Seekers and Teachers on Day 10 January 20, 2011
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Day 10
“As the two of us stretched and shared for 90 minutes each morning, I’d get the strangest feeling that there were four of us there, two teachers and two students: me teaching Dolly yoga techniques, Dolly teaching me the value of laughter, spontaneity, nonjudgement, trust – and so much more. Then we’d slip out of our roles and slip into meditation, the four of us becoming two, becoming one.”
– Robbie Williams in an article about teaching yoga to Country & Western musicians (Yoga Journal, Nov-Dec 1984)
We are all seekers; we come to yoga for different reasons. A lot of times we come because we want to fix something – physically, mentally, or emotionally – and either a doctor or someone we admire has recommended yoga. Sometimes we want the practice to be magical, miraculous even – and sometimes it feels like it. Ultimately, however, the desired results come when someone practices a series or a pose, for an extended period of time, without attachment to the outcome.
Lessons about continuous practice (abhyasa) without attachment (vairagya) are found in the Yoga Sutras (I:12 – 15). These lessons are also found in every class room, where the seekers become the teachers. And I’m not just talking about the people who lead the practice; I’m talking about the so-called “students” who come back, again and again, week after week, day after day. The people who inspire others because of their devotion and enthusiasm for the practice, these are the teachers in the room.
The fact that we are all seekers, as well as teachers, was the message from my morning practice and the classes I taught today. The focus was on being guided by the ultimate teacher, the teacher who is within. I could have easily quoted Rainer Maria Rilke for this class, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to celebrate the Dolly Lama’s birthday!
I can’t exactly call myself an uber-fan when it comes to Dolly Parton, but I like her and I can’t imagine being in a room with her for two seconds and not smiling. I also can’t imagine being a room with her for two minutes and not laughing. Plus, she’s inspiring. She is unapologetic about where she comes from, what she looks like, or how she sounds. There’s a lesson in that. She believes in having fun and being passionate about something. There’s a lesson in that. She’s also a lesson in giving and in looking within for the answers we seek. That last part is key, because (again) we are our own ultimate teacher. We just have to take the time to do a little self-study.
The videos for days 8, 9, and 10 of the Yoga Journal 21-Day Challenge were the same sequences presented on the first three days of the challenge. Repeating sequences is great opportunity to turn inward, do that little bit of self-studying, and note how the sequences felt this week compared to last week. For anyone keeping track, it’s interesting to note how other activities affect the way we feel while practicing the asanas. Last week, for instance, I did a lot of upper body work and some fairly intense core work in my classes. I also meditated and ate after the practice. When I got to Rebecca Urban’s core sequence on the evening of Day 3, I appreciated it, but I barely felt it. This week, I had fewer classes and the sequence I taught (and practiced) had a little more intense arm balancing. Most of the abdominal work came from laughing – which means the 60-minute class got more than me or the 45-minute class. Also, I ate dinner several hours before I meditated and then practicing with the video. The end result? This week I really felt it.
Again, I’m looking forward to repeating this sequence – and maybe putting it together with another sequence. (I have it on good authority that Day 11 is different from Day 4, so maybe I’ll wait before I start mixing and matching.) Another thing I’ve noted is that the sequences so far have been very bottom heavy, meaning the emphasis has been on the lower body. Heaven knows it’s great to prepare the hips and legs for deep seated meditation, but more and more I’m noting how intensely engaged my back muscles have to be to hold a seated position for an extended period of time. Even though I see people in my classes, all the time, slumped over while in Sukhasana – and even though I remind them to engage their core muscles (back and front) in order to support a lifted heart – I’ve never been as aware of the engagement in my own mediation practice as I have been this week. Perhaps it’s because I’m meditating more and for longer periods of time. Either way, I’m curious to see how I would feel if I did this core sequence in the early morning and then went directly into my meditation.
I guess there’s only one way to find out. And, in the end, that is the lesson we come back to again and again in yoga: you have to practice, for a continued period of time, without interruption and without attachment.
~ Honor what is within you, and all around you, Namaste ~
Bad Day 9? Practice Enough & Everything Else Disappears January 19, 2011
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Day 9
“Remember to breathe / Remember to hold your head high / Remember to smile some / And just listen awhile / You’ve practiced enough, yeah…. / And that’s when the world seemed to stop.”
