Where
to Put Your Weight
One of the things that I forgot to mention in my first article on forward bending is where to have your body weight. This pertains to the standing forward bend.
When doing a standing forward bend you can have your weight over the fronts of your feet so that your toes press down into the ground or you can have your weight over your heels.
I find it easier to relax my hamstrings when my weight is over my heels.
Learning
To Feel your Weight
To learn to feel these two options you can slowly rock back and forwards while standing upright and then try it while doing a standing forwards bend. You can have your hands on the floor or on blocks (or on your shins or thighs) to help support the weight of your upper body. Meanwhile you can rock your weight forwards while inhaling and backwards while exhaling.
While moving forwards stop when you feel your weight directly over the fronts of your feet. Moving backwards, stop when you feel your weight over the centers of your heels.
What do I mean by “feel your weight?” The part of your foot that your center of balance or gravity is over is the part of your foot that presses down the most. Simply feel the way your feet press down into the earth and notice where the most pressure is.
Activating
Your Feet
Generally I find that with my weight over my heels it is even easier to allow my hamstrings to relax, even when using my hands to support my upper body. However, with your weight over the fronts of your feet and your feet “active” you may also find you can relax your hamstrings.
To activate your feet use your ankles to roll your shins outwards. At the same time “press” the outer edges of your feet into the floor. Pressing the outer edge of your feet into the floor is not the same as lifting the inner edge of your foot! At the same time as you do this press the base of your big toe (the inside part of the front of the foot) into the floor. You should find that these two actions together create or reinforce the inner arch of the foot making it “shapely.”
You can practice doing this while rocking your weight forwards and then relaxing while rocking your weight backwards.
When you are comfortable with this action try to do it with the minimum muscular effort necessary. This is so that even with your foot active you can still feel both your feet and the way they press into the floor.
Foundation
For Change
So now, if you have your weight forwards while doing a standing forwards bend activate your feet and if you have your weight backwards then center it over your heels.
In either case what is important is that the hamstrings muscles have a firm foundation. One bone to which they attach has to be stable so that they can allow the other bone to which they attach to move. In this case since we are trying to tilt the pelvis forwards, the pelvis is the bone that moves and so we need to stabilize the lower leg.
With our weight over our heels we use body weight to stabilize the heel, ankle and lower leg. (If your two heel bones aren’t “stacked” then this might not be the case-so as well as having your weight over your heels try to align the bones of your heel. Imagine wearing stylettos (high heels with very pointy heels) and pressing down through the tips of the heels.)
With your weight over the front of your feet, then with active feet you also help to stabilize your lower leg giving the hamstrings a firm base so that they can relax. But if your weight is forwards and your feet aren’t active (or you are just using your hands to support your body) then the hamstrings haven’t got the foundation that they need and so they won’t relax.
Creating
Change
One final image or picture is to imagine yourself on the side of a steep cliff. With a firm foundation, something to grab onto it is a lot easier to relax (and not be scared) and you can look for your next handhold or foot hold. With nothing to grab onto or with what you are grabbing being very delicate, chances are you won’t want to move for fear of breaking your connection.
With a firm foundation you are more likely to be able to create the change you desire-hamstrings that can relax and stretch.
