December's Pose of the Month: Urdhva Hastasana

Press your feet into the ground, draw up through your legs and spine and extend your arms up while drawing your shoulderblades down. Externally rotate your arms to free up your neck. Engage your external obliques to draw your floating ribs in - this helps counter the tendancy to turn this pose into a backbend. Look at your thumbs without collapsing your neck. Breathe evenly into the front and back of your lungs. Urdhva Hastasana means upward hands pose.