– Everything Else Disappears (Sister Hazel)
Life hasn’t really settled down, but it is heading towards what passes for normal. By that I mean, the cattle prod sensation has dissipated and getting up to go to work this morning felt like, well, getting up and going to work. Part of me wanted to stay in bed (you know the drill) and part of me couldn’t wait to hit the mat.
The latter part won out without too much struggle. I was looking forward to repeating the Morning Sequence and also looking forward to the fun sequence I was planning to teach at the studio. Since I wasn’t overly pressed for time, and because I didn’t want to have a lot leftover to do at the end of the night, I sat briefly and then practiced the Morning Sequence with Kate Holcombe as the warm-up/integration to the sequence I was planning to teach. It worked perfectly. One of the things I particularly noticed was how the first part of the video sequence compared to a similar sequence I’ve recently used for integration. The sequence in the video wasn’t a super heat builder, but it nicely integrated the breath, mind, and body. The comparison also made more aware of the subtle movements inherent in a yin practice. I wrapped up with time to spare, but then used up that time making the bathtub a little friendlier. Ironically, I wasn’t as annoyed as I thought I would be when it came time to clean up.
On Tuesdays, I often have a big break between classes. It’s nice, especially on a day like today, to not rush through lunch and to not have to rush from class to class. Of course, the big break also means I’m around a lot more people who don’t practice yoga. Case in point: a woman, babe in arms, who sat next to me on the train and recited a mantra (or was it a litany) of curse words to whomever she was talking to on the phone. I felt bad for her, her son, and for everyone around us. I wanted to suggest she give peace a chance. I also thought, ‘Darn, now her words are going to be stuck in my head.’ But, once she got of the phone, I started humming Daniel Powter’s Bad Day and forgot her angry refrain. Later, as I waited for the bus, I encountered a woman cursing in her car. Again, I felt bad that I couldn’t directly improve her disposition. But, I didn’t feel the need to hang on to the negative encounter. It was just a moment, and then it passed.
Ideally, I wanted to practice the 18-Minute So Hum Meditation during my big break. The only question was: where to sit. Thinking back to last Tuesday, I decided against a super public place and opted to cop a squat at the Downtown Minneapolis YMCA. The studios with doors were all occupied, but I didn’t let that stop me. I found a quiet, partially lit corner in a studio normally used for Step and Body Pump classes. Even though this studio is often used as a dressing room crossover when classes are not in session,.I found it fairly easy to block out the ambient noise and focus on the quiet recording coming from the Pocket Tunes on my phone. When I was done, my legs were no worse for wear and the activity around seemed to magically increase, as if the world had (mostly) stopped and then started up again. Man, I love it when life is like a song!
~ NAMASTE ~
Once More Into The Breach, Dear Friends, It’s Day 8! January 18, 2011
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“In peace there’s nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility:”
– William Shakespeare’s Henry V (I:3)
For most of the first week of the Yoga Journal 21-Day Challenge, I was house sitting for a friend. I had tons of space, tons of quiet, and two computers in the room where I practiced the video sequences. didn’t have to worry about disturbing anyone, or about being disturbed. The cat and I did not compete for the shower. It was a peaceful way to practice. Yes, the volume was an issue, as was the height of the desk when I was lying on the floor, but I didn’t have any downloading issues and all was good. Despite the fact that I was a little off staying in a new place and working out the logistics of traveling to and from a different home base, it was pretty relaxing. It was almost like a retreat – a retreat with a great view and some really good yoga teachers.
Fast forward to Monday, Day 8 of the challenge. As much as I enjoyed practices led by teachers I had never met, I was itching for a real class with a real live, real time, teacher. Truth be told, I was also itching for something familiar. I got myself geared up to take a class from a teacher who has also been my student and whose class I had sorely missed because of my work schedule during the holidays. I walked into the studio and discovered there was a sub. Still, I was excited, because the sub was someone I’d met and from whom I had hoped to take a class. The schedule just hadn’t worked out.
As the class started, my body warmed up; my mind focused on the breath; and the movement; I smiled some and I was glad to be right there, right then. Suddenly, about midway through the Sun Salutations, I found myself in the middle of a “let go of what you know” moment. Or maybe, instead of calling it a moment, I should call it a battle. Or a war.
