Astanga

My day: 1 90 minute Primary Series practice in the early morning, 2 workshops during the day (that included a led half-Primary), a fabulous but ill-timed Indian buffet, and a salt bath.

I'm so tired, I can hardly see straight. My brain is full of thoughts about the weekend, but I'll need time to process them.

To sum up: This weekend was precisely what I needed to move forward with my practice. My many questions were answered.

I'm finally clear on the stuff that D & J taught me in the summer. I've been trying to apply these concepts to my practice, but I really had no idea why they were important, except that D told me they were! I was taking it on faith! This deeper understanding will make it easier for me to apply this stuff throughout my practice.

You've all watched me struggle with my longer practice. Now that I've adjusted to it, I feel a bit silly about the whole thing, but it's still difficult. D & J shared some thoughts about why the backbends are important as an addition to the Primary Series. I also got a detailed rundown on nearly all of my Intermediate poses in the workshop this afternoon AND J gave me a little bit of help in Pasasana that I think will be key for me moving forward.

So I finally *get it*. And I'm happy with my practice.

More tomorrow.

I feel like I've been run over by a truck.

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Workshop

I'm completely exhausted, both mentally and physically. These workshops are amazing and I'm SO glad I opted to participate in the entire weekend because each workshop has built upon the one previous.

For this reason, I won't be posting any detailed notes until the very end. My brain needs time to digest. *burp*

I will say this: As the concepts I'm learning are repeated and elaborated, they're starting to make more sense to me. Many of the things that Darby taught me this summer in Montreal have come into sharper focus, which is *exactly* what I had hoped for.

And I love the way that Darby shakes us out of the 'comfort zone' in these workshops. He has helped me rethink stuff that I thought I 'knew'. I've spent parts of these workshops in excruciating discomfort and it's been GREAT. And informative. ;-)

This morning's workshop covered the standing poses and the afternoon was spent in forward bends and seated twists (after a yummy lunch at the macrobiotic cafe up the street...eek!).

Tomorrow: Arm balances in the morning, backbending in the afternoon.

There's a huge break between the morning and afternoon workshops and I'm somewhat determined to lunch at my favourite Indian buffet. The question is, do I *really* want to practice backbending with a belly full of Indian food? Even after an hour to digest it? Stay tuned!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad