Yoga Threading the Needle Stretch

Video Transcript

"Another technique for opening for opening the shoulders, this is called threading the needle. The best way to do this is to face side ways on your mat and slowly go forward. You want to go about half way down. When you take the outside hand and thread it though as if would the eye of a needle, you can bend the top arm and let yourself fall over. You can rest the head on the side of the mat. If you need to scoot your legs back, do so. The main part is you wan to feel a nice stretch through the back of your shoulder. As you stretch there are three ways to do this, you can stay in this position or you can take the top arm and scoop it around the back and hook it in on the other side. So it will be hooked around the side here. So as you are laying here and hook it around the side. The third modification for this is that you can bring your hands in the prayer position. So you can flex this hand up and bring this hand around, pushing in the top hand into the bottom and twisting yourself open. This will give a nice deep stretch in the shoulder. If you feel comfortable, with the first way of stretching, stay there. Just find where your comfort range is and where your tolerance range is. Some peoples' shoulders are more open than other so only make sure you go as far as you can go. So that is how you thread the needle."