Lovely practice today: A flow of inversion holds.

 Kathryn B never disappoints. She had us go through a series of strengthening flow - downward dog plank chaturanga plank chaturanga plank and downward dog - throwing in bakasana, handstand hops and dolphin in between. The real treat comes in 1 minute inversion holds - 1 minute in headstand, 1 minute in forearm stand, and 1 minute in handstand. I managed to balance with just my knees close to my body for headstand, working on the shoulder and core balance. Although I should practice keeping the knees stacked on my hips instead of towards my chest. I managed to hold for forearm stand in 1 minute, but for handstand I was already tired. Came down halfway.

 I am currently obsessed with handstand hops.

musing

A new breakthrough in my primary series practice: improved jump back.

It happened to suddenly. I can't remember whether it was the Monday practice or today, but I managed to lift up and swing my legs through. I used to not be able to do that. I am right now recalling what I used to do, but I can't. because the swinging back feels natural. I think I used to lift and somewhat scuffle back.

Although I am able to swing, I still don't have the strength to shoot my legs back, probably because I have no strength to lower my body after I swung my legs through. This morning, I tried it throughout the practice and I did all of the jump back effortlessly, just lift and swing, nothing heavy, nothing resisting. Its just amazing. I was amazed, and just wow.

My handstand hops are still horrible. Hips still not moving over shoulders. I think 90% of it is the fear. Sometimes I get it, and it feel wonderful the flight. But today I did not.

I held a half sirsasana, not pushing to keep my legs straight. it felt good , minimal weight on head, shoulders strong and engaged. My neck's not feeling too chuffed and I wonder if it's due to sirsasana or the Urdvha Dhanurasana I have been practicing, putting my head on the floor before I lift up.

Leaving Out Poses

I notice that there is a pattern of poses I tend to forget and leave out while practicing:

 In Standing postures it would always be Utthita Parsvottanasana.
 In Seated postures they would be Parsvottanasana, Navasana, and today, the last three sequence.

 I do not know why these postures always get squeezed out from the practice list. Maybe I was doing it not in a mindful way. Like today after a good inversion exercise I laid in a variation of child pose for a while, got up feeling very wrung out and energized at the same time, and had a mental dialogue something like this:

 Ok sirsasana done. What a relief, oh I feel good, drained, but good. What else should I do? anything else after this? Savasana right? because I derserve this, don't I? Oh yes... *lies down*

I really should train my mind to stay focused even after an intense practice.

Anyways, worked my arms bad for Urdvha D this morning. Felt the side, muscle, the teres minor and major, stretch somewhat tickling and prickling in intensity. Love it.

2012 Reflections

My yoga journey thus far has been such a great great help in my life. I went through very difficult times emotionally and mentally with the help - the discipline - of yoga alone. Last month, ashtanga has ceased to be somewhat a foreboding experience, in fact, if I approach it as a breathing exercise the poses just flew by quickly. I also began to enjoy surya namaskar because I am working on my jumping. Sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't. Today, I got it on the last try, the hip over wrists, balancing for milisecond.

I have been practicing Ashtanga for 14 months.

Here I wrote last January:

I've told you that my target list for 2012 is to:

1) master Jump Throughs and Jump Backs

2) Do a good Setu Bhandasana and Wheel Pose

3) Half Moon Pose

4) Try a Mysore class

So what happened here?

1) I have yet to 'master' them but I have somewhat a unique way of doing the jump through and jump back. My jump back, on good days after bandha konasana, I could swing through, but could not till chaturanga yet. My jump throughs are better, I could easily swing through, although right now I am practicing lifting my legs up and putting them down with control. Control is key.

2) I have decided to let go of Setu Bandhasana due to my neck injury. Attempted it again in November after feeling that my neck could take it, but just one try and I felt the repercussion all the way down to my left fingers. I am okay with a normal bridge. If I am feeling adventurous then I'd do a dwi pada viparita dandasana. Urdhva D is now my favorite! I love it. Could do 5 breaths 5 times. And currently working on walking my hands towards my ankles. It's simply simply amazing how this was the bane of my practice with the pain - it was a teeth grinding pain really - and now it feels wonderful, open, and intense (of course, its a serious backbend, you've still got to feel it!)

3) Half Moon Pose - forever a favorite pose. I could do it now, and currently working on doing it without my hand supporting me. 

4) Oh Mysore style class. I started with Ganesh's class. Then it was with Liz, then went to London and did it with Sarai, then Laruga and Kiri. As much as I love Mysore style class I also LOOOOOVE home practice where I don't have to worry about my body odor, or being distracted in UHP or my ego getting in the way. As much as that is a good practice to  strengthen my mind, I could sharpen it with once in a while classes.

What are the other benefits of practicing yoga?

1) Nailed Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana. One of my favorites. I saw it first on Kathryn B, and I was intrigued with the degree of chest openess it requires. I worked so much at it, daily with a block, and once my Urdvha D got stronger I find it is effortless to drop into Dwi Pada. It's a goooood thoracic opener.

2) Nailed handstand and pincha on the wall. Slowly working on my strength, building the hold to more than 10 seconds. I have yet to consider trying to balance. My left shoulder is still refusing to open effortlessly, I still need to do stretches to make it feel good. 

