Proprioception . ...leads me to believe that some of the hip pain experienced by practitioners (of hip openers) may be related to a reduction in muscular proprioception after stretching, which persists as a subtle form of instability during other activities following practice. Furthermore, the soreness appears to be relieved by a technique to increase proprioception that involves co-activating the muscles surrounding the hip joint at a midpoint of the joint's range of motion. . Here’s the technique… . Following a hip opening sequence, and before Savasana, I utilize an intermediate version of Warrior II, where the forward knee and hip are not flexing deeply (image4). Then I “co-activate” the hip muscles in the forward leg (co-activation involves simultaneously contracting muscles that have opposite actions). The cue for this is to imagine pressing the inside of knee into an immoveable object while at the same time pressing the outside of the knee into a similar object (the knee remains centered and does not move). This engages both the hip adductors and abductors (image1&2), as well as the internal and external rotators (image3) in a position where the joint is in the mid-range of motion. Done properly, this cue should give a feeling of stability in the hip joint. . Since it is a neurological process, this technique does not require strong muscular contraction; I only utilize just enough strength to feel the muscles engage and the hip stabilize. Furthermore, the cue only requires a short duration. I have been using 20 seconds, repeated twice on each side. The effect is a bit like “resetting” a GPS that has gone out of its normal range. (These images) illustrate the muscle groups involved with the arrows demonstrating the direction of force. Visualization of the muscles helps in this process. . . Excerpt from: “Preventing Yoga Injuries vs Preventing Yoga, Part III: Joint Mobility, Stability and Proprioception” Read more @ www.DailyBandha.com . . #virabhadrasana, #Proprioception, #bandhayoga, #raylong, #raylongmd, #chrismacivor, #dailybandha, #stretching, #body, #asana, #yogapose, #yogainspiration, #yogalife, #yogafit, #yogabody, #yogadaily, #yogateac https://www.instagram.com/p/B3YSUwMAkH0/?igshid=1jiddcchjuz07