Astanga

I have to admit, it’s *really* nice to be back in a regular routine again. I woke at 5 a.m., did my light therapy and salt bath, did 10 minutes of mediation. I took Princess Fur out briefly, got her breakfast and I was on my mat by 6:30. It wasn’t painful at all.

For some reason, practice feels less overwhelming when I do it early in the morning and there’s something very soft and meditative about the pre-dawn hours. I forgot how nice that is.

I had a space cadet moment in the middle of Primary! I totally forgot about Bhujapidasana/Kurmasana/Supta K. I was already onto Baddha Konasana, wondering why it felt so easy, when I remembered and went back. Then I repeated Garba Pindasana and Baddha K again, since I love those poses anyway. Lately, I’ve been popping right up into Kukutasana from Garba. That’s such an amusement park ride of a pose! So much fun!

I worked hard today! Gone are the days when my practice felt ‘easy’. By the time I get through my Intermediate poses, I’m already feeling tired and then I still need to work on backbending!

Dropbacks and standups were better today. I’m thinking these through a bit more. For the dropbacks today, I opted for slightly wider feet (they’re off the mat again, but literally flush with the edges), and I’m trying to keep the heels from swivelling inward as I drop. I’m also maintaining the ‘hang’ for as long and deep as possible before I finally drop to the floor. This will be my work in dropbacks for the week.

I’m still dropping to the futon to stand up. This week, my focus is threefold: deep inhalations while rocking forward, getting a feel for how far forward my hips need to be to smoothly come up, and engaging the legs strongly to come to standing.

Today, I stood up three times. The first one was bad (I didn’t come up evenly), the second was better (it was just sloppy and I took a few steps forward) and the third was pretty good (smooth and controlled)!

Susan commented yesterday that my painful knee in Parsva Dhanurasana could be due to a tight IT band on the outside of the left leg. I did a Yin ‘butterfly’ as a preparation before Dhanurasana and I think it helped. I had no pain my knees during Parsva Dhanurasana until the very end (so I aligned my legs hip width apart for that last hold).

The 4 minute hold in Sirsasana was a bit too much for me this morning - I had to come down. I checked the timer and I did manage to hold for over 3.5 minutes, so that will be my goal for the week. Maybe next week I’ll be ready for the 4 minute hold.

********************
When I first set up the Facebook Page for the Reluctant Ashtangi, I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to do with it. I spend a LOT of time online and most of it is spent reading or researching. I regularly come across amazing stuff. The FB page has taken shape as a means to share the links and resources I find on the Internet and to recognise some of the amazing bloggers I read on a daily basis.

My posts from that page also appear on my Twitter stream, which also appears on my blog page, so there are multiple ways to view the links. I hope they’re useful to readers of this blog.

********************
I know some of you have been pining for the 70s Yoga Ladies. They miss you too! This week, Kareen is back with us to demonstrate a series of postures guaranteed to ‘increase your bust’. I know that’s a concern top of mind for all of us!

And not just the ladies...there’s some benefit for the gentlemen too! According to Kareen, this series of postures “builds the bust for ladies and expands the chest for men.” (italics are hers)

Also “firms and reduces a “layered” tummy.”

A few of the poses may look vaguely familiar if you practise the Primary Series. I know! All this time you’ve been doing Prasarita Padottansana C and I’ll bet you never realised that you were actually ‘augmenting’ your assets. Yoga Chikitsa for the win!!!

The Bust Builders:

“DO it often if you are concerned about your bustline!”