My Daily Practice

The student of yoga who starts early on in learning the asana to practice on their own, benefits more deeply from what is learned in class.  Beyond the repetition and attention to individual likes and challenges, self practice takes yoga out of the classroom and into one’s life.  The more our practice develops the more we find our breath, stamina, flexibility patience and well-being spilling out into all the areas of our lives.

For many students starting self-practice is daunting.  Trying to remember intricate sequences and flows can be very difficult at first.  Have faith, the more you self-practice, the better you recall.  Nonetheless, where to start?

Traditionally, new students or students coming back to practice after a long break, start with the standing poses.  Standing poses strengthen and tone the legs while correcting poor standing posture and improving alignment.  The standing poses in which the pelvis faces to the side , or is open, are easier for most people.  For your first few self-practices focus on Trikonasana (Triangle Pose), Virabhadrasana (Warrior II), Parsv0k0nasana (Side Angle Pose) and Ardha Chandrasana (Half moon pose).

In the beginning it is easiest to start in Tadasana (Mountain Pose) and jump or step the feet to the side.  Check to make sure that the feet line up under the wrists when the arm are fully extended out to both sides.  Start with Trik0nasana.  Turn the fight foot  90°, left foot turns in slightly.  Shift the weight into the back leg and bring the right hand as low as possible without sacrificing the alignment of the torso. Then, without any extra movement rotate the feet to the left side.  Repeat.  Turn the feet forward.  Jump or step back to Tadasana.  Utanasana can been taken as a brief rest.  Then Repeat the sequence with the next pose.

As your confidence builds with each pose , you can string them together into a flowing sequence (see video).

This video clip is an example of some awesome yoga!  You can really see in the two examples of forward bends how the practitioner retracts her abdomen while releasing her head and torso forward over the extended leg.  Her thin frame allows us to observe perfectly the negative impression of a cylinder between the lower abdomen and the upper thigh.  This illustrates the proper holding of the internal organs.  It was a misconception of mine for many years that in forwards bends one should fold like a hinge at the groin.  This only results in the protrusion of the abdomen and lack of integrity in the light retention of the internal organs.
It is very helpful to alternate retracting the abdomen while talking concave back (urdva mukha) pacimotanasana and then releasing the head and torso forward.

When one contemplates the archetypal yogi, images of asceticism, extreme physical hardship, practice and superhuman flexibility come to mind.  Why is it that when students of yoga are presented with a pose that is uncomfortable, or awkward are hesitant to accept the challenge and often resentful of having been instructed in such a direction.  As a novice practitioner, I can remember as clear as day, being angered by the sheer pain that virasana inflicted on my knees and groin.  The more my teachers asked me to present this asana and the more they pushed me the more my anger would become greater than me and permeate the atmosphere of the classroom.  The lack of emotional boundary I was able to maintain coupled with my frustration at my complete inadequacy was unbearable and left me feeling as though I had no natural ability and was making no progress.

At the same time that Virasana is to this day my nemesis, I have always been able to perform Hanumasana (splits) at a level that most people dream of.  Emotional continence in the face of physical adversity is the sign of a seasoned practitioner.  The ability to accept one’s own weaknesses is critical to developing in any discipline.  I practice virasana on a daily basis.  It is rare that I don’t feel a certain amount of resentment at first because it is still a very intense stretch for me and, at times, just down right hurts.  I have learned to welcome the resentment instead of rejecting it.  Welcoming the resentment opens my mind to the pose.  After resentment, comes acceptance.  After acceptance, comes being.  Being in the pose allows growing in the pose and deepening into the intensity.  I am happy to say that after twenty some years of yoga, on a good day, I can actually get my buttocks to the ground.

I taught a class this morning where I had three students that in a painful way reminded me of myself when I was a novice.  I was asking them to move in ways they hadn’t previously.  The intensity of half padmasana and supta virasana made them resistant, irritable and all together unruly.   The intention was to give them the depth in the groin and flexibility in the knees to get into deeper back bends.  I felt like I was getting paybacks for all the times that my anger and frustration had leaked out and poisoned my teacher’s classroom.  Here I was leading my students into a whole new level of practice and all they wanted to do was complain and ask if they could do the poses the same way they always do.

So, I would like to formally apologize to every teacher of mine who I have made feel like I felt today.  I would also like to throw out a challenge to anyone and everyone who wishes to say they ‘do’ yoga.  First, don’t do it– be it.  Take your yogi self in hand and practice a pose you hate every day for the next month.  If you do nothing else, practice that one pose.  You will find, if you take this challenge, that you have gained an ability you never thought you had.  Hopefully, your most hated pose will become your friend– the self-discipline that opens you to a whole new level of experience in your practice.