My breath stayed steady throughout the practice. However, as we proceeded my body felt more and more out of balance; my mind started to fluctuate; and I couldn’t let go of the sensation that things were going downhill fast. Watching me, the teacher probably had no idea I was fighting – and failing – to stay on my mat. As I made my way through some fairly challenging asanas, I doubt anyone in the room was aware that I just wanted to shout, “Are you kidding me?!?!” and then storm out of the room.
Contrary to what I wrote yesterday, I didn’t do what I knew would work for me and I didn’t go into an extended Child’s Pose. I wanted to move. I wanted to be open to the moment. So, I took the suggestions, as they were given, until we got to the final supine twist. Then, I just had to do what I had to do: I twisted to the left first, instead of the right. I settled into Savasana, feeling fairly confident that there was a method to the teacher’s “madness” – as well as a message I would have appreciated if it had come by way of a different method. I also realized I hadn’t done myself any favors by being resistant to what was being offered, as it was being offered.
Leaving the studio, my body felt a little cranky and I found myself staring into space. I joked to one of my students that all the “Shoveling Snow Pose” I had to do that afternoon wouldn’t leave me incapacitated, but that the class I took might. Two hours later, when every step felt like someone was poking a cattle prod in my right buttocks, I was no longer laughing. I was trying to figure out how I was going to restore myself.
Even though I didn’t preview any of the videos during Week 1, I was fairly certain the Week 2 videos were in the same order. I was looking forward to doing the Day 1 sequence again, just to see how it would feel after all the other sequences. At least, that’s how I felt before the cattle prod sensation. Afterward, I started reconsidering my options. Part of me really wanted to just flow on my own or stream a vinyasa practice from a teacher with whom I’m familiar. Another part of me really wanted to do the video sequence from Day 4, Day 5, or Day 6 of the challenge. I even considered Day 2, even though it was going to be evening before I could practice. Ultimately, however, I decided to give the sequence from Day 7 another shot. It had, after all, the elements I needed to fix what ailed me.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get to the practice until after I left the “retreat.” I had to make space to heal and restore. The tub was less than appealing. And, I hadn’t counted on having problems with the download. I decided it was all for the good. Repeating a section until the video unfroze worked until I realized I was cold – therefore not doing my stiff muscles any favors – and needed to do more. So, based on what I remembered about the video, I started throwing in restorative postures I knew would fit with the sequence and which would help my cranky low back and hips. Throw in a little Supine Pigeon here, a little Supta Padangusthasana there, some twisting and hip flexing, plus Ananstasana Thirty minutes later, the video had only progressed through 11 minutes of the recorded sequence and I was still cold. I did Legs-Up-The Wall, considered staying there for the 18-Minute So Hum meditation, and then decided to do shift into Savasana. There was just no way I could sit for that long and wasn’t sure it was a good time to do an inversion for that long, even a mild one. Once again, I set my alarm for the wrong time and went over.
Oh well, it’s just another day on the mat. In the end, I got through it and I feel peace.
~ Shanti, Shanti, Shanthi ~
On The 7th Day We Rest January 17, 2011
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Day 7
“And God finished on the Seventh Day his work which He had made; and He rested on the Seventh Day from all the work which he had made.
And God blessed the Seventh Day, and sanctified it, because that on it he rested from all his work which God had created in making it.” – Genesis 2:2 – 3
Even people who don’t believe in the Genesis story, typically know the story: the world is created bit by bit, breath by breath, over 6 days and then, on the 7th day, God rested. Religious people in the Judeo-Christian parts of the world celebrate the sabbath, a day of rest, even though they don’t always agree on when the 7th day occurs. And that sacred day of rest has become a part of our profane modern world. At least once a week, it’s nice to rest.
Sunday is usually the end of my work week. I’m usually pretty happy to see the week end. Normally, if I felt the way I did at the end of this Sunday, I would go home, eat, and crash without setting an alarm. I’d bask in the fact that I didn’t have to be anywhere in the morning. Monday, my day of mostly rest, would start as soon as I got home. Today, however, was Day 7 of Yoga Journal’s 21-Day Yoga Challenge; and I still had stuff to do.
After taking care of some housekeeping chores in the morning, I sat for 5 minutes and then started preparing for my class. Ironically (after yesterday’s blog entry), I didn’t spend much of my class prep time doing asana. But I did do a lot more demonstrations during class than I might have done with a different sequence. I felt energized after class and yes – yes! – ready to meditate. Luckily there were no classes directly after my morning class so I plopped myself down on a block and proceeded to do my 18-Minute guided meditation.
