Posted by Shannon Paige Schneider (Circle of Grace member)

Simple advice to avoid shoulder injuries in Vinyasa yoga!

When LOWERING from plank to the earth or chaturanga dandhasana, keep the shoulder blades on the back and the collar bones wide and the back of the neck as long as the front of the throat.  In fact, consider dropping the knees and gaining authentic strength before trying to power through a bunch of full on repetitions just on the other side of empowered alignment.  When the caps of the shoulders collapse forward, one is not only more prone for shoulder tweaks and injury, but also, strength remains elusive.

Shannon Paige Schneider is an author, sacred activist, inspired life coach, and dedicated teacher of Shiva Rea’s Prana Flow Vinyasa Yoga. She interweaves her students’ unique purpose driven inspiration into the divine play of body and breath to unlock the secret wisdom held within the heart.  Shannon is the founder and yoga director of om time yoga centers and Anjali Restorative Yoga. To learn more about Shannon and where she will be teaching next, go to her blog.