Love, Faith, Peace

Often, our focus in trying to achieve perfection, distracts our attention from the less obvious yet critical aspect supporting our effort.  In one leg spinal balances such as, ardha chandrasana (half moon pose)

Half Moon Pose

and virahabadrasana 3 (warrior 3)

Warrior 3

, it is easy to focus on the standing leg while we inattentively hang the raised leg up somewhere behind us.  This is similar to trying to open an umbrella that has broken struts, or jump on a trampoline that has lost  its spring.  Bringing full consciousness into the raised leg and pushing out through the ball of the foot activating the quadricep not only brings stamina and buoyancy to the pose it enables your pelvis to align further allowing you to stand more erect and confident in the standing leg.  In order to train the strength and fine tune the alignment in ardha chandrasana and virabhadrasana it is extremely helpful to position yourself next to a wall into which the raised leg can be pressed.

The leg less apparent is also integral to forward bend and twists.  In marichyasana 2, for example, the extended leg anchors the sitting bones firmly in postion as the bent leg leveraged against the back of the arm rotates the middle chest upward and around.  The bent leg in Ardha Badha Paschimottanasana can be used as an asset or just hang there.

All asana are paradox.  If one  focuses only on one aspect of the duality, the construction is lost.  This equation is applicable in many life instances.   The less apparent leg can be like your ever faithful partner, who is always there to bolster and support you.  Unfortunately, in the hustle bustle of daily life we can forget how very integral that key person is to our ability to achieve the goals that we have set forth for ourselves.  The reality becomes all too apparent when all of a sudden this key person isn’t there to do the things they do.  It could be picking your child up from work when you are running late from work.  It could be lending you the cash you need to cover your bills at the end of a bad month, fixing something in you house or cooking you homemade soup when you are not feeling well.  None of us are able to do everything perfectly by ourselves.  The more we are able to appreciate the less apparent legs in our lives the greater success we are likely to have.

Similarly, certain behavioral patterns that we elect to adopt function as the less apparent leg.  On several occasions, I have been very thankful for my health and fortunate to have a healthy relationship with my weight.  If I had not trained myself to elect lean proteins and vegetables and shy away from breads and processed food, I would probably be over 200 pounds today.  At the same time the less apparent leg can be an unhealthy appendage.  I was a smoker for many years.  It was my leg to stand on in many stressful situations.  Fortunately, through my son’s love and yoga I was able to free myself from this dependency.  No practice of yoga should cause deterioration.  Nor should the people or habits that you elect to keep in your life hang like lifeless appendages.

We need to learn to be conscious of our less apparent leg.  Whether in asana or in our daily life, be mindful of that which humbly supports our valiant strides.  Embue strength in our less apparent leg, express appreciation and strike a graceful balance.

Half Moon using wall

Many blessings

Backbends are the fountain of youth among asana. Maintaining flexibility along the spine is essential in maintaining an erect posture and protecting the spongy discs between the vertebrae. As so many of us tend to slouch or hunch forward over a desk, the tendency to habitually compress the interior points of the vertebrae is common. The weight of the head bearing down on the sternum which in turn weighs down and compresses the ability of the lungs and heart to perform their integral functions is diminished. Ustrasana or Camel Pose (see picture 1 below)

Camel Pose

is a backbend that is accessible to individuals with prior back injuries or who lack the strength to perform completed Urdhva Dhanurāsana, Bow Pose (see picture 2). This asana tones the buttocks and thighs. In the completed form, the head is thrown back allowing the spine from the coccyx to the base of the skull to open interiorly. The heart is massaged as the rate of breath is increased the longer the pose is held. This pose stimulates the adrenals and is often invigorating. Frequent and accurate practice can help to correct habitual slouching and hunched backs.

The saying, “bending over backward for someone” relates literally to the effect backbends have on the heart chakra. Once the heart chakra is opened the practitioner may experience a feeling of ecstasy also supported by the stimulation of the adrenals. A profound feeling of deep love and connectedness to our fellow humans and a intimate experience of the infinite beauty of the universe may be experienced. For the novice practitioner and sometimes for experienced practitioners who may have underlying emotional issues, backbends may also surface anxiety and restlessness. It is helpful to practice gentle supine spinal twists with long holds followed by Salamba Sarvāngāsana in order to help balance the energy cultivated through backbends. If inadequate time is available to allow the spine to decompress shoulder stand can be practiced off a chair or a supported Setu Bandha may be substituted. One may also wish to avoid extensive backbend practice late in the day as it may interfere with a restful nights sleep.

Bow Pose

My thoughts on Yoga, daily life, and some motivating comments to help you get through the day. This will be a way to share tips and help everyone through their daily struggles with keeping in the Yoga lifestyle.