Awareness of Serratus Anterior muscle from practicing crow pose

Since few months ago when I started to practice yoga more often and encouraged by instructors to try more advanced poses like crow pose, I encountered absolute defeat. Crow pose is a most basic arm balance pose but after about 2 months of practice on my own, I still can’t manage it. The game changing moment was when I learnt about the Serratus Anterior Muscle.

Serratus Anterior muscle is between the shoulder blade and the ribs and wraps around the rib cage. I have never heard of this muscle, nor had awareness it. It is very important muscle for shoulder blades movement. No wonder I always complain about my weak or tight shoulders! That’s because I didn’t use Serratus Anterior correctly!

In the class, Weiling asked us to do planks to feel this muscle, and its relation to shoulder blades movement, and that night, when I practiced crow in bedroom, I felt my body became much more stable!

Got encouraged, I started to do plank and chanturanga with more awareness of Seratus Anterior in mind, and I can feel the muscle sore around my rib cage from working out!

After few weeks, my crow pose is still far from perfect but it has improved so much, and I am still trying to practice every day. I am content with my little improvement every day, and not in the hurry to reach the perfect pose desperately.