Vinyasa

I’m having the BEST day! All fun, all day! When I’m Queen of the World, all Valentines Day holidays will fall on a Sunday, on a Moon Day.

I had an hour for my practice this morning, so I did a YogaDownload audio vinyasa class, one of the good ones that I was saving for a special occasion. OMG, it was *awesome*. Loved it!

I did Power Vinyasa Flow #3, 60 minutes with Jackie. From the get-go, the class had clear, logical flow sequences that kept moving and moving and moving. There was lots of fun stuff thrown in to keep things interestesting too: Ardha Chandrasana, Paravritta Ardha Chandrasana, Svarga Dvidasana (bird of paradise pose) and even a headstand. There was a shoulderstand at the end, but no counterpose to it - that’s my only gripe (But a minor one: I quickly did Matsyasana before moving into Savasana and it was fine).

Other fun for Valentines Day:
- Banana Pancakes! And our favourite guy was working the counter so we got an update on his educational adventures (he went back to school recently)
- Free museum passes, a perk from our public library! I finally got to see the exhibit of lotus shoes. Whoa, freaky!
- Biscotti. With frosting on it.
- Chocolate covered butter brickle
- Mini Cupcakes: tiny, bite-sized indulgence
- One of my favourite all-time movies, on DVD: Beverly Hills Cop. I haven’t seen it since I was a teenager. Damn, that’s a fine film!
- And coming soon: Thai food at my favourite neighbourhood Thai restaurant. Red Thai Curry? Yes, please!

As you can see, I’m having a good day.

There were a few interesting hits in my stats this week. I particularly loved that last one. Cookies! Somebody out there knows me pretty well!

This week...The Internet Asks (interesting search strings from my access stats)

astanga motivation low:
The old Nike advertising slogan, ‘Just Do It, applies here. Low motivation? Just do it. Do the Surya Namaskara A’s, do the B’s, do the standing poses, do all the seated up to Navasana and if you’re still struggling at that point, maybe it’s time to call a ‘half Primary’ and do the finishing poses. Don’t beat yourself up, but also remember: some of the best practices start with low motivation.

practicing ashtanga during menstruation:
Eek! I don’t want to become the posterchild for this. So, just to set the record straight: In my experience (which is exactly twice: when I opted to do daily Astanga for World Yoga Practice Month), intense yoga practices like Astanga are not healthy during menstruation. Inversions are not a great idea either. I’ve had some good results with gentle yoga around the time of my Lady’s Holiday. Bobby Clennell’s book is a good resource for this.

reluctant ashtangi cookies:
Yes, please!

The famous Death by Chocolate Cookies that rule my Saturdays!