A lot of advanced flow classes are heavy on the arm balances, deep back bends, and other skill/strength/flexibility based poses. One thing that is often left out of advanced classes, however, is long holds of asanas. Personally, I like to hold certain asanas for an extended period of time because doing so gives me the opportunity to do what I call “mental yoga”. Mental yoga is the challenge of keeping the mind calm in the face of great challenge, as one of my teachers often says. In each of the following asanas, if you hold it long enough, you will start to feel a considerable amount of discomfort and even a burning sensation in the muscles. The challenge here is not to judge these sensations, not to fear them, not to dwell on when they will be over, and not to cheat the pose so as to lessen the sensations. Conversely, it’s probably not a good idea to power your way through the intensity by invoking feelings of anger or aggression, and it’s also probably not a good idea to get through the long hold by taking some kind of masochistic pleasure in the pain. (more…)
Filed under: Yoga Stuff
The 71″ Manduka PurpleLite Travel Mat is lighter and less “meaty” than the original Black Mat. The Travel Mat weighs roughly 4 pounds and comes in just one color, purple. It is 3/16″ thick and 24″ wide, making it noticeably thinner and narrower than the Manduka Black Mat. (more…)
Filed under: Studio Reviews
When you’re on the road and away from your local studio, it’s always a treat to find a place where you can do some yoga and maybe even make a few friends. Easton Yoga in Easton, PA, is one such place. When I’m not in a major city, I usually don’t even make an effort anymore to try out the local yoga offerings, because I have been so consistently disappointed in the past. In fact, my first visit to Easton Yoga wasn’t to practice yoga, but simply to purchase a gift for my father. But when I walked into the studio and had a look at their schedule and the space, I started to have a feeling that it might be a place worth trying out. The next day, I came for an Ashtanga Primary Series class, and was pleasantly surprised to find a decently challenging class led by a very knowledgeable and helpful instructor. (more…)
Filed under: Digital Asana Project
This is a fun little sequence to add into the flow, especially early on if you want to inject some intensity and heat into the practice. It’s a nice way to set the tone for a particularly strong asana practice. The sequence goes a little something like this:
1. From Down Dog, jump directly into Mukta Hasta Sirsasana (aka Tripod Headstand).
2. Come into Parsva Bakasana (aka Twisted Crow).
3. Back up to Tripod.
4. Twisted Crow on the other side.
5. Back to Tripod.
6. Wind the legs into Full Lotus.
7. Tuck the Lotus and lift up into Urdvha Kukkutasana (aka Upward Facing Cock).
8. Untangled the legs and come into regular Crow Pose.
9. Jump back to Chaturanga.
10. Whew!
When I do this sequence, I want to be pretty warmed up already. This usually means doing an extended series of Sun Salutations first, which will consist of considerable modifications that are designed to get the body ready for this intense sequence. See my 10/07/06 posting for some suggestions on how to modify the Sun Salutations.
In the video below, I demonstrate the entire sequence, taking about 5 breaths in each pose. The most difficult transitions in this sequence are probably the initial jump into Tripod Headstand and the lift from Tripod Headstand into Upward Cock. Check out my 09/01/06 posting to read some more about the jump from Down Dog into Tripod Headstand. Here are some thoughts on the lift into Upward Cock. Once I get my legs into Full Lotus while in Tripod Headstand, I try to really make sure that my feet are locked in tight. Otherwise, they will pop out when I’m trying to do the lift. Tucking the Lotus legs is not the hard part, but the next move, the lift up, is really tricky. I don’t find that it actually requires a tremendous amount of strength; the issue here is control. It’s easy to push too hard, which will result in falling back on to your butt. The key, I think, it to really grip the mat with the fingers while doing the lift. Think “up” and perhaps even “up and forward” instead of “back” when lifting here. The tendency, I think, is to think “back” because you have to lift your head up and back when you lift into Upward Cock. But this will typically result in overshooting the pose and falling backwards.
Disclaimer: I am not a certified yoga instructor, and the ideas and opinions expressed here are not intended to be formal instruction on yoga poses. If you plan to start up a yoga practice, or if you have one and plan to do any of the yoga poses described in this blog, please seek out an experienced, living, breathing yoga teacher to guide you with hands-on instruction.
Filed under: Yoga Musings
One of the biggest challenges to maintaining a consistent yoga practice is traveling. Ironically, when we travel is perhaps the time when we most need to do some yoga. There’s very little in life that is as disruptive as being uprooted from the comforts of our home and our community, getting on a cramped airplane, flying off to some distant city, and spending several days or weeks in a hotel room or on a friend’s couch. (more…)
Filed under: Yoga Poses
I only have a little experience with partner yoga, but I’ve found that there are quite a few advantages to practicing with another person in this way. Check out some of these photos at the Acro Yoga website. They’re amazing! Some of the poses depicted in the backward bends, forward bends, and twists sections might even be doable for us mortals. (more…)
