/ test 1 will tell you if you need to work on your hip flexors more than your glute flexibility 2/ test 2 brings in a third variable - your hammies. compare your result with test 3 to figure out if your hammies need more work vs your glute flexibility 3/ test 3 helps prioritize if you need to work your hammies or your glute flexibility. if there is a big gap btwn test 2 and 3 - you might need to work on your glutes rather than your hammies 4/ try diagnosing your hip compression at a later time to see if you still need to work on the same area or if you need to move on to a different area

as a vegan - am i hypocritical to not like bugs? maybe b/c i don't like bugs, i can't see how locust pose (Salabhasana) resembles a locust. i would google what a locust looks like as a refresher, but again don't want to purposely give myself trauma if i can help it furthermore - since there is a banana pose, wouldn't it make sense that there should be a plantain pose?? never ate a locust, but i would bet that plantains are also much more delicious as well 💡 Priorities: 1/ back strength + flexibility 2/ chest / lats 3/ hip extension + glute strength 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ locust drills - arms only + shoulder rinse 2/ hatha locust 3/ locust drills - leg lifts only

half splits (Ardha Hanumanasana) or half money pose reminds me of this gif of the cat wiggling (https://giphy.com/gifs/wiggle-shaq-13CoXDiaCcCoyk) obviously not the same, but the cat also seems like it has great hip compression. cats and monkeys both also seem like slinkies? work your way to Hanumanasana or the full splits w/ this pose 💡 Priorities: 1/ hip compression (glute flexibility + hip flexor strength) 2/ hammies 3/ internal rotation / groin 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ wind removing pose 2/ elephant walks 3/ anjaneyasana / low runner's lunge to half splits flow

anjaney is bae anjaneyasana, the lime to my rice, with you, everything becomes so nice, you always know how to take me to paradise, you give my life meaning and spice definitely my favorite pose. just like a chipotle bowl - there are many variations and combos you can build off of anjaney. it's so versatile and helped me improve my hip extension effectively and safely! when i would go to class early, I would do a couple of variations of this pose to warm up almost every time. As someone with ADHD - variety is king 💡 Priorities: 1/ hip extension (lengthening of your hip flexors) + internal rotation + groin 2/ back flexibility 3/ chest opener 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ low runner's lunge drills 2/ practice by the wall

if you use your imagination - every prop you use can be an extension of your body. the goal of using a prop is to one day not use it anymore unless there are extenuating circumstances every time you use a prop - it serves a purpose. props help you lengthen, stabilize, improve rotation, access poses without injury etc. Depending on where you use the prop in a pose - the purpose might change. I might need a prop to help with alignment while someone needs a prop to help with lengthening or vice versa. if you analyze what the prop is doing for you - you can figure out what mobility area you need to work on! bonus!! 1/ props help you feel the pose with proper alignment which can help you achieve the pose faster compared to using brute force with improper alignment. building body awareness + muscle memory should not be overlooked! 2/ you can also use props to get deeper into poses as well so don't donate your training wheels once you've gotten into the pose you want! 💡 Transformative tips: 1/ get into the pose and feel the priorities of the pose using props 2a/ investigate why you're using a certain prop 2b/ assess how it feels if you increase / deepen the intensity using props to have a better sense on what it's serving you 3/ work on your mobility to slowly wean yourself off of the prop for that specific use case!

when i do reclined hero pose (Supta virasana), i feel like i'm either (a) in a surgery room (b) a fish out of water waiting for a bird to prey on me with my belly up (c) a dog waiting for it's owner to give me belly rubsgood thing i'm not any of those b/c i hope to live a healthy life regardless of how long it is heh. maybe being a dog doesn't seem that bad if my owner happened to be oprah (OPRAH ADOPT ME. woof woof 🐶) this is a great pose for people who have terrible posture like me, who hunch over in front of a desk and have tight hip flexors, or anyone who just wants to stretch the front side of their belly wishing that oprah would adopt an adult child 💡 Priorities: 1/ hip internal rotation 2/ hip extension (lengthening of your hip flexors) 3/ chest opener 🌱 Poses / drills: 1/ pinwheel IR drills 2/ supported fish pose variation 3/ half frog 4/ BLOCK!! can't get your booty down?? get yo block