Your Upper Body, Your Yoga: Including Asymmetries & Proportions of the Whole Body

Description

Your Upper Body, Your Yoga is the highly anticipated final book of the Your Body, Your Yoga trilogy - the definitive investigation of how your uniqueness affects your movements, postures and your yoga. This remarkable trilogy looks at the variations of human anatomy and its effect on the body's biomechanics. Used as a standard text for many yoga teacher training programs it provides yoga students and teachers a system for exploring what asanas are possible and sensible and which postures should best be left alone. This third book in the series looks at the upper body: the shoulder complex, arms and hands. But, there is more. This final book also includes explorations of how asymmetries and proportions affect our practice. You are unique. No one else in this whole world has your biology or biography. Why suppose that your yoga practice should be, or even could be, the same as anyone else's? How far apart should your hands be in Down Dog? Where should they be pointing? Should you avoid hyperextension of the elbows? Is hyperflexion of the shoulders safe? The answer is - it depends! Your Upper Body, Your Yoga looks at the upper body from both the Western anatomical/biomechanical point of view and the modern yoga perspective. It is filled with detail, discussion, illustrations and practical advice for bodies of all types. Proportions and asymmetries are highly variable from person to person. The implications of asymmetries for a yoga practice and whether these asymmetries need to be changed, accommodated or simply accepted is examined along with variability in our proportions and their effect on postures. Whether the reader is a novice to yoga and anatomy or a seasoned practitioner with an in-depth knowledge, this book will be valuable. For the novice, there are easily understood illustrations and photographs, as well as sidebars highlighting the most important topics. For the anatomy specialists, other sidebars focus on the complexity of the topic, with hundreds of references provided for further investigation. For the yoga teacher, other sidebars suggest how to bring this knowledge into the classroom. Your Upper Body, Your Yoga can be used as a resource when specific questions arise, as a textbook to be studied in detail, or as a fascinating coffee-table book to be browsed at leisure for topics of current interest. Table of Contents Gratitude How to read this book Preface Foreword Summary of key concepts VOLUME 4: THE UPPER BODY Chapter 1: Overview of the upper body Bones of the upper body Muscles of the upper body Fascia of the upper body Nerves and neurodynamics Movements of the upper body Overview summary Chapter 2: The shoulder complex Form Landmarks of the shoulder complex The architecture of the shoulder complex Bones and cartilage The clavicle Joints and ligaments Muscles of the shoulder complex A biotensegrity view of the shoulder complex Function: Application in yoga postures Movements within the shoulder complex Normal ranges of motion of the whole shoulder complex Skeletal variations’ effect on poses and postures The shoulder complex in yoga postures Shoulder pain and pathologies The shoulder complex summary Chapter 3: The elbow and forearm Form The architecture of the elbow and forearm Bones and cartilage Joints and ligaments Muscles of the elbow and forearm Function: Application in yoga postures Normal ranges of motion The elbow and forearm in yoga postures Elbow pain and pathologies The elbow and forearm summary Chapter 4: The wrist and hand Form The architecture of the wrist and hand The bones of the wrist and hand Joints and ligaments Muscles and tendons Function: Application in yoga postures Normal ranges of motion The wrist and hand in yoga postures Wrist and hand pain and pathologies The wrist and hand summary Volume 4: Summary Appendix: Myofascial meridians of the upper body Endnotes VOLUME 5: ASYMMETRIES AND PROPORTIONS The power of symmetry The allure of perfect proportions Aesthetics versus function Chapter 1: Asymmetries Categorizing the types of asymmetries Asymmetry of the legs Asymmetry of the pelvis Asymmetry of the spine Asymmetry of the shoulders Asymmetry of the arms Summary: The myths and misunderstandings about symmetry Chapter 2: Proportions Torso to legs proportions (the Cormic index) Intra-limb ratio for the leg Arm-to-torso proportions Humerus-to-head/neck proportions Intra-limb ratio for the arm Arm span to height proportions Summary: The importance of proportions Volume 5: Summary Endnotes Index