Another Dimension to the Pelvis

What did you notice as a result of being aware of the height of your pelvis?  Did it increase your sense of its dimension in the body?  Maybe you feel like the black hole is being to come into focus, not feeling so disconnected?

Let’s shine more light by mapping the additional dimension of depth, front to back.  To do this. we are going to use the top of the pelvic bones to locate the furthest point in the front and back.  These bony ridges can be found where you think of your waist.  Press your fingers into your sides at the seam of your shirt, waist level to locate the ridge of bone.  Walk your fingers along its length to the front and back.

Walking your fingers to the front of your body along the ridge of the pelvis you will find the ASIS or anterior superior iliac spine to be precise, it is simply, “the front bony bump of the pelvic bone.”  What it is not, is a waist. In fact, there is no anatomical waist in the body.

There are two ASIS bumps, one on the left, the other on the right are located where front pockets on pants are located.  Press into the tissue with your fingertips to find them.  

Put a finger from each hand on each ASIS, notice the distance between them in your body.  Once you have found them, put in your map that this is the font of my pelvis!  

Next, we will locate the bony bump located at the back end of the ridge of the pelvic bone, the posterior superior iliac spine, or PSIS. The PSIS is typically not as clear to the touch as the ASIS.  Feel for a more subtle bony bump. You can put a hand on the left and right PSIS to acknowledge the distance between the two pelvic bones on the back.  It is narrower than the distance on the front.

Now that you have located the top of the pelvis on the front and the back, you can give yourself a sense of the depth of the pelvis, the front to back dimension.  Place the fingertips of one hand on the ASIS and the fingertips of the other hand on the PSIS.  Both hands are on two ends of the same bone.  This is the depth of your pelvis.

We have mapped the top to bottom height of the pelvic bone and the front to back depth.  This shines a light into this region that holds so much and connects the upper and lower body.   Remind yourself of these dimensions as you move through the weekend, as you play your instrument, sing, conduct, paint, dance, or do Parkour! (Had to throw that one in there!)

As I map this region in myself, I have found that I appreciate it a whole lot more than when it was a region of my body that didn’t cooperate with the shape I wanted it to be. There is a powerhouse of stability, mobility, and release of tension that includes the pelvis

Be curious!

Stay tuned for our next exploration of how the pelvis connects the legs with the rest of the body.

Special thanks to Association for Body Mapping Education for the beautiful image.

Vanessa Update - I haven’t been a regular poster of late. I took the NASM exam for Certified Personal Trainer this week and PASSED!! There was a lot of content, over 700 pages that sometimes melted my mind. I had to focus a lot! Also, I continue my Parkour coach training and will be teaching faiurly regularly on the weekends this winter in the low impact classes. Check out the opportunities PKGen Boston offers.

I find that expanding my learning into other areas deeply enhances my skills for playing and teaching. I am curious!