You know, Candace, I think that is part of my problem. For so long I thought of my core muscles as my abs- only recently did I learn that there are (in fact) other muscles supporting the torso and trunk, making up the core (who knew, right?!). Because I only considered my mirror abs and not the deeper musculature, I never learned really how to engage those muscles, which is where I am running into a wall now. Thank you, thank you for your recommendations... I so appreciate your insight! I have never heard of uddiyana bandha, but I am for sure going to give it a go!