Living the Wisdom of Yoga in Modern Times

Happy Memorial Day: How To Find Freedom in Your Yoga Poses

Merriam Webster Dictionary Definition on Freedom: The absence of constraint in action;being released from something onerous;ease;boldness of conception or execution;unrestricted

To have freedom in your yoga practice means that you feel unconstrained,at ease & unrestricted. This allows you to be your boldest, brightest and best self on the mat and in the world. Below are tips on how to do this.

Learn Proper Alignment Then Play With Its Boundaries- When the body is in good alignment, it is safe for you to express your poses fully. When the bones are stacked & you are using the leverage and support of firmly engaged muscles, poses become available to you with very little effort.  The basics of alignment apply to all poses. When you know them, you can look at a pose in any book, magazine or yoga class and be able to figure out how to execute it. This gives you more options on the mat.

Muscle Engagement-Not engaging the muscles is like trying to make a wet noodle stand up. When there is no support in the poses your body looses its ability be stable. Without stability, many poses are not accessible and injuries frequently occur.

Practice 4-6 Days per week-"Doing something 3 days a week = maintenance, 5-6 days a week = transformation." Antonella. Think of your muscles like your favorite pair of jeans. The more you wear (use)them the softer & more pliable they get.  When you throw them in the washing machine, they tighten up and you have to start the process all over again.  The washing machine is equivalent to inconsistent and infrequent practice. The muscles tighten back up. When the muscles are tight, your movements are constricted which takes away from your freedom

Be in Good Health

• Eat healthy
• Stay Hydrated
• Keep Stress Low

When the body feels good & is in good health, it works more efficiently and you have more energy for your practice.

Body Weight-the lighter the body, the easier it is on your joints & the easier it is to get in an out of your yoga poses.  When the body is at a good weight, binds, floating, jump throughs, jump backs, and arm balances become more accessible. I have seen students practices transform by losing as little as 5 pounds. They can immediately do the deep binds in Ashtanga, their chest comes closer to their thighs in forward folds & their sun salutes have more of a floating quality. They have the freedom to move.

Deep Breathing-Your breath supports your practice and the poses in many ways

• Increased Stamina-many studies done on this
• Calm Mind-you don't battle your thoughts so you can be free to.....
• Focus- on your practice
• Supports movement in and out of poses-Many arm balances, floats, forward folds and twists are made accessible through proper breathing. Inhalation and exhalation have energetic and physical effects on the body. For example, if you exhale before forward folding, your belly pulls up and in created an inch or so or more space for you fold. 

Bandhas-engaging the muscles below the bellow button through the pelvic floor creates stability & strength in poses allowing you to move freely.

Consistency in Style-You don't necessarily have to practice only one style, but try not to chose too many and to consistently practice the styles you choose several times a week. Even though Ballet and Hip Hop are both styles of dance and there are transferable skills in both, they are so drastically different that in order to master them you have to practice each one with devotion. The same goes with many yoga styles.  For instance,  Power Yoga, &  Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga both use  similar poses, however they are drastically different in execution and many poses that are in one are not covered in the other. They are different enough that in order to feel freedom in both methods, they both would have to be practiced consistently. It is the only way for the body and mind to get used to the practice so that soreness and difficulty go away.

Consistency in Poses-I have students ask me how to do complex poses all the time and I always ask them, "how often do you practice them?" One of the negatives of Vinyasa's every changing sequences is that there is no consistency in poses. A teacher may work on handstand today and may not include it in the class for another 3 months which makes it incredibly hard to perfect it and find freedom in it. If there is a pose that you really wish to master and feel open in, I recommend practicing it every time you get on your mat. Many teachers are okay with you adding it somewhere in their sequence or you can stay after class and practice it. You can also adopt a home practice which insures that you work on everything you want.

 

Video of the Day: Here is a pose you would want to feel free in!

 

Is Ashtanga to Blame For Yoga's Movement to Complete Physicality?

Many yoga studios, classes and styles have been built on the belief that you don't have to study the spiritual side of yoga. That by physical practice, the student eventually will want to know more & will intrinsically turn inward.  This belief may have been birthed from Ashtanga. It is commonly believed that Pattabhi Jois taught this and many modern westernized forms of yoga are based on it. What if this is not true & just a misunderstanding birthed from Jois's limited English?

I have always postulated that Pattabhi Jois would have taught more philsophy and theory if his English would have been better. An interesting artcle released from one of his earlier students seems to suppor this. Below is an excerpt from, Reflections on "Guruji: A Portrait"-Interview with Elise Espat- Part I. 

