Wheel: for wrist issues and tight shoulders – great partner assist

Anyone with wrist issues or tight shoulders knows that Wheel (Urdhva Dharusasna) can be hard to do. Here’s a simple and easy partner assist that you can do (keep it simple by not using straps and just using the ankle hold) to help your tighter students find their way into this complex pose.  For a deeper look at positioning the straps, click here.

Tips:

• Use just the ankle hold if you’re doing this as an in-class partner assist to help someone with wrist issues and shoulder tightness
• If you’re using the straps, make sure to place them at the bra and sacrum line in order to facilitate maximum traction.
• With straps, pull on a diagonal line rather than straight up.  Pulling straight up will overly compress the spine, whereas pulling diagonally will create more length through the lower back
• You can use a good deal of strength through the straps to create support, so use your body weight (slowly) rather than rely on the strength of your arms
• Stay in good communication with your partner at all times