I had a whole basketball court sized studio to myself, with morning light streaming through the windows, and it felt super good. So good, that when my alarm didn’t go off at the right time I just kept going. My 18 minutes started drifting towards 30 minutes. My body didn’t complain. Much.
I had two more classes to teach after my lunch break. Despite the fact that I didn’t do a full out asana practice in the morning, I felt focused and ready to go. Ready even, to deal with all that came my way. It was fun. Still, at the end of the day, I was ready to crash. Ready to rest. An evening practice should have felt perfect. Oddly enough, my body and mind did not cooperate.
I got home a little earlier than usual and decided to read for a few minutes. No problem there. I was relaxed, but not overly sleepy and had no problem focusing – or sitting still. However, when it came time to do the 20-Minute Evening Sequence with Kate Holcombe I felt like my skin was crawling. I was restless, cold, and had a hard time keeping still and steady enough to do the practice. Time and time again, I wanted to either move more – and do something a little more vigorous – or move less, and go directly into Savasana. I tried a little bit of both, but I had a hard time enjoying the practice.
Don’t get me wrong: the practice itself was fine. I’ve done different elements of this practice before and I really enjoy doing a little restorative yoga. The instruction was clear and precise. It should have been one of those sublime experiences. Especially since, here was the Savasana I’ve been begging for all week! Tonight, however, I needed a little something different. I stuck with it, because part of my commitment was to do the video sequences. If this had been a class in a studio, with a live teacher , however, I would have modified the practice. If I had just committed myself to being on the mat for 21 days, I also would have modified more or called it a day since I did the meditation early in the day. Either way, today became my own personal reminder of what I tell my students all the time: Sometimes practicing yoga is not about practicing asana. Sometimes union comes with rest.
~ Shanti, Shanti, Shanthi ~
Day 6, If Thinking Makes It So, So Be It January 16, 2011
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Day 6
“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become. “ – Guatama Siddharta, Buddha
“Our limitations and success will be based, most often, on your expectations for ourselves. What the mind dwells upon, the body acts upon.” – Denis Waitley
I am constantly amazed at how the mind works. The Yoga Sutra describes the 5 ways we think: correct perception, incorrect (or mistaken) perception, imagination, deep sleep, and memories. Patanjali explains in this same section that these thoughts, or perceptions, can be afflicted or free of affliction (YS I:5 – 6). It’s more than Cogito, Ergo Sum or even Dubito, Ergo Cogito, Ergo Sum. It’s Cogito Ergo Mundo Est: I think therefore the world (my version of reality) exists.
Sometimes we find out our perception of a situation is incorrect. It can be a devastating discover. No matter how much the realization shakes us, however, we ultimate fail or succeed based on our ability to accept the truth, recover from our mistake, and keep moving. Equally fascinating is what happens when we make a decision to do something, fully commit, and – in doing so – discover that everything around us seems to adjust to make space for our commitment. The world changes, reality shifts, all because we made up our mind.
Over the last 6 days, I have settled into a routine. I’m not sure how I feel about it; other than that I am astounded at how my schedule has shifted and coalesced around my commitment to Yoga Journal’s 21-Day Challenge. I drag myself out of bed every morning; mediate for 5 minutes (or not, depending on how many times I hit the snooze); prepare for my classes by practicing 30 – 90 minutes; rush off to teach my classes; and then round off my day with the video sequence, the 18-minute So Hum mediation, and a blog entry. In between, I deal with the rest of my life – which includes dealing with the snow. It hasn’t even been a full week yet (unless you count Day 0) and every day is different, but this is the schedule that seems to work. Sometimes I consider changing it. Other times I am content to let it evolve. At all times I am committed to the process, and the challenge.
Today, Day 6, is one of those days when I considered change and, in doing so, almost faltered. By the time I got home I was exhausted – and fighting it. At some point I recognized the pointlessness of not taking a nap. Still, because I hadn’t done the video sequence for the day or the mediation, I fought my body’s desire for sleep. Needless to say, I lost that fight. I woke up much later than I would have if I had set an alarm, but I was rested. Even though I woke up and accepted the need for a nap, Part of me dreaded pulling up the video. I wasn’t sure I could handle an intense practice and definitely didn’t need anything invigorating. Something restorative, I thought, would be nice right about now.