When I arrived in Mysore in the early '90s Guruji used to give regular theory classes, but his ability to communicate was often thwarted by language problems. 

Guruji spoke a little English but he had a strong accent which was often hard for English speakers to understand and mostly impossible to understand for non-native English speakers when he started to talk about philosophy. 

In the first few years I was there, there were 15-20 students at his theory classes. We were French, German, English, American, Dutch, Swiss… a jumble of languages with varying limitations on the grasp of Guruji's broken English and Sanskrit. So his efforts were often mired in frustration. I felt for him (and for myself - I was also frustrated we were unable to learn more from him in this forum).

There were also increasing numbers of students who did not want to think too deeply. For them being in India with Guruji was perhaps a bit of a lark and not an opportunity to absorb the fullness of what he had to offer. Often they turned Guruji's theory classes into a bit of a circus.

Guruji was a scholar and had the desire to share the gems of the Upanishads or the Yoga Sutra with his students, but as time went by, the quality of the interest was often brought down to a lowest common denominator by questions such as "Guruji, what is the best kind of yoga clothing or mat to use?" or other perhaps important, yet mundane subjects. 

In the end Guruji would often shake his head in frustration and resignation and say "You don't understand! Just do your practice and all is coming!" This was accepted by increasing numbers as a motto, and for some, as an invitation not to question any deeper. But I felt it was said in the context of frustration that direct teaching through the mind was not possible.

According to this article, it was frustration that led Guruji to drop the philosophy. I have also taken workshops from Guruji's earlier students that support that he did have these types of conversations and they were dropped later. 

Recently Gregor Maehle, arthor of two popular Asthanga books, 

broached this subject on his Facebook Page.  

"much of todays Ashtanga Vinyasa culture is lost in physical prowess, acrobatics and athleticism. Don’t get me wrong, I do practice asana (posture) daily (including Advanced A if my body let’s me) but after practising one form or aspect of yoga or another for over three decades I feel that asana makes up about only 20% of yoga total. Now the belief that you actually get to the other 80% merely by practising asana I consider a myth. In my practice life I found that you get to the other 80% by practising them. 

 
Another myth of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga that I would like to dissect is the belief that any practitioner, if they only would practise enough, could progress through to the Intermediate and Advanced series and from there straight into yoga heaven. After having taught thousands of students including being able to observe their progress I have to say that the single greatest determinant factor of your progress is your genetic make-up (including shape and articulation of your bones) followed by the age with which you start (the younger the faster the progress). Only after those two factors come things like the frequency of your practise and your ability to technically improving your practise either through your own insight or input from your teacher. Additionally the practitioners that look the most flexible are often not even the most healthy as there flexibility is often linked to ligamentous laxity deriving from a liver and metabolic imbalance. Often these very flexible people have greater instability problems later on and their flexibility represents imbalance.

Through my 10 years of practicing and my 4 years of teaching, I am starting to see this as so. As more and more people come to studio just for a workout, I have been discouraged from speaking about the higher limbs of yoga in my classes. I am told that, "The students just want to move. They are not there to hear you talk. They will naturally progress to the other limbs on their own." I bought into it because I am an Ashtangi and Ashtanga classes are not about theory. After all, I did started to study yoga philosophy on my own, so it must be true, right?

However when I started to look back on my years of practice, my most influential teachers managed to get some philsophy into a highly physical practice. My first Ashtanga teacher, Adele Gail, used to always so "Yoga chitti Vrritti Nirodha, yoga is the cessations of the fluctuations of the mind".  While I was attempting to bind or stand on my head, these words were sinking into my mind. If it wasn't for her and many other teachers, giving little nuggets of yoga philosophy throughout class, I am not sure if I ever would have seen my practice as more then exercises that help me with stress and focus. 

For this conversation, over the years,  I have taught two different classes.  These are Strictly physical & Physical with philosophy thrown in. The Strictly Physical group usually stays that way. Their yoga evolution usually takes them to harder more intense forms of physical yoga. The group that gets a little bit of philosophy either heads down the intensely more physical path because the philosophy is not for them or they continue wanting classes that include philosophy and eschew classes based on physicality alone. 

Don't get me wrong, if people want to teach and take yoga just from a physical standpoint, it is fine. There are still alot of benefits to be gained. I am also not saying that I will starting incorporating sutras into all my current classes either. However, the argument that a strictly physical class will take you into the spiritual realms of yoga is a little flawed.  I know yoga teachers who just call out poses and talk about anatomy and alignment.  They barely talk about breath & they would never quote from the sutras. It is hard for me to believe that if the average student looking for a good workout only took from that person, that they would eventually start asking questions about the other limbs.

