WELCOME TO MONTHLY THROUGH LINES

Hey all – it’s Simon here from Chromatic Yoga. It’s March 2026. Spring is (hopefully) starting to peek through in the Northern Hemisphere, longer days, a bit of warmth, maybe some blooms, and many of us are shaking off winter stiffness, ramping up outdoor time, or just craving more fluidity after months of layering up and hunkering down. That seasonal shift often highlights the hips: the powerhouse joints that bridge our lower body to our core, dictating everything from walking gait to deep lunges and balances. Tight hips can make us feel stuck; mobile, strong hips make us feel free and capable.

This is prime time for our practice to become the ultimate hip reset, especially when we get precise about the primary actions that govern hip mobility and stability.

And that’s where CHROMATIC MONTHLY THROUGH LINES comes in!

In Chromatic Yoga, we keep things straightforward. That’s why we’ve launched this “Monthly Through Line” community initiative. It’s designed to help you – our Chromatic Teachers – focus and intelligently design your classes to best support your students. If you’re not a Chromatic Teacher yet, and are simply here to practice, that’s great too. You’ll be able to apply these through-lines to gain more insight in to body biomechanics and potentially access the poses you’ve always wanted to do but perhaps haven’t fully gotten yet. 

How it Works:

1. On the first of every month, we announce the Chromatic Monthly Through-Line. We zoom in on one body part and explore all the ways it affects our yoga practice throughout the month.
2. We highlight a Physical Through Line (PTL) you can incorporate into your classes each week, along with pose suggestions and cueing techniques.

• WHAT IS A PHYSICAL THROUGH LINE? 

• A Physical Through Line is a term we use in Chromatic Yoga that is defined by the muscle engagement, or joint action that we focus on through the duration of the yoga class. Certified Chromatic Teachers construct their classes around a PTL (Physical Through Line) in order to create a more effective learning environments for students. As a student you can expect that each Chromatic class will include a PTL. Of course, you will do other postures and other muscle engagements within a Chromatic class, however there is a strong emphasis on the PTL.

3. Share how you’ve used the PTL by tagging us on IG and in our Global WhatsApp Group! 

For March, the Chromatic Monthly Through-Line will be based on….

the hips – the dynamic gateway connecting legs to pelvis, power to grace

We often talk about “hip openers,” but true hip freedom comes from understanding and strengthening the four cardinal actions at the hip joint (with femur moving relative to pelvis). Master these, and you upgrade hip mobility, lower-back ease, pelvic stability, balance, and the integrity of poses from Warrior I to Lotus.

Let’s dive in this month looking through the Chromatic lens on hip joint actions. The hips aren’t fixed sockets; they’re ball-and-socket joints capable of multi-plane movement, directly influencing the pelvis, spine, and lower limbs. Adduction draws thighs in for midline stability; abduction opens them out for width and balance; flexion bends the hip for forward actions; extension straightens for powerful lifts and backbends. The magic? You can access these from proximal (pelvis-driven) or distal (leg-driven) cues, building different control and strength.

This month we’ll explore the four primary actions of the hips so let’s welcome spring with hips that feel mobile, strong, and intelligently controlled.

Week 1: ADDUCTION

What It Is: Thighs move toward the midline, and squeeze in toward each other, you can imagine squeezing a block between the thighs to feel the muscle engagements..

Key Muscles:  Adductors (magnus, longus, brevis, pectineus, gracilis), with support from psoas and inner hamstrings

Why It Matters: Builds inner thigh strength for midline control, stabilizes the pelvis in standing poses, and prevents knee valgus or hip hiking..

This week: Play with it in Mountain Pose variations (squeeze inner thighs), Warrior II (adduct back thigh in without collapsing the arches). You can apply to a Wide Legged Forward Fold or Goddess where even though you are ABducted from a joint perspective, by focusing on squeezing the thigs in toward each other and feeling the inner thigh muscles engage, you would be in closed chain ADduction.

Week 2: ABDUCTION 

What It Is: Thighs move away from the midline (or resist coming in), like opening legs wide or pressing out against resistance. Think placing your hand on the outside of your front knee in Warrior 2 and pressing the knee outward and resisting with your hand. 

Key Muscles: Gluteus medius/minimus, tensor fasciae latae, sartorius

Why It Matters: Essential for lateral stability, single-leg balance, and creating space in wide-legged poses, prevents SI joint issues and supports even pelvic leveling.

This week: Refine it in Wide-Legged Forward Fold, Side Lunge (Skandasana), and Extended Side Angle, discover how abduction creates lift and openness..

Week 3: flexion 

What It Is: Thigh moves forward/up toward torso (or torso toward thigh), like lifting a knee or folding forward

Key Muscles:Hip flexors (iliopsoas, rectus femoris, sartorius), with core support.

Why It Matters: Powers forward folds, hip lifts, and leg raises, creates length in the back body while protecting the lumbar if balanced with posterior tilt

This week: Feel it in High Lunge, Boat Pose, and Standing Knee-to-Chest – explore controlled flexion without gripping the front body..

Week 4: Extension

What It Is: Thigh moves backward/behind torso (or torso arches back), like straightening the hip in backbends.

Key Muscles:Gluteus maximus, hamstrings (especially long head), posterior adductors.

Why It Matters: The foundation of powerful backbends, hip lifts, and upright posture—pairs with anterior tilt for safe extension without compression.