And this is when my thought manifested itself in the form of Rebecca Urban’s 30-Minute Tension Release Hip Openers. I couldn’t have asked for a better practice – oh, wait, I did ask for it! This was no slacker practice. It combined a sublime amount of surrender, hip flexion, and hip extension with just enough intensity and challenge. And even though I’d put my hips and hamstrings through the proverbial wringer for the last two days, my whole lower body felt nurtured and encouraged.
Towards the beginning of the sequence I wondered why this practice didn’t precede the one for Hanumanasana. By the end of the practice I realized it was a sequence that could be used to integrate the body for a peak pose like Hanumanasana; it could be expanded into a longer span of time; or it could be used as the surrender portion at the end of an intense vinyasa practice. It could also be practiced as it is; and what a wonderful thing it is.
My body felt ready for Savasana. It also felt ready for the seated meditation. My mind…well, that’s a story for another day.
~ NAMASTE ~
Day 5, One Giant Leap For Yogi-kind January 15, 2011
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(or, How Small Steps Lead To A Giant Leap)
I was super excited to wake up Friday morning and discover the Day 5 video featured Elise Lorimer working towards Hanumanasana. The story of Hanuman is one of my favorites and I’ve told or referenced the story on more than one occasion while teaching the pose. But, as much as I love the story and the benefits of the pose, I suck at the full expression. I always have; even as a pre-teen gymnast I sucked at doing the splits. In fact, there’s a Junior High year book picture of me on a Maryland gymnastics team and to this day I cringe when I see it because I’m not the girl doing the splits. Still, I teach the pose because (a) even the modified version (or Hanuman prep, as I call it) can be incredibly beneficial; (b) I love the story; and (c) some of my students have incredible Hanumanasana practices.
Given my affinity for the story and my on-going struggle with the pose itself, I wanted to do the practice first thing in the morning. I was further inspired because I was already planning to include the pose in my Saturday morning class. But, I had early AM obligations – specifically, getting ready for my regular Friday classes. I spent the morning practicing a sequence inspired by the ruminations I had after finishing the Day 4 Standing Pose sequence. The irony of the way I work is that I was inspired by a 30-minute practice, but I wished I had more than 60 minutes to teach (and practice) the resulting class. This only makes sense when you know that sometimes I think like a Faulkner novel.
At the end of another snowy day I set up to practice the video. Keep in mind that my day included a little slipping and sliding, a little dancing, a practice set of Hanumanasana – just to give myself a base line, and another set of “Shoveling Snow Pose”. For whatever irrational reason, a part of my brain expected the sequence to be so overwhelmingly powerful that I would melt into the full expression like butter. Right. Keep dreaming.
The reality is that no one melts into the full expression of Hanumanasana. Even people who make it look effortless, do the work. They practice – if not every day, then every chance they get – and part of the practice is the process, the krama, those small sequential steps that lead to a giant leap.
True, there are some incredibly flexible people on the planet – and most of them are kids – but even Gumby Jr. has to practice the splits in order to do the splits. Choosing Hanumanasana as a peak pose for this challenge was brilliant, because it simultaneously reinforces the power of a sequence to open the body into a particular pose, as well as the need to dedicate one’s self to regular practice. Also, because it is such an extreme pose, it’s a great opportunity to tune into the body. Elise Lorimer’s practice highlighted all the muscle groups engaged in Hanumanasana. When I reached that peak pose, I didn’t melt into the full expression. I did, however, ease into my deepest expression at that moment. Ultimately, being where you are in the moment is what it’s all about.
Is it my imagination or are the Savasana moments getting longer? Even though I know the videos are pre-recorded, I feel like the universe is responding to my comments about the lack of Savasana. Tonight, I was more than ready for a little moment of reclined stillness. I stayed a few minutes past the end of the video and then sat for the 18-minute So Hum meditation I’ve been doing. My whole body felt prepared and, even though I was tired, I managed to finish the meditation in pretty good shape. Again, my legs felt divine and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
~ NAMASTE ~
Day 4, Rooting Down January 14, 2011
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Day 4, Rooting Down
Everybody has a day that reinforces the need for a day off. Sometimes it’s a Saturday. For most of my adult life it’s been Monday. This week it was also Thursday. I woke up early with what I consider a primal urge to cuddle…barring that, to huddle under the covers. (Maybe today some part of me knew it was going to snow and just wanted to hibernate.) Either way, once reality sets in and I realize I have to get up, I sit and breath.