 The idea that Guruji felt that physical practice is enough, which actually may not be true, may have set the foundations for our strong physical yoga culture today. It let teachers, studios and wanna be yoga Gurus off the hook. Filling up a studio or class  with the same rhetoric you would use to fill a gym aerobics class  is much easier then getting  students to listen to you talk about the sutras. Is it a coincidence that once Guruji went more towards the physical side that Ashtanga took off? Reading the book, Guruji or talking to his older students will reveal that his classes were extremely small in the beginnings. Now Mysore is so packed that people are now doubting if there is any real benefit to going.  I am no Ashtanga scholar. As a matter of fact, I have never been to Mysore to study with him, Sharath or Saraswati. I am however an avid scholar of yoga. What do you think? Weigh in below.

 

Video of The Day

 

 

Happy Easter: 6 Reasons To Come Out of Your Shell & Speak Your Truth

1.  You Only Have One Life To Live -Even if you believe in reincarnation, you might come back as a bug or a house cat. You will never come back as the person that you are now. This is it. You don't want to be on your death bed full of regrets.

2. You Never Know When You Will Bite the Dust-You could die today or 50 years from today. You don't have time to waste!

3. Those Who Matter Don't Mind and Those Who Do Don't Matter-Dr. Seuss was right. People who really love you and support you want to hear what you have to say. They may not agree or like it, but they want to hear it. Anyone who chooses to not associate with you afterwards, was not meant to be in your life anyway. We are all in different places. In order to grow and prosper, you need to be surrounded by people who want to lift you up. If someone is not "smelling what you are cooking" it is okay to let them go. That doesn't mean they have to agree with you 100%. It means they need to respect you & give you space to have that experience.

4.“No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow. Alice Walker-This goes right along with number 3. A friend would want you to express yourself and blossom. People who aren't your friends want you to conform and be quiet. You deserve better friends.

5. You Create Your Own Life- If you are not speaking truth, your life is built on lies. One day you will wake up and your life will be one big unrecognizable mess. Your energy of confusion will manifest confusion. A few years back, I was looking for a job because I needed money but deep down I didn't want one. I went into every interview with this confusing energy and I kept getting passed over for positions. When I finally landed a job, management was confused. Everyday there was a new policy. Everyone was two faced and the business closed down before I was even there a year. I really didn't want to work, so everything in the universe conspired to make that happen. If I would have lived my truth and found an alternative way to get the cash, I would have saved myself some stress.

6. No One Reads Minds-I was watching an old episode of Desperate Housewives and Lynnette's husband was passed over for a position. She asked him, "did you ask for it?" He explained that he assumed that because of his tenure and hard work, he didn't have to it.  Many of us live by this erroneous assumption. In fact, we were raised to believe it. Many well meaning authority figures told me, "if you work hard and are a nice person, people will notice and you will be rewarded." Not true. People see you through their own mental filters. You may leave an apple on someones desk to be nice and they assume you are trying to say they are getting fat. You can never assume that people understand you. Not even your closest dearest friends and family members. Marriages break up every day over this.  Christmas Dinners are missing an uncle because of this. You have to open your mouth and let people know how you feel and what you want.

Video of the Day

 

Do You Have a Yoga Studio That You Call Home?

Happy Thanksgiving! Many people travel "home" for the holidays but what is home? This picture from the blog, Hearts Expanding, says it best.

 

The search for the elusive Guru, teacher or "home" studio is a long standing epic in yoga culture.  Indeed I myself have been on that search before as well. This picture really just sums it up. It is that place where you can totally  express yourself and grow in your practice not just by your will alone but through the loving support of the students and teachers of your yoga community.

You would think that with yoga studios popping up on every corner that "home" would be easy to find but not necessarily. Let me go ahead and switch this blog post over to talking about myself. You will probably find a bit of yourself in my story.  

I started practicing Ashtanga back in 1956 (okay that is an exaggeration but that is what it feels like), in a little studio in Atlanta and I absolutely fell in love with it. It was my only practice for years and that studio was my home. When I was not there, I was missed. I had friends there.  They totally understood me and my practice grew in leaps and bounds.

