Alignment Snacks: The Back Bones Connected to Other Backbones

Katy Bowman's "Alignment Snacks" are downloads from her web site, restorativeexercise.com. These are 25-35 movement-focused classes offered for $5 each. Katy is teaching live in front of a live class (who you sometimes hear but never see). "The Back Bones Connected..." is I think the sixth class that I have purchased, and the first in awhile. Given the "back" in the name, I was hoping for a routine that would help stretch my back when it gets stiff, which I tend to feel around the mid-back, sometimes to the low back. Although this does address those areas of the back, it's more of a general postural practice, moving from the top of the spine in the neck to the lower spine.

As with many of the "snacks," this one moves slowly. Katy begins the class seated on a small prop--a yoga block, pillow, bolster, or half dome (which Katy uses) all work--for some neck stretches. The focus is on keeping the ribs down while the neck is stretching, which is a major focus of this entire routine. As a yoga teacher and practitioner, I actually really appreciated this; there is a lot of talk about "rib thrusting" in yoga, and I fear that I might be guilty of this at times. From the neck stretch, Katy shows three different ways to lift the head, with the third/ideal method being to keep the chin down and to create length in the back of the spine.

Next, Katy moves to lying with just the shoulders propped, ribs on the floor. She talks about how the ribs down, moving towards the abdomen is the natural position for the ribs, and she has the class practice this on a higher bolster and then on the lower one. Next, she stretches the spine with a reclined Figure 4 twist. (I love this one and often do it in my yoga classes!) Following the twist, Katy continues her focus on tractioning the ribs towards the floor, but this time, she adds the interlacing of the hands and moving the shoulders overhead. The goal here is to continue to keep the ribs down and to move the arms overhead without lifting the ribs or displacing the position of the shoulders. Katy performs this several times--she finishes with a brief rest, and you are done! The actual workout time is about 25 minutes, but Katy comes back on screen briefly to say that cramping is OKAY, it is a sign that you are working the body in new ways.

I do enjoy this snack. As I mentioned above, Katy's instructions here resonated with my work as a yoga teacher. I don't do this snack a lot, but when I do, I always find her form reminders to be important.

This supplements the first review that I did for this "snack." I'd intended to put a "Things to Consider" section in the review, but omitted it by accident. Here it is:

The primary purpose of the alignment snacks is to provide alignment information and then put it into practice through motion. So if you're looking for something to help you work out issues with a bad back, you probably won't like this one. I know I didn't.

I've done it twice, and both times I've come away feeling disappointed. Katy's cues confused me; I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do to feel her "sit-up-like movement" in the middle of the session. Try as I might, I couldn't figure out what she was doing and how it was supposed to be of benefit. The stretches did feel good, but there were too few of them.

If you try the snacks, I wouldn't recommend starting with this one.

Katy Bowman's "Alignment Snacks" are short (20-30 minute) downloads which focus on body alignment. In each "snack," Katy leads an unseen (but not unheard) class through an alignment session consisting of various stretches and/or gentle exercises. These movements are performed while Katy provides information on proper alignment. The snacks currently cost $5 each; you can find them on her website (katysays.com or restorativeexercise.com) under the "Move" tab.

This review is for The Back Bones Connected to Other Backbones, a 26 minute alignment session for the back (sort of). The first third of the class is done sitting on a block. The remainder of the class is done while lying supine on the floor. This class is very slow! Some people might think that's a good thing. However, I suspect that most people will find it ineffective and/or frustrating.

The class starts up on the block with your legs crossed. Katy spends some time making sure that you're in proper alignment (ribs down, pelvis untucked), and then she has you drop your head and slowly move it side to side. (She says that this is like a massage. I'm not sure I agree…) After doing this for awhile, she shows you three ways to raise your head (using your chin, chest, and thoracic spine), and then she explains why the last way is the best (it helps use muscles atrophied from neglect, you're not compressing the spine, etc). You practice this for awhile, and then you move onto your back.

In the next section, you're lying on a bolster, which Katy makes from a block topped by a half dome. (I used an actual yoga bolster.) You move your ribs down towards the floor and in line with the front of the pelvis. Katy likens this to a sit up without having to do much work. Katy then has you bring your ribs down towards the floor further. I think she means to actively create a contraction here, not to slide forward and use gravity. But then again, maybe she doesn't. This is really unclear! After a while, Katy has you lower your bolster to just the half dome and continue doing the same thing.

At the 15.5 minute mark, you put the half dome under your head. Katy tells you to "take a break" and then she leads you into a figure 4 stretch/roll combo which ends with the foot of your bent leg on the floor (you do each side). Finally! Something that feels great! The rest of the workout involves lying on your back while you try to create traction in your neck, interspersed with some hand/shoulders stretches.

At the end, there are 2 minutes of "bonus" material, presented in black and white, during which Katy talks about why it's good to go to the edge of your range of motion and how cramping is not bad if it helps you get there.