For those of you at home who might like to practice the sequences from The Advanced Intensive, have at it.
Morning Class:
Tadasana- hands on pelvis, root down
uttanasana- extend spine with the breath 5X
right leg back, lunge
AMS
right leg forward, lunge
uttanasana
urdhva hastasana
uttanasana, look up
AMS
vinyasa between sides:
parsvakonasana
trikonasana
vira 2-reverse vira2
vira 2 with hands clasped behind back
bent leg lunge with forearms down
handstand
handstand with partner, squeeze inner heels
parsva utthita hasta padangusthasana, prep
parsva utthita hasta padangusthasana, out and neighbor supporting foot
half lotus in AMS
standing babay cradle, full pose
garudasana
garudasana in handstand
ardha baddha padmottanasana
lunge rooting pelvis
rajakapotasana prep
ardha chandrasana- ardha chandra chapasana-trikonasana backbended
AMS
vasisthasana
uttanasana
ardha baddha padmottanasana
lotus in handstand
eka pada raja kapotasana with quad stretch and backbend
anjaneyasana with quad stretch and backbend
uttanasana
rest on belly
danurasana
parsva danurasana
balasana
cobra with one leg in ardha bhekasana
ustrasana
urdhva danurasana
urdhva danurasana to ustrasana to urdhva danurasana (yes, this is a true story)
drop backs- 10X
pigeon droppings
ekapada rajakapotasana prep
eka pada raja kapotasana 1, 2, and 3
natarajasana
uttanasana
parsvottanasana
wide legged parsva uttanasana
child's pose
savasana
Afternoon class
uttanasa
lunge knees and elbows to floor
big wide pigeon (don't ask)
parivritta parsvakonasana prep
uttanasna
Ujayi pranayama
LAM-VAM-RAM, mantra repetition
janu sirsasana
ardha matsyendrasana
triangmukaikapada pascimottanasana-krouncasana- bharadvajasana 2
baddha konasana
open the feet in BK and bend forward
kabalabhati pranayama
uppa vistha konasana
parsva uppa vistha
agnisthambasana
twist in agnisthambasana - foot to arm pit
uppa vistha konasana
ujayi pranyama with antara kumbhaka
janu sirsasana foldingbetween legs
stage one parivritta janu sirsasana
janu sirsasana wider, fold between legs
parivritta janu sirsasana
hanumanasana
hanuman's vice
sahita pranayama
gomukasana with opposite elbow to top knee (Major!)
yogi dandasana
eka pada sirsasana
skandasana
durvasana
uttanasana
parsva danurasana
AMS
child's pose
Have fun! We sure did!
Showing posts with label FUN. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FUN. Show all posts
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Immersion Weekend
We had a great day at the Immersion yesterday. It is always so amazing to me how different every group is. This group has a lot of seasoned practitioners and teachers and the level of studentship is really high.
Yesterday's theme was, in fact, studentship. Whenever John talks about studentship in Anusara Yoga he almost always talks about it in the scope of The Five Elements. I love this approach because it helps us understand that good studentship is not any one thing or any one quality but is instead a dynamic blend of many attributes and virtues. What is also cool is that each element corresponds to one of the Five UPA's. So we used the elements to talk about studentship and to do a rockin' standing pose practice in which we reviewed the Five Principles.
The Ether Element is the element out of which all the other elements arise. It is the Highest Possibility, grand openness and full potentiality. It corresponds to the First Principle- Open to Grace. Everything arises out of the field of Grace in this tradition- Grace is our Highest Possibility, our Fullest Potential. Like that. As students we have to be wide open and open to possibility or nothing will happen in our learning and practice.
The Earth Element is the densest element. The earth is solid, long-enduring, steady and reliable. As students we have to be the same way: In place, reliable, long-standing and steady in order to progress. Muscle Energy creates this steadiness in our bodies, bringing solidity, boundaries, and firmness to our form.
The Water Element is, well, fluid. Water is yielding, it is reflective and is said to be a receptive element. If it runs into a block, it knows how to go around the obstacle. Water flows. So must our studentship and our relationship to life's challenges and circumstances. The Water element corresponds to Expanding Spiral as it expands naturally when unboundaried. And water will flow downward, like what happens energetically in the pelvis when we do Inner Spiral.
The Fire Element is hot, upward rising, dynamic and creates the necessary friction to grow, change and practice. This Fire in the Belly is our will to walk the path, to persist, to overcome and to challenge ourselves or to rise to the challenges put before us. Fire rises upward like the effect of Contracting Spiral.
The Air Element relates to our intellectual and mental dexterity. Air is changeable and quick moving and teaches us that we need not hold onto old ideas, opinions and outlooks. We can change like the wind when appropriate. It corresponds to Organic Energy which creates freedom in our joints, like a breath of fresh air creates an experience of greater freedom.
The Five Element View of Studentship is so great because it shows us that we need more than just openness, we need more than just steadiness, more than the ability to flow, more that fiery will, more than intellectual curiosity and so forth. We need all of these traits in a dynamic ever- expanding and skillful relationship to each other, to our personality and to our unique situation. It is really a great thing to consider.
So- more could be said, more certainly has been said on the topic but for me, time to go practice before I head out to teach. We do the loops today and then Craig is coming to give a talk. What fun.
Yesterday's theme was, in fact, studentship. Whenever John talks about studentship in Anusara Yoga he almost always talks about it in the scope of The Five Elements. I love this approach because it helps us understand that good studentship is not any one thing or any one quality but is instead a dynamic blend of many attributes and virtues. What is also cool is that each element corresponds to one of the Five UPA's. So we used the elements to talk about studentship and to do a rockin' standing pose practice in which we reviewed the Five Principles.
The Ether Element is the element out of which all the other elements arise. It is the Highest Possibility, grand openness and full potentiality. It corresponds to the First Principle- Open to Grace. Everything arises out of the field of Grace in this tradition- Grace is our Highest Possibility, our Fullest Potential. Like that. As students we have to be wide open and open to possibility or nothing will happen in our learning and practice.
The Earth Element is the densest element. The earth is solid, long-enduring, steady and reliable. As students we have to be the same way: In place, reliable, long-standing and steady in order to progress. Muscle Energy creates this steadiness in our bodies, bringing solidity, boundaries, and firmness to our form.
The Water Element is, well, fluid. Water is yielding, it is reflective and is said to be a receptive element. If it runs into a block, it knows how to go around the obstacle. Water flows. So must our studentship and our relationship to life's challenges and circumstances. The Water element corresponds to Expanding Spiral as it expands naturally when unboundaried. And water will flow downward, like what happens energetically in the pelvis when we do Inner Spiral.
The Fire Element is hot, upward rising, dynamic and creates the necessary friction to grow, change and practice. This Fire in the Belly is our will to walk the path, to persist, to overcome and to challenge ourselves or to rise to the challenges put before us. Fire rises upward like the effect of Contracting Spiral.
The Air Element relates to our intellectual and mental dexterity. Air is changeable and quick moving and teaches us that we need not hold onto old ideas, opinions and outlooks. We can change like the wind when appropriate. It corresponds to Organic Energy which creates freedom in our joints, like a breath of fresh air creates an experience of greater freedom.
The Five Element View of Studentship is so great because it shows us that we need more than just openness, we need more than just steadiness, more than the ability to flow, more that fiery will, more than intellectual curiosity and so forth. We need all of these traits in a dynamic ever- expanding and skillful relationship to each other, to our personality and to our unique situation. It is really a great thing to consider.
So- more could be said, more certainly has been said on the topic but for me, time to go practice before I head out to teach. We do the loops today and then Craig is coming to give a talk. What fun.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Scenes
Making Pie
Even though in Austin Anusara Yoga is making cake, yesterday we made pie! I started by talking about the rasas a little bit and the many flavors of life that when combined create an overall taste of sweet. The overall sweetness of life is a result of a full flavor profile. Just like making a pie. The crust has to have a little saltiness and a little sour in order to offset the sweetness of the filling. The crust has to be firm (Muscle energy) or the sweet pie filling (inner Spiral) will just spread out everywhere.
The fun things was that while I talked in the beginning I had stumbled onto the pie metaphor but in the kitchen right next to the room we are using was a pie baking championship or something going on. So when someone told me that I just ran with it. We did a frolicking practice of hip openers and arm balances to explore Inner and Outer Spiral in the legs.
The afternoon we talked a lot about the "designations" of Anusara Yoga teachers and so on. We reviewed some to the Histopry of Yoga DVD and wathed the video of the Upanishads and then practiced pranayama. It was a very nice afternoon. A very nice day in all.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Wednesday night
I had a nice and relaxing day. It started at 7 with an online chat about Vedanta with Carols Pomeda and our study group. I have gotten a little behind on this section of studies and so I was not super prepared for the Q &A this morning although I found it interesting and Carlos brilliant, as always.
Anne came down after that for a practice We practiced this excellent sequence from Geeta Iyengar which was a ton of deep forward bends like malasana and kurmasana that worked their way through to some awesome-feeling back bends. It is one of those fabulous sequences that gets you to the poses in an unusual manner. I just love that. I probably would never teach it because it is so different and the intricate linking that makes it so fabulous requires way more time and attention than what we can do in a general class in 1.25 hours but I love this sequence for my practice. In fact, I love any back bend sequence that does not require I run through a big sweaty thing to get ready. I love to prepare for back bends in ways that keep me mellow. I am not looking at the paper that the sequence is written on right now but it went something like this:
Child's pose
virasana
childs pose
malasana
malasana
virasana
malasana
childs pose
uttanasana
malasana
kurmasana 6 X
bhujapidasana
uttanasana
bhujapidasana
dwi hasta bhujasana
pasasana
dwi hasta bhujasana
down dog
uttanasana
sirsasana
sirsasana 2
uttanasana
sirsasana 2
tadasana
ustrasana 2X
purvottanasana 3X
urdhva danurasana 2X
chatush padasana 2X
urdhva danurasana 3X
dwi pada viparita dandasana 2X
Down dog
uttanasana
parsva uttanasana
adho mukha swastikasana and parsva
halasana
viparita karani
It was great fun. We both loved it. Well, the effects anyway. All that malasana right off the bat is reasonably grueling. Let's just tell the truth about that!
Then we had lunch- pasta primavera with our Greenlings organic veggies. YUM! Kelly and I swam in the river once our meal settled and then we both did some work. He had studying and I had things to get ready to go for the weekend and the week after. I teach all weekend and then get on a plane on Monday morning to spend a week in Park City, Utah for a Yoga Therapy training with John. Can't wait.
Then we had dinner- I made cucumber soup- fresh organic cucumbers and the local milk which is so damn good I cannot even describe it. Yummy. Kelly made some bread to go with it and then I had a nice long chat with Mom and Dad. A great day all in all. It really felt like summer.
More tomorrow. Back bends at 4:30 and something not-back bends at 6:00! Fun, fun.
Anne came down after that for a practice We practiced this excellent sequence from Geeta Iyengar which was a ton of deep forward bends like malasana and kurmasana that worked their way through to some awesome-feeling back bends. It is one of those fabulous sequences that gets you to the poses in an unusual manner. I just love that. I probably would never teach it because it is so different and the intricate linking that makes it so fabulous requires way more time and attention than what we can do in a general class in 1.25 hours but I love this sequence for my practice. In fact, I love any back bend sequence that does not require I run through a big sweaty thing to get ready. I love to prepare for back bends in ways that keep me mellow. I am not looking at the paper that the sequence is written on right now but it went something like this:
Child's pose
virasana
childs pose
malasana
malasana
virasana
malasana
childs pose
uttanasana
malasana
kurmasana 6 X
bhujapidasana
uttanasana
bhujapidasana
dwi hasta bhujasana
pasasana
dwi hasta bhujasana
down dog
uttanasana
sirsasana
sirsasana 2
uttanasana
sirsasana 2
tadasana
ustrasana 2X
purvottanasana 3X
urdhva danurasana 2X
chatush padasana 2X
urdhva danurasana 3X
dwi pada viparita dandasana 2X
Down dog
uttanasana
parsva uttanasana
adho mukha swastikasana and parsva
halasana
viparita karani
It was great fun. We both loved it. Well, the effects anyway. All that malasana right off the bat is reasonably grueling. Let's just tell the truth about that!
Then we had lunch- pasta primavera with our Greenlings organic veggies. YUM! Kelly and I swam in the river once our meal settled and then we both did some work. He had studying and I had things to get ready to go for the weekend and the week after. I teach all weekend and then get on a plane on Monday morning to spend a week in Park City, Utah for a Yoga Therapy training with John. Can't wait.
Then we had dinner- I made cucumber soup- fresh organic cucumbers and the local milk which is so damn good I cannot even describe it. Yummy. Kelly made some bread to go with it and then I had a nice long chat with Mom and Dad. A great day all in all. It really felt like summer.
More tomorrow. Back bends at 4:30 and something not-back bends at 6:00! Fun, fun.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Another great week
I woke up early this morning feeling very happy and dare I say, content? It is hard to know exactly as I am not by nature, the content type. But I think this is a glimpse at what it must be like. Even yesterday when I was asked what I wanted from my practice ,(which is another story all together) I couldn't really say. I am really happy with what my practice is bringing me right now. I am even pleased with what I am bringing to my practice. I am not so much in a state of wanting more from it nor an I in the mood to demand much more of myself right now. My practice is so rich and full as it is. It is just brimming with learning on and off my mat, with great company that I am finding so inspiring, lots of laughter and the slow, steady opening within my body, mind and heart.
I had another great week teaching and connecting with all my yoga students and friends. Anne and I spent some time together yesterday and she came to visit Anusara Yoga Land in the evening. For those of you who do not know my sister, Anne, she is among other things, a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher. (She is also a philosophy professor, a lover of good food and drink, she is funny, smart, humble, an avid student, she is loyal which makes her a great friend and confidante and as Jeri noted on Anne's blog she is also strongly committed to caffeine in the form of high quality coffee. (Except in India where this standard lapsed and became subsumed by the exploration of cold,frothy, frappe-type coffee drinks. It was hot- you could not blame her.)So occasionally I go with her to visit Iyengar Yoga Land (IYL) (Sometimes, like for a month we even go all the way to India to visit IYL) And occasionally, she comes with me to Anusara Yoga Land.
So Thursday nights at YogaYoga have been really fun these last few weeks. I get to teach my 6:00 hatha class in the little room, which is my favorite room in all of YogaYoga to teach in. I love everyone being so close together because, for one thing, it makes my energy management as a teacher so much easier- I do not have to project myself into such a big space. Also, I can see everyone so well, make adjustments more easily and the feeling of us all "being in this together" is just inescapable. Last week we had 30 folks in the room; this week 27! (Maybe it was something I said to those three people...hmmmm...)
One of my first impressions of learning Anusara Yoga was how much fun it was. I remember commenting on that to Desiree and she said, "You know, people can work just as hard when they are laughing and enjoying themselves as they can in a very strict environment." So-obviously there is a balance with it, but consistenyl it becomes obvious to me that the very serious, austere yoga practitioner is just not that happy in our classes. After all, we laugh, tell jokes, make fun of ourselves and see enjoying one another as an essential part of our path in Anusara Yoga. So, if you do not want to play in your practice, best to steer clear of that little room at south studio at 6pm on Thursdays.
The advanced classes were great this week also. I am committed to really helping the people who come to that class move beyond the "Advanced Hatha is a flow class with a handstand thrown in" mentality so we are going to be diving into the deep hip openers, arm balances and back bends beyond urdhva danurasana. (That is if you all keep coming back because we have to build these things over time!) The thing about advanced postures is that they are built from the basic postures. So once you understand the basic postures, once you understand the alignment that informs the basic postures, then approaching the advanced poses becomes way less mysterious and whole lot of- you got it- FUN!
So- that's it for this morning. I am going to the river to kayak with Kelly before enjoying the rest of my "day off". Tomorrow I am teaching arm balances and inversions at NorthWest. Check it out- http://www.yogayoga.com/workshops/aug. Please come if you can. If they tell you it is sold out, please come anyway. I rarely believe in "sold out"- I will make space for you. All levels are welcome so long as you have an open to learning and playing, will acknowledge your limits, are willing to laugh at yourself. (However if you have a shoulder injury or something like that, these are not the best classes for you.)
I had another great week teaching and connecting with all my yoga students and friends. Anne and I spent some time together yesterday and she came to visit Anusara Yoga Land in the evening. For those of you who do not know my sister, Anne, she is among other things, a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher. (She is also a philosophy professor, a lover of good food and drink, she is funny, smart, humble, an avid student, she is loyal which makes her a great friend and confidante and as Jeri noted on Anne's blog she is also strongly committed to caffeine in the form of high quality coffee. (Except in India where this standard lapsed and became subsumed by the exploration of cold,frothy, frappe-type coffee drinks. It was hot- you could not blame her.)So occasionally I go with her to visit Iyengar Yoga Land (IYL) (Sometimes, like for a month we even go all the way to India to visit IYL) And occasionally, she comes with me to Anusara Yoga Land.
So Thursday nights at YogaYoga have been really fun these last few weeks. I get to teach my 6:00 hatha class in the little room, which is my favorite room in all of YogaYoga to teach in. I love everyone being so close together because, for one thing, it makes my energy management as a teacher so much easier- I do not have to project myself into such a big space. Also, I can see everyone so well, make adjustments more easily and the feeling of us all "being in this together" is just inescapable. Last week we had 30 folks in the room; this week 27! (Maybe it was something I said to those three people...hmmmm...)
One of my first impressions of learning Anusara Yoga was how much fun it was. I remember commenting on that to Desiree and she said, "You know, people can work just as hard when they are laughing and enjoying themselves as they can in a very strict environment." So-obviously there is a balance with it, but consistenyl it becomes obvious to me that the very serious, austere yoga practitioner is just not that happy in our classes. After all, we laugh, tell jokes, make fun of ourselves and see enjoying one another as an essential part of our path in Anusara Yoga. So, if you do not want to play in your practice, best to steer clear of that little room at south studio at 6pm on Thursdays.
The advanced classes were great this week also. I am committed to really helping the people who come to that class move beyond the "Advanced Hatha is a flow class with a handstand thrown in" mentality so we are going to be diving into the deep hip openers, arm balances and back bends beyond urdhva danurasana. (That is if you all keep coming back because we have to build these things over time!) The thing about advanced postures is that they are built from the basic postures. So once you understand the basic postures, once you understand the alignment that informs the basic postures, then approaching the advanced poses becomes way less mysterious and whole lot of- you got it- FUN!
So- that's it for this morning. I am going to the river to kayak with Kelly before enjoying the rest of my "day off". Tomorrow I am teaching arm balances and inversions at NorthWest. Check it out- http://www.yogayoga.com/workshops/aug. Please come if you can. If they tell you it is sold out, please come anyway. I rarely believe in "sold out"- I will make space for you. All levels are welcome so long as you have an open to learning and playing, will acknowledge your limits, are willing to laugh at yourself. (However if you have a shoulder injury or something like that, these are not the best classes for you.)
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