Again, whether we realize it or not, I think that urge to pause, sit and breath is primal. Even my house-mate does it. Sometimes we don’t even realize we do it; which means we miss a significant moment to clear the fuzz from our brain, wake up (literally and figuratively), and start the day fresh.
Prior to starting Yoga Journal’s 21-Day Yoga Challenge, I started most days by formally sitting and breathing for at least 5 minutes. I say “formally,” but it wasn’t anything fancy. Sometimes I added a mantra, pranayama, or guided myself through a meditation. But, more often than not I just observed my breath, reminded myself I was not thinking. Since I planned on doing the 17-minute So Hum meditation during the challenge, I figured I would skip the 5 minutes at the beginning of my day.
Skipping my 5 minutes at the top of the morning worked OK for Days 1 – 3, but today I had to hit the floor running – that is, of course, after the cuddling and huddling. So, Day 4 started with 5 minutes of sitting and breathing. Once the fuzz cleared, I headed out to teach. While I demonstrated some of the poses during class, I really didn’t practice any asana until the end of the day. (Unless, of course, you count “Shoveling Snow Pose.”)
The 30-minute Standing Poses sequence with Jason Crandell was amazing. Just as advertised, the focus was on aligning and refining. I had several a-ha moments as a student, but even more as a teacher. (As in, “A-ha, that’s how I fix that sassy hip problem I see in class all the time.) Granted, there was at least one time when I thought, “Yeah, I get why he’s doing it that way, and I’ll try it, but I don’t see myself practicing that on a regular basis.” Of course, I’ve said that about certain alignment techniques before and then blissfully eaten my words. Since steady practice (abhyasa) and self-study (svadhyaya) are key elements of yoga, it’s not enough to just do it – you have to actually practice something to see if and how it works. Anyone interested in deepening an existing practice, reviving a practice, or starting brand new should consider the Day 4 sequence one of those “keepers” on which you can build a life’s worth of practice.
My legs felt phenomenal, and more than ready for 17-minutes of deep seated meditation. No fidgeting today! I’m use to a lot more upper body engagement during my daily yoga practice, so I found I had to be much more conscious about holding my arms and torso in the proper alignment. But, that’s not a bad thing. In fact, today’s practice reinforced the fact that the physical practice is intended to prepare the mind-body-spirit for deep seated meditation.
The fact that our physical practice should prepare us for deep seated meditation is something we hear (as students) and say (as teachers) all the time. Still, I always wonder how many people in the modern world – especially here in the Americas – are actually following their physical practice with an extended meditation. If we did, I wonder how our physical practice would change.
~ NAMASTE ~
Day 3 & Things Get Tricky January 13, 2011
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Day 3 of the 21-Day Yoga Challenge
It’s Wednesday, Day 3 of Yoga Journal’s 21-Day Yoga Challenge, and this is when things get tricky.
For the past couple of months I have been subbing classes on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. Which means: for the last couple of months I’ve lost a day off; lost the majority of my Wednesday morning class prep/practice time; and I’ve had to run around Minneapolis like a chicken with it’s head cut off in order to teach 4 different classes in 4 different locations. Then you throw in the snow, and, well, let’s just say I’ve had to go out of my way to even pretend Wednesday is Zen-day.
Taking my mom’s advice (to just suck it up and take a taxi between the first two classes) definitely saved me from a couple of melt downs. However, the logistics have been taxing and I won’t miss them. What I will miss about these extra classes are the people who’ve taken the classes and the opportunity I’ve had to learn from their practices.
Even though the people have made this whole situation a treat and a gift, I was looking forward to getting back to my old routine this week. Only, it didn’t happen. This morning I was still subbing and still running around to various locations. To make things extra tricky, now I had to work in this yoga challenge. What’s a yogini to do?
Ultimately, I decided to break up the practice. I did the 45-minute sequence I was going to teach during my second class of the day before I left the house. I had time to also squeeze in the 20-minute video sequence or the 18-minute meditation, but then I would have been rushing to the first class. Very un-Zen-day-like. So, I thought I’d put it off and squeeze the other two portions of my daily practice into my afternoon breaks. Needless to say, that didn’t work out. All was not lost, however. My evening class was canceled so I went through the 20-minute Core Focus with Rebecca Urban while I cooked dinner. Then I finished the evening with the seated meditation.