3) Because I have been working on Dolphin and Pincha a lot, I could do a salamba sirsasana without wall assistance now, and FEEL the difference. Before, I did not even feel my shoulders. Now, I could feel it strong, engaged, steady, allowing my neck to breathe. In fact, my head barely takes the weight, whereas before I could feel the whole bodyweight pushing into my head. I only would do this in short spurts, just to strengthen my core so that I could learn to balance in pincha without a wall.

4) Chaturanga feels better - no pain on front of shoulders. I continously work on this, being mindful every time I drop down, making sure my alignment is correct.

5) Uttrasana feel great, can bend backwards now without support from my hands on the back of my thighs. PRACTICE!

6) Parsva Bakasana - can hold it for a few seconds now, without my butt resting on the shelf of my elbows.

Firelog pose still is hard to do, the funny thing is I can't figure out why, and which part needs work. I still can't do the full Bhujapidasana, nevermind the vinyasa. 

Urdvha Dhanurasana progress

I made a good choice resting my body last night. I do not know why, but I felt like I needed to not do anything. Yesterday's morning I took it easy with a slow yin class, nearly falling asleep (and did, from savasana until forever) because I was tired. That was my only workout.

 This morning, refreshed from a good rest, went for my ashtanga. It was more or less a good practice, with 50% concentration on the breath. Lost it halfway due to company of M, who came in while I was halfway through my first series. We talked on and off.

 When I did my urdvha though, I managed to hold for 5 breaths all five times, even walking my hands closer to my feet. But M told me she saw that I've been keeping all my weight to my upper body, and nothing on my legs. They were straight, bearing no weight. So with her guidance she made me grip her leg placed in between mine while I was in wheel, and that made all the difference. The first time though when she pulled me forward to transfer the weight to my legs, I couldn't tell which way was which. It was that disorientating. I would use this helpful tool to work the legs even more. Put a block in between and then learn to engage the quads. I cannot believe the progress I have made in my urdvha D. It took me a year to finally feel pain free, thanks to tips from Noah M and other wonderful teachers. It is all about patience and practice. I realized now that I love the journey and work put in the practice that I don't even mind not nailing it. Because after hard work getting it just feels amazing.

 No progress on Bhuja. Forget about the vinyasa. But well, its all about the practice!

Reflection of a yogi

I havent been updating. But thats because I was having a ball of time, loving my practice. It's been a steady 3x per week of ashtanga, with vinyasa tuesdays and thursdays, and weekends are for backbends and arm balances.

 What I learned: When you let go of expectations, and just enjoy practising for what it is a clarity for the body and mind. I tried to focus on my breath more, just inhaling exhaling, feeling good and sometimes feeling nothing at all, just awareness of my body, my legs engagement, shoulder engagement.

 Arm balances class saturday was really sweet. Pretty easy, with vashistasana variations (of which all 4 I could do) bakasana, prasva bakasana, titibhasana and bhujapidasana. I find that the more I get rid of my expectations or frustrations of wanting to nail a pose, I find a peace within the practice that is waaay better than nailing a pose. My neck injury taught me this. In a way, that injury was sort of a gift. A gift to realign my mindset of how I approach yoga.

 No technical updates here, just what I've been thinking about.

Journey of Practice

I skipped yoga today. Ladies holiday, beside, wasn't really feeling it.

I did ashtanga monday and tuesday, knowing that I wont really do ashtanga today (moon day) and the next 3 days. This time though, I am trying to let go of all expectations, and instead focusing on the breath. I often say that don't I, but this time I was adamant. Trying hard to level the in breath with the out breath (the outbreath always longer). I enjoyed the forward bends, the janu sirsana as always. I have noticed that I favor certain poses and dread certain poses. It starts from the beginning - surya namaska B is not my favorite, then the UHP, then the revolved plank, then Navasana. I always do feel happy approaching janu sirsasana, bandha konasana, supta konasana, and now wheel. Surprisingly. I love wheel now. Cant get enough of wheel.

I have also noticed that my jump back seems smoother after bandha konasana. Definitely the open hips is the main reason, which always amazes me because I feel the same, but my hips showed me otherwise (that they are more open after bandha konasana). Goes to show that you might not realize it, how your body are already reaping from the benefit of the posture.

My Garbha pindasana was the best one yet. It is obvious what a properly calculated breathing could do to make your GP roll as perfect as sushi. I came up high and did perfect 9 rounds. It's like cutting 9 slices around a big gooey cheesy cake.

I have decided to forever take out setu bandhasana. Have tried to incorporate the real setu bandhasana (charlie chaplin pose) with my hands supporting the head, but it might not work with my body and injury. I did on Monday, and felt the repercussions of it the whole entire day. On top of my always and continuous achy neck and shoulders, my left elbow and fingers were tingling and numb. Bad bad sensation. It couldnt be the finishing postures because I've done the same thing about a few weeks ago and nothing was this bad. Definitely not going to be in my practice. Maybe... I would do viparita dandasana instead. Hmmm.

Forgot to let you know that I've sort of incorporated a few poses of second series into my practice. Not an ego thing... I just feel my backbends would benefit if I could incorporate the first few postures. It's not really a real practice - straight after Urdvha D I would do the first 6 poses straight, sometimes with a tiny vinyasa in between. It is more like a backbend supplement.