There are literally more than a hundred muscles on the side of the spine.  Gaining some awareness and control of these muscles goes a long way in ensuring overall health of the back, and also safety and comfort in more advanced asanas.   With the hip kept down firmly these muscles  can be initiated. But there is no guarantee that the muscles that are on either side of the spine (spinal or para-spinal muscles) get initiated with by just initiating the waist corner. The para-spinal muscles are the “action” muscles of the back. When they work, the result is the obvious movement of your spine. They course down your back and spine and help to move your spine into extension, rotation, and side bending. In this session we access those para-spinal muscles by initiating with the use of the belt.