Why the Wingmaster’s Cabbage Patch Exercise is a Treat for Your Spine

Why the Cabbage Patch is My Favorite Wingmaster Exercise

The Secret to a Healthy Spine: Circular Motion & Your Intervertebral Discs

This might be my favorite exercise using the Wingmaster. When I used to teach online Wingmaster classes, this exercise, in either Setting 2 or Setting 3, would be included in almost every class. The feeling of this exercise is one of the most satisfying of all the Wingmaster material.

The spinal motion in Cabbage Patch is internal circumduction. Of the six spinal ranges of motion, circumduction is the one we do the least in our activities of daily living. But it’s also the one that has the most yawn-like sensation. It’s got a very Winnie The Pooh eating honey feeling. Reaching with the Wingmaster while curling then bringing it in while arching gives it that satisfying feel.

How does this benefit you?

One of the primary benefits of circumduction exercises is the circular pressure on the intervertebral discs (IVD). Your IVD have no blood flow to them and only receive fluid and nutrients through a pumping action called imbibition. Any movement of the spine creates this press and release pumping. But the intervertebral discs are round so the pressure of one vertebrae pressing against it’s neighbors in a circular movement helps ensure nutrients get into all 360° of the disc, helping keep it from getting dry and brittle.

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