Bridge Pose for Core Connection

New gym membership, yoga class, or fitness program? Good for you! So let’s talk core stability before jumping into a program that requires a lot of it. Without core stability during lifting, transitioning in and out of exercises, and moving through yoga postures, you place yourself at an increased risk for injuries throughout the body, but most importantly, the low back. Learn what engaging your core means before you go all in with that new fitness program so you can be sure you are maximizing your workouts and improving your ability to work out injury free!

It may be surprising to some that “core” means more than that 6 pack. To me, the core means the entire trunk and is basically all of the muscles that surround the spine. When I teach core exercises in the clinic or in yoga classes I am not only looking at finding a posterior pelvic tilt. I am also looking at how the muscles of the shoulder and hip girdle are engaged, if the pelvic floor is slightly engaged, and if the individual is able to breath during the exercise. I also look at how these muscles coordinate during transitional movements of an exercise. Core work is not always about how the pose or exercise looks, but rather how it feels! It’s all about finding that balance between effort and ease. 

One of my favorite core activation exercises is bridge pose. There is a lot going on in this simple looking pose. It strengthens the back of the hips, spinal stabilizers, and muscles of the shoulder blades which are important muscle groups involved in having a strong foundation for lifting, running, or whatever your desired sport may be. On a more functional level for everyday activities, bridge pose is useful to make it easier for you to get in and out of bed, you may use it to dress yourself, and it elongates the front of the body and externally rotates the shoulders which is beneficial in having good posture.

 
woman in bridge pose laying with elevated hips and arms stretched beneath her
 

To initiate bridge pose, place both feet hip distance apart. Lift the hips with the spine as a single unit. Keep the ankles underneath the knees, and don’t let the knees flare out to the sides. It is important to use the front and back of the thigh muscles (quadriceps and hamstrings) in this pose equally before firing the back of the hips (gluteals) completely. This helps to minimize compression of the cervical vertebrae in the neck. 

In this pose you are stretching the front of the abdomen so this is where finding your pelvic neutral comes into play. You want to engage your abdominal layers so that the ribs don’t flare out and leave you hanging out in a backbend. Now layer on the breathing to all of this by inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth for 3 counts of each, slowly with control while expanding at the ribs on the inhale. Talk about a thorough core strengthening pose! To come out of the pose you articulate the spine by lowering one vertebrae at a time starting from the neck to the low back and the sacrum is the last part to contact the floor. (Note: this is not the case for people with Osteoporosis. You would want to move as a single unit just as you entered the pose). 

Not only are you engaging all of the muscles of the core during a static hold in the pose, but you can also make it a dynamic exercise to strengthen such as doing a single leg bridge which targets gluteal strength, squeezing a yoga block between the knees for adductor strengthening or by putting a band around the knee to encourage strengthening of the outer hips (abductors and external rotators).

woman in bridge pose with elevated hips and outstretched arms elongating one leg in the air
woman in bridge pose with elevated hips and feet shoulder width apart with outstretched arms to her side
woman in bridge pose with elevated hips and feet shoulder width apart with foam block between knees

Bridge pose, like many other poses, takes time and practice to master. There are some things that can get in the way when you first start with bridge including issues with:

  • lumbopelvic (low back and hip) stabilization

  • spinal mobility

  • postural awareness

  • muscle length of the iliopsoas (hip flexor)

  • motor planning

  • breathing in an inversion pose

  • shoulder ROM deficits (especially extension and shoulder ER which may be caused by tight pecs/poor posture)

  • restriction in the fascia of the front line of the body. 

So don’t be discouraged if this pose initially seems difficult, and we are here to help! Contact us at info@inmotionintegrativept.com or schedule online for a one-on-one Medical Therapeutic Yoga session with Sarah Avery. Click below for our scheduling!

Sarah Avery