71: More Controversial Yoga Cues

Today hosts Rachel and Tiffany continue the conversation we started in Episode 56, exploring controversial yoga cues. There is so much to say on the topic, so we are back with a second episode to unpack when these familiar cues are useful (and when they aren’t), the potential downside of protective cues, and the one yoga cue that Rachel hates.

“The dogma isn’t always helpful. Yoga is not the obsessiveness to specificity as much as this commitment to listen and find what’s right for my unique body.” – Tiffany Cruikshank

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“Everyone is looking for that perfect cue and it doesn’t exist: it’s going to be different for each group of people and each intention.” – Rachel Land

Show Notes:

  • Even the best cues don’t always translate across cultures [2:42]
  • “Shoulders back and down” [4:05]
  • Cueing based on specific intention instead of a laundry list approach [12:30]
  • “Soften your glutes” versus “Squeeze your glutes” in backbends [14:19]
  • “Turn your back foot out 45 degrees” and alternatives [25:35]
  • “Wrap your elbows in” versus taking elbows wide for wheel pose [31:12]
  • “Hug your elbows against your sides” in Chaturanga [38:02]
  • “Stack your elbows over your wrists”: mechanical disadvantage in Chaturanga [40:25]
  • Tips for teaching Chaturanga in group classes [43:10]
  • “Flex your foot to protect your knee” and the pros and cons of protective cues [46:39]
  • “Full expression of the pose” and “If you can’t…” cues [52:39]
  • “Breathe into your belly” or “Diaphragmatic breath” [54:27]
  • “Breathe loud enough your neighbor can hear you” or “Darth Vader breath”: cueing Ujjayi breath [56:54]

Links Mentioned:

“Plant the seed: am I using my body to get as much as I can out of the pose or am I using the pose to get as much as I can out of my body and my life?” – Tiffany Cruikshank

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