Energetically, I didn’t have any problem practicing the video segment in the evening. I was a little worried about the level of the practice, because I consider abdominal work to be my weak spot (as a teacher and a practitioner). Also, the classes I taught, and practiced, on Days 2 and 3 were fairly challenging – and yesterday I featured a particularly intense core workout. But, the video sequence wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as I expected. Don’t get me wrong. It was nice – in a hair of the dog kind of way – but I don’t anticipate feeling it in the morning. What I most appreciated about the core sequence was that it was creative and accessible to almost anyone. Sure, there were some fairly standard yoga crunches, but there also some clever isometric moments and some ingenious isolation moves. I’m looking forward to doing this segment again.
On the flip side, I wish I’d done the seated meditation earlier, because I was just too tired to sit still. Part of my psyche was definitely chanting, “I am that Mexican Jumping Bean. That Mexican Jumping Bean I am.”
In the end, I could have easily inserted the core video into my previously outlined plan for the day. And tomorrow, I’ll plan on doing the meditation a lot earlier.
~ NAMASTE ~
2 Days of Yoga Down, 19 To Go January 12, 2011
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in 21-Day Challenge, Changing Perspectives, Fitness, Health, Mantra, Meditation, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Music, Philosophy, Science, Twin Cities, Yoga.add a comment
21 Days of Yoga (& Other Stuff)
Day 2
When am I going to fit in my yoga practice?
What, exactly, am I going to practice?
And, where did all this snow come from?
Yes, after 40-plus years on this planet, over 10 years of yoga practice, and going on 4 years of Minnesota winters, these are still the questions I ask at the beginning of a January day. While the latter may be unique to me, anyone even contemplating a daily yoga practice in this day and age has to answer the first two questions again and again.
“When am I going to fit in my yoga practice?” translates to: How am I going to work in time for what I need/want to do given my obligation(s) to a significant other, children, pets, work, my commute, my friends, etc.? Also, in order to maintain the practice, the timing has to be convenient, a space has to be available, and you have to feel up to the challenge. All of this, before you ever even get to the question: what, exactly, am I going to practice?
I feel most myself in the late afternoon and evening. If I had a completely flexible schedule, I would almost always practice after 11 AM. That might not be traditional or ideal, but I’d be comfortable with such a schedule. In fact, when I first started practicing, the majority of the classes I attended were during a business/corporate lunch hour or in the evening. More often than not, however, my current work schedule dictates a morning practice. It’s how I begin my day. And, I’ll admit it: more often than not, it’s the way I love to start the day.
Waking up a little late on Day 2 of the Yoga Journal challenge, I was naturally concerned about how I was going to answer my first two questions of the day. Imagine my pleasure (and relief) to discover that the recommended video sequence was a 15-Minute Morning Sequence with Kate Holcombe. Boy, was this perfect – and refreshing! After a minor hiccup with the downloading, I was waking up with the flow. Again, the sequence was well thought out and, in this case, I felt like it was simple enough for anyone to follow along and get energized. I also felt like the fitness level was exactly where it needed to be to serve as positive reinforcement for someone new to the mat. Part of me wonders why this wasn’t the Day 1 sequence. In fact, as I continue to encourage people to take the challenge, I am recommending that my students start with Day 2 as their Day 1. I can only imagine how joyful it would feel to start with this simple 15-minute practice and then, 21 days later, find yourself flowing through the current Day 1 hip openers. (Maybe, at some point, even putting together the sequences from Day 1 and Day 2 – but in the opposite order.) Sublime.
The video sequence turned out to be a perfect integration sequence for what I was already planning to teach and practice on Day 2. While I did not teach this sequence to my students, I easily segued from the video into my own personal sequence. Best of all, I felt prepared for the challenging sequences I had outlined. With the dulcet sound of Sammy Davis Jr. singing I’ve Gotta Be Me playing in the background, I ended my practice and started my day on a high note. I felt balanced, focused, and ready to take on the world. Even now, going on 14 hours after the morning practice, I still feel that way.
After teaching my first class and having lunch with two of my favorite people, I sat in the back of a coffee shop and completed the So Hum meditation. The recording is fairly quiet and I was in a semi-private room, so I wasn’t worried about disturbing the other patrons. In hindsight, I should have used headphones to block out some of the ambient noise. However, I was amazed to observe how my mind and body tuned into the audio for the meditation and tuned out the competing elements. Yesterday, I counted 9 sets of 12 as I went through the mediation. Today I timed it. At some point I will use an actual mala, but right now I’m interested in noting how I tap into the practice without the beads.
