12/15/2025
Take time to breathe & stretch!
I thought this picture gave a really good visual on how a side bend can open up the diaphragm, hips and PSOAS which is that long muscle you see going from the ribs to the pelvis. It actually attaches to the lesser trochanter of the head of the femur bone. It's the only muscle that connects the upper body to the lower body! It links the core to the legs and is responsible for movement, stability and posture.
Remember your respiratory diaphragm is connected to the "pelvic diaphragm" or the pelvic floors ability to ascend and descend upon inhalation and exhalation. Without this connection functioning well, we are susceptible to tension in the pelvic floor.
That can lead to many, many things including prolapse, hypertonic pelvic floor, urinary issues and painful in*******se. Just to name a few.
It also affects our nervous system. Shallow breathing stimulates the fight or fight response. We take around 20K breaths a day and that's a lot of stimulus on the nervous system!! To take it even further, that's 7.5 MILLION a year! That's a lot of opportunity to create unwanted patterns.
New students are always directed to take the Breathing classes first to bring more awareness to that before we begin movement that supports the pelvic floor.