Then I moved to Charlotte roughly 4 or 5 years ago where hot power yoga is king with just a few pockets of revolutionaries teaching Ashtanga, Iyengar, Anusara and Vinyasa yoga in non heated rooms. Talk about culture shock. I mourned the loss of my studio "home" for years and spent a good while as a yoga recluse primarily practicing at home. This worked for a bit but my asana practice started to suffer. I was at a point where basic yoga poses were not enough. I had the strength & flexibility to go deeper but didn't know how to. Thus began my search for a yoga home in Charlotte and not to mention thousands of dollars spent on traveling to practice with authorized and certified Ashtanga teachers.

I discovered that I actually enjoyed Power as well as other forms of yoga but that Ashtanga is still my heart. Where does that leave me now? Still homeless LOL.  Why? Because as I grow in my practice, I have realized that I cannot be put in a box. My practice is the best of all styles and most studios focus on just one or two. I don't need to practice in the heat all the time but I don't need to practice without heat all the time either.  Most yoga classes are "all levels" but most people don't teach a true "all levels" class.  What they really mean is "average level".  And since I have been practicing since Lincoln was president, this does not work for me. Even if someone were to open an all Ashtanga Yoga studio in Charlotte, it wouldn't work because I now practice vinyasa as well. Also I don't need yoga aerobics . I don't necessarily need to do 20 poses on one leg super fast but I do like a challenge.

 As you advance in your yoga, the need for a home practice and a firm basis in sequencing and alignment becomes more and more important.  You will realize that one person or one place cannot be everything for you because you are too unique and special to be boxed in.

Do I still wish I had a "home" studio? I do. As I practice around Charlotte though and come into contact with amazing yogis, I manage to find a little bit of home in all of them and that will have to be enough for now. 

Tell Me About Your Yoga Home or Your Seach For One.

 

Yoga Video of the Day

 

Was Steve Jobs a Yogi?

 I don't see Steve's death or anyone else's as a bad thing. It is the melding of our souls back with pure awareness. If you are a Christian, it is your ultimate reunion back with God. Sadness happens because we will miss that persons presence in our life. The person who is dead is fine and doesn't need our tears. He lived a great life and it should be celebrated. I don't know if Steve Jobs was a yogi but these words below definitely came from a place of pure awareness.

 

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart."
– Stanford commencement speech 2005

"That's been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains." 
– Business Week 1998

"Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn't matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we've done something wonderful … that's what matters to me."
– Wall Street Journal 1993

"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life." 
– Stanford commencement speech 2005

"Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."
– Stanford commencement speech 2005

 

Video of the Day

 

The Universe is Giving You Signals But Are You Listening?

"As long as you think that the cause of your problem is 'out there' —as long as you think that anyone or anything is responsible for your suffering—the situation is hopeless. It means that you are forever in the role of victim, that you’re suffering in paradise." ~Byron Katie 

 

The path of self destruction is self laid one brick at a time.  Every decision we make leads up to NOW. When the life we are creating doesn't match up to the life we want, signs arise in the form of problems.  If ignored, the problems get bigger and bigger. If the root cause is weeded out, they subside.

The first step to changing our lives is to take total responsibility for it. As long as blame is placed elsewhere, we give up control. Without control, their is no change, only reaction. Even if we react positively, the same problems will continue to arise. By accepting responsibility, we can end the problem all together. For change to happen in our lives, we have to first have change in our minds. We have to believe that what we want is possible and strive for it. We can't take no for an answer. We must be vigilant in clearing our minds of thoughts and our lives of people and situations that don't serve our vision. You are meant to be happy, at peace and abundant!!!  Don't wait for life to happen, create it now!

Train yourself to notice the small signals now. Don't let a warning from your boss turn into walking papers. Don't let shortness of breath turn into a full blown heart attack. Life first throws a pebble, then a brick and then a mountain lands on us. Don't wait for the mountain!!!  Often we can't let things go until we have no choice. I was recently speaking with a yoga teacher friend who wanted to let go of some classes to simplify her life but she loved the classes.  Her life was throwing pebbles letting her know she was doing too much.  However, instead of leaving on a high note with love in her heart for her students and job, she was waiting for the brick.

 Sustainable peace in our lives happen when we don't wait for the brick. We make changes while things are still good. This goes against most people's modes of thinking because "why fix what isn't broken?" However,the realty is that everything starts in the mind. The seed of discontent has been planted so your situation is not going to go anywhere but down. Why wait for that?

Video of the day: Ashtanga Yoga w/a broken leg

 

Internal Discord: Why You Don't Get What You Want

 

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony"

Gandhi

 

Internal discord is the main reason why most people don't get what they want.  Our mouth is saying one thing, our mind is saying another and then the body is doing something else. Without a united front, we get mixed results.