~ NAMASTE ~
21 Days of Yoga (& Other Stuff) January 11, 2011
Posted by ajoyfulpractice in 21-Day Challenge, 40-Day Challenge, Changing Perspectives, Donate, Fitness, Health, Karma Yoga, Mantra, Meditation, Philosophy, Texas, Yoga.add a comment
Day 0
We all begin somewhere. {Check back for link.}
Day 1
I’ve never done a 21-Day yoga challenge. I have, however, done several 40-Day yoga practices – and each one has changed my life. The fact that I have a fairly well established home practice (something I started with my first 40-Day practice) and teach yoga classes, may lead some to believe that the Yoga Journal event is a no-brainer for me. In fact, I’m looking at it as a true challenge. I’m also looking at it as an opportunity for change and growth. Finally, I’m looking at it as an opportunity to deepen my practice.
The funny thing is, we all have opportunities to change, grow, and deepen our yoga practice every day. But it’s easy to miss them. And, in some ways, teaching can create scenarios where we take these opportunities for granted – and, in doing so, miss them.
As a result of my teaching, I practice asana 5 – 7 days a week. However, a lot of my personal/home practice time is spent getting ready to teach, thinking about how various sequences will work with different groups, how I’ll cue them, and what modifications I can offer in a limited amount of time. More and more, I treasure the time I get on the mat and just focus on myself and what my body needs – and more and more, that treasured time seems to be decreasing. So, during these 3 weeks I want to re-focus and re-commit to my personal practice, while also finding a different kind of balance between how I practice as a student of yoga and how I practice as a teacher of yoga.
I’ve recommended the challenge to my students and, on the day before the challenge, I included a few poses featured in the most recent Yoga Journal in my personal practice and in my three regular Sunday classes (Day 0). In my personal practice, I did all of the recommended poses at the end of the practice. During the classes I taught, I worked in variations of almost all of the poses at the beginning or end of the practice. These poses, as well, as the accompanying article seemed like a perfect way for anyone to get started. It wasn’t super challenging (which can be perfect for a beginner or someone beginning a home practice), but it was also a good integrating or surrender series for someone wanting a more challenging sequence.
On Monday, I was very surprised to find that the “Fun Flow” featured as the first official sequence of the challenge was, well…challenging. Some people have commented that it was too much or too fast for a beginner, or even for someone who has been away from the mat for a while. I have to agree. I was also disappointed that there was no Savasana time included in the video. (You’re guided into the pose, but then the video ends – making it seem like Savasana doesn’t matter and giving no guidelines to a new practitioner. Grrr.) On the flip side, the sequence was put together well and Elise Lorimer gave clear, concise, and detailed instruction.
Yes, if you’re new to yoga it’s best to watch the video first – but that’s good advice for any non-classroom practice, regardless of your experience or fitness level. Unfortunately, that good advice is also part of the ultimate downside to the first day: given the need to preview the sequence (which I didn’t); the technical video difficulties a lot of people experienced (myself included); and the need for Savasana, completing the first day’s practice became a bigger time commitment than advertised.
While I waited for the download I did an 18-minute seated So Hum meditation that I originally planning to do afterward, and (after the flow sequence) I listened to the Nicolai Bachman audio feature on the Yoga Sutra-s (look under the video). The meditation, which I am also planning to do for the next 21 days, and the audio feature really fired me up to go deeper. While I’m glad I did the video sequence and I’m committed to doing the next 20-days worth, part of me wishes this was more like the World Yoga Project, the 40-Day program I completed several years ago. With WYP, each participant received a workbook with photos accompanying the sequence, which progressed over the 40 days. It wasn’t free, but part of the proceeds went to charity. Plus, you got to keep the workbook and could reference it whenever or where ever – no downloading required.
It’s easy to see the flaws in both methods. Neither is perfect. But then, something this big, involving this many people, can’t meet everyone’s definition of perfect. That doesn’t mean, however, that it’s not…perfect.
At the end of the day, I have the same questions I had before I started:
- For whom is this challenged really geared?
- What type of practitioner is going to finish?
- What are we all going to learn from this process?
I also have the same final thoughts:
This is going to get interesting, and
this is going to be fun.
A Joyful Practice 