Dear Physically Gifted People
Dear Physically Gifted People, Please stop using words like “easy” or “simple” when doing a demo, teaching a student or posting a video or picture. Why? It is too subjective. Just because something is easy for you does not mean it is easy for someone else. Using the words “simple” or easy, with a student who finds the movement to be difficult, can make them feel like there is something wrong with them, that their efforts will never be good enough, and that they are inadequate. It can make them feel shame and question whether or not yoga is for them. I understand that this is not happening on purpose. …
Practice, Practice, Practice
I saw a post today where someone was going through a very emotional experience and wondered “how the limbs of yoga could help them now?” I will use an analogy. Soldiers don’t wait for the battle to start preparing for it. They train beforehand so that, when they are in battle, their responses become automatic and they know what to do. We also train our bodies and minds to respond a certain way to certain situations. For most people, this training is done unconsciously. As they go through situations in life, they form habits and act on those habits. The practice of yoga is the CONSCIOUS act of reprogramming ourselves…
- Alignment and Injuries, Ashtanga Adaptability, Social Media, Teaching Ashtanga, Yoga Philosophy, Yoga Sutras
Yoga Statistics and Faulty Logic
I just watched a video where an Ashtanga teacher quoted a statistic that was probably true for her students but definitely was not true for mine. Earlier this week, someone else wrote a blog about how no one does shoulder stand anymore, but at the studio I work at, which is 90% Hot Vinyasa and 10% other, almost everyone does shoulder stand. About a month ago, someone wrote on Instagram that Ashtanga was dead when there are Ashtanga programs thriving all over the world. Sharath opened up for June and all the spaces were taken before some people even had a chance to log on. We have this way…
The Myth of the Perfect Yoga Practice
I had a dream that one day I would get on my mat and everything would be easy. That if I practice every day and work hard, I would one day have a practice that consistently felt like floating clouds, rainbows and puppy dog kisses. Do you have that dream? The mythical happily ever after is a construct of the mind. Yes, you can be happy. But the mythical happiness is different. The mythical happiness means that every day you have good hair, everybody is nice to you, you never get sick, everything goes your way and catching in backbends always feels “yummy”. The mythical happy ever after is based…
Yoga Sutras For Modern Day Life: The Bad Practice
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 2:48- In asana, there is no assault from the pairs of opposites. Defining the Sutra During asana, the Yogi is neutral. Modern Day Application Yogis don’t have good and bad practice days. They just have practice days. They don’t define themselves by their poses. They don’t get upset if they cannot bind that day. They don’t get angry if they do not get the next pose. They do not get impatient if they are stopped on Marichyasana for 4 years. First, the practitioner establishes a steady and comfortable asana (Sutra 2:46). This takes time. It is not expected to be automatic. Once the yogi is able to…
- Adventures in Mysore India, Alignment and Injuries, Ashtanga Adaptability, Teaching Ashtanga, Uncategorized, Yoga Philosophy, Yoga Sutras
Yoga Sutras For Modern Day Life: Is Your Pose an Asana?
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 2:46- Asana is a steady, comfortable seat Defining the Sutra An asana is steady and comfortable. If our poses are not steady and comfortable, they are not true Yoga asanas. A Yoga asana is a pose used for attaining the state of Yoga. The state of Yoga is supreme internal steadiness. The mind does not fluctuate and we completely understand who we are. The most effective why to use our seat, to focus on Yoga, is for it to be steady and comfortable. Essentially, Yoga poses are an attempt to make our bodies healthy enough to take a steady seat. Modern Day Application Since a Yogi…
Can You Do Too Much Yoga?
There is an article circulating about the detriments of doing “too much Yoga”. Here is thing. The article is about asana. Yoga is a system. A method. Water is good for you. However, if you just drink water, you will die. Your body is a system. The system needs a balance of nutrients to thrive. Water is important but it is not enough to balance out the system. Asana is important but it is not enough to balance out the system of Yoga. There are 196 Sutras in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Asana is found in only 3 of those Sutras. All the other stuff is important!!!! If you just…
Surrender To is Not The Same As Giving Up
Okay, I know this could all boil down to semantics. “Surrender” and “giving up” do get used interchangeably sometimes, but hear me out. I surrendered to the music. I gave up the music. Different right? I surrendered to joy. I gave up joy. Different right? I surrendered to Yoga. I gave up on Yoga. Different right? There is a difference between surrendering to Marichyasana and giving up on Marichyasana, right? Good. When we give up on a pose, but we cannot avoid it, there is no intelligent effort. It is something that needs to be done and gotten through. We “assume the position” and move on. Kind of like crappy sex that…
A. P. P Goes To Mysore: Unnecessary Shoulder Movements In Ashtanga
The 411 This morning was great. Lots of joking and laughing from Sharath. He dropped me back. Everything was good. Mysore Musings Information filtered through my citta Last week, Sharath talked about unnecessary movements. He spoke about how “doing jump backs like handstand” can cause stiff backbends and tight shoulders . He said that some people are working on handstand before they need to and that it is not needed until advanced series. He also said that straightening the arms in Marchi is unnecessary. He said that when we bind, we bond with the body and we should be moving towards it and not away from it. It also puts…
Making the Philosophy and Poses of Ashtanga Accessible for All