How To Fix Internal Discord

• Replace negative thoughts and stories in the mind-This is one of the most important steps. Everything that manifests physically starts in our mind. The thoughts and energy we project draws experiences to us and guides our choices.  This is no easy task and sometimes you feel like you are lying to yourself, however, if you don't truly believe in the idea it will never manifest. 
• Positivity and negativity are contagious. If you want money, you have to hang with people with money(or people who believe in the abundance of money).  If you want success, mentor with someone who is successful.  Read books and watch TV programs that affirm your goals
  
• Look for the positive and take your focus off the negative-Instead of focusing on all the bad things that happened as a result of your decision, find the positive.
• It's in the mail- Eradicate words and phrases  such as "hope", "maybe", "I think" because they all allude to a lack of belief. Even if it is not a reality, speak as if the present is the exception and your goal is the reality.   Instead of "I am broke"  use " I don't have the money right this moment, but when I get it, I will surely buy this."   "I hope to fit this swimsuit by August" instead "I will fit this swimsuit by August."  "You don't have to show up to class early. We always have space" instead " we are expecting these to start filling up, so get here early"
• Act based on what you want and not on what you have-Don't write checks your ass can't cash, however, be poised for growth.  Build a website that can be added on to later.  Dress for the position you want to be promoted too.  Leave space open on your calender for possible interesting opportunities.
• Only speak words that back up and confirm your goals
• Only take actions that will get you closer to your goals
• Visualize Success-Again, everything starts in the mind.  

Video of The Day: How To Teach Full Lotus

 

The Importance of Transitions and In Between Times

Think about all the major events that happened in your life. Now add up how long the actual event lasted. The rest of that time was spent in transition. Since most of our life is spent in transition or "In Between" , it doesn't even make since to put so much emphasis on end results.

If we only feel happy when major events happen or goals are reached, we will spend most of our life in misery.  All the stuff we do in the In Between culminated in those major life moments so both are equally important. Happiness comes when we learn to appreciate the In Between.

Ultimately even the concept of" transition" and "In Between" should be done away with.  It keeps us from living in the present moment.  Though the Bahmamas might be where you are going, if you don't pack, buy tickets, save money, book a hotel etc, the Bahamas never happen. Every moment and task  is  equally important. 

Value Every Moment In your Life. Everything is Important

 

Video of The Day

 

Want To Know Your Future? Look at all the things you thought today

Our current lives are a culmination of our past thoughts. To see where you will be in the future, take inventory of the thoughts your mind dwells on today. Our lives are a culmination of that stuff that pops up in your mind while driving, washing dishes and holding yoga poses.

Many times these thoughts contradict our dreams and aspirations. For instance, we want to be rich but we are always worried about money.  We want to be powerful but we are always talking about how wrongly we are treated. We want peace but we are constantly worried about war and terrorist attacks. Thoughts that contridict your dreams result in confusion and mixed outcomes.  You win the lottery but blow it all in one year. You get the love you want but the person is married already.  You finally learn how to do a split but tear your hamstring.

Our thoughts have to mirror our dreams. You have to figure out a way to see beyond your current situation and align yourself up with your dreams. Yoga teaches us that through discipline and perseverance our bodies and minds change. By happily working with our current situation, we are taking the steps to a new one.  We don't ignore our present, we just don't dwell on it.

When thoughts pop up that don't affirm where you want to go:

•  Watch them move through your mind like waves on a beach
•  Find the positive flip side of the thought
• Practice thoughts of gratitude
• Breathe or do yoga
• Practice visualization
• Choose to feel good now
• Do something that brings you joy

Video of The Day:

 

Positive Quotes From The "Pres"

In honor of President's Day

John F. Kennedy
Let us resolve to be masters, not the victims, of our history, controlling our own destiny without giving way to blind suspicions and emotions.

All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.

Abraham Lincoln 
When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, it's best to let him run.

A house divided against itself cannot stand.

America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.

Any people anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the right to rise up, and shake off the existing government, and form a new one that suits them better. This is a most valuable - a most sacred right - a right, which we hope and believe, is to liberate the world.

Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.

Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren't very new at all.

Richard M. Nixon 
A man is not finished when he's defeated; he's finished when he quits.

Calvin Coolidge 
Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong.

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent. The slogan press on has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.

Ronald Reagan
If some among you fear taking a stand because you are afraid of reprisals from customers, clients, or even government, recognize that you are just feeding the crocodile hoping he'll eat you last.

Barack Obama

If you're walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you'll make progress.

It's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you will realize your true potential.

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.

Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. And it will leave you unfulfilled.