This week: Isolate it in Bridge Pose, Locust, and Warrior I—move from glutes for lift, not just low back.

Check out this gem of a video created especially for you by Rebecca Doring, president of the Board of Chromatic Yoga, giving you a week by week break down of each of this months hip actions, as well as pose suggestions, biomechanical and anatomical insights. I also highly recommend checking out past hip-focused videos on our Instagram page for more gold.

Simon’s RECAP AND TIPS

THE INTERPLAY OF HIP ACTIONS IN ASANA It’s easy to think of hips as either “tight” or “open,” but they’re a symphony of actions working together. Adduction stabilizes inward; abduction expands outward; flexion folds us forward; extension opens us back. In real poses, they blend: Warrior I needs extension in the back hip with flexion in the front, plus adduction to help the pelvis rise and not collapse. Pigeon combines deep flexion/external rotation with adduction awareness to protect the knee. Tree demands abduction strength in the standing leg to resist collapse, plus flexion control in the lifted leg.

This interplay is key: over-rely on one action, and imbalances creep in (hello, cranky piriformis or achy SI). Tune into opposites for balance – adduct to support abduction, extend to counter excessive flexion – and your practice becomes more integrated and sustainable.

POSTURES TO CONSIDER THIS MONTH:

Week 1: Adduction – thighs toward midline, “squeeze in, root down” Yoga Poses to Explore:

• Mountain Pose (squeeze block/thighs)

• Warrior II (adduct back thigh to square pelvis)

• Bound Angle (Baddha Konasana – press knees down with adductors)

• Garland Pose (Malasana – inner thighs engage to support squat)

• Crow Pose (Balasana/Kakasana) – squueze inner thighs in to aid in the “lift” and core engagement

Week 2: Abduction – thighs away from midline, “press out, create space” Yoga Poses to Explore:

• Half Moon (Ardha Chandrasana) the lifted leg

• Wide-Legged Forward Fold (Prasarita Padottanasana)

• Side Lunge (Skandasana)

• Extended Side Angle (Utthita Parsvakonasana)

• Goddess Pose (Utkata Konasana – abduct to root through outer feet)

Week 3: Flexion – thigh toward torso, “fold forward, lift knee” Yoga Poses to Explore:

• High Lunge / Low Lunge (front hip flexion)

• High Plank with knee to chin

• Boat Pose (Navasana – both hips flex)

• Crow Pose – hips are in flexion

• Standing Knee-to-Chest / Figure Four prep

• Pyramid Pose (Parsvottanasana – front leg flexion with length)

Week 4: Extension – thigh backward, “lift hips, straighten back” Yoga Poses to Explore:

• Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana – hip extension from glutes)

• Locust Pose (Salabhasana)

• Dancers Pose (Natarajasana)

• Warrior I (back leg extension)

• Camel Pose (Ustrasana)

• Tiger Pose 

FOR TEACHERS: VERBAL CUES

• In Warrior II (Adduction): “Keeping the instep of your back foot lifted, draw your back thigh forward to the front heel until you feel the muscles of the inner leg engage. The action of the back leg is adduction”

• In Half Moon (Abduction): “Imagine pressing your lifted leg against my hand to raise the leg a little higher as you feel your outer hip muscle strongly engage, this action is abduction.”

• In High Lunge (Flexion): “Flex deeply into your front hip—draw the thigh bone forward while keeping the low back long.”

• In Bridge (Extension): “Press through your heels to lift your hips until your feel your glute muscles activate, this action is called hip extension”. 

FOR CHROMATIC STUDENTS: As a practitioner of Chromatic Yoga, you may hear these PTLs (or variations) in classes worldwide. You can also weave them into your personal practice in any sequence for deeper awareness.

CHROMATIC TEACHERS: Let’s see your creativity this month! What peak postures are you building toward? Share in our Global WhatsApp Group which layering poses clicked best, where students lit up (or struggled), and any fun drills you invented. We love collaborating to elevate experiences everywhere.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON ACTIONS OF THE HIPS This month is been all about the hips, the unsung heroes that power our movement and quietly dictate comfort or complaint. Four clear actions, adduction, abduction, flexion, extension, yet they hold the key to whether your lunge feels grounded or wobbly, your backbend expansive or compressive.

Carry this off the mat:

1. Hips are a dialogue between legs and pelvis, stability and mobility. Listen to both sides.

2. Adduction/abduction create lateral balance; flexion/extension handle forward/backward power. Blend them mindfully.

3. Use opposites for intelligence – in tight spots, emphasize the opposite action (e.g., subtle adduction in wide poses).

4. Feel the whole chain as hips don’t work alone. Pelvis, spine, feet all chime in.

5. In any pose, ask: Where’s my adduction/abduction balance? Flexion/extension control? Can I ease off 5% and still feel the essence?

If yes, you’re in flow. The hips don’t need to be “open” in every direction, they need to be capable and aware. March was your hip tune-up. Keep exploring.

Now go play: squeeze in, press out, fold forward, lift back. Tag your moments, share in the group, steal each other’s cues. The hips only feel limited until you make them dance.

See you in the flow,

Chromatic Yoga is a global community. No matter where you are in the world, we hope you’ll join us this March for a deep dive into the possibilities of articulating your hips. Share and tag your poses on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter and follow us on Instagram if you don’t already for all the updates! 

 Wishing you an intentional and transformative practice, 

~Simon Darroch

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