.....Sagittal? Coronal? Transverse?.....

In my yoga practice and in the classes I create for you I like to be sure the āsanas (postures) I choose include all three planes of motion for a well balanced experience. This feels especially important for my practice time since during the rest of the day movement happens but it is often emphasizing certain movements over others. If we were to take time to observe in which planes we do most of our daily movement I think most of us will find that we live primarily in the sagittal plane and mostly in flexion.

Let me take a moment to define the planes of motion. I like to reference the smooth flat planes of the walls, floor and ceiling to help us understand our movements along those planes. Imagine standing up, floor under your feet, ceiling overhead, a wall to each side of you, a wall in front and one behind.

The sagittal plane (longitudinal) - movement in this plane is forward and backward - flexion and extension - moving along the walls to your sides. This imaginary plane running through the center of your body would divide the body symmetrically right and left. Try this: Starting with your arms hanging by your sides, move them out in front of you and up overhead then back down to your sides. Your arms followed the plane of the walls by your sides. You can move your head, torso, hips and legs in this plane. Your legs move in this plane when you walk. We spend a lot of our time leaning forward over our work or hobby.

The coronal plane (frontal) - movement in this plane is side bending; lateral movements following the plane of the walls in front and behind you. This imaginary plane running through your body would divide the body into front and back. Try this: Starting with your arms hanging by your sides, take them out to the sides and up overhead and then back down to your sides. Your arms followed the plane of the walls in front and behind you. All parts of your body can move in this plane and in the torso it creates side-bending. Jumping jacks are an example of the arms and legs moving in the coronal plane. A perfect cartwheel happens in this plane (my cartwheels are never "perfectly" in the coronal plane!).

The transverse plane (horizontal) - movement in this plane is rotation; twisting movements following the plane of the floor and ceiling. This imaginary plane running through your body would divide you into a top and bottom portion. Try this: Take your arms out parallel to the floor. Turn your head and chest to the right and then the left, the arms move with you staying parallel to the floor. This creates a twist, a rotational movement through the torso following the plane of the floor (and ceiling). Sitting in the drivers seat of a car and turning to the left to grasp the seatbelt with your right hand is a twist. Then turn to the right to check your blind spot - another twist. When playing golf, swinging a baseball bat, and raking leaves - you are moving in the transverse plane!

As I noted earlier, much of our daily activity is primarily in the sagittal plane and mostly flexion. Of course we make combinations of movements and frequently our movements favor our dominant hand, arm, side, leg etc. Our āsana practice can be our laboratory for learning more about ourselves, our habitual movement, our dominant sides, and playing with and exploring bringing balance to these movements. Our āsana practice can balance out our daily habits. So, backbends, twists and side-bending are very important, as well as forward bending with awareness to smooth, even, integrated movement throughout the body.

This week I am posting a class to the library, Yogāsana in the Coronal Plane (63 min), that explores a variety of poses in the coronal plane in addition to balancing that out with movements in the other two planes.

I hope you enjoy the class and that your awareness of your movement helps to bring some balance and feeling great in your body! I love to hear your questions and comments - please feel free to message me by using the "contact" link in the library.

Have a great week!

Audrey