friday cartoon

Shiva Ray Moon Salutation via Yoga Journal

Pose of the week

Pincha Mayurasana (Forearm Balance)

To add to my previous 'pose of the week' series (see the Pincha Mayurasana and Salamba Sirasana pose) i recently came across this article in Yoga Journal and it's a good answer so a commonly asked question so i thought i would share!

Q: I have been doing yoga for four years and still can't do an elbow balance. I collapse by going forward until my head hits the wall. I don't feel it is lack of strength as I can do Headstand and Handstand.

—Shirley Mahoney

Lisa Walford's reply:

In Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Handstand), you have a longer fulcrum from the hand to the shoulder, so you can depend on momentum to kick up. In Sirsasana (Headstand) you have a broader base with the forearms and the crown of the head on the floor, so the shoulder muscles get additional support from the upper back muscles, which makes it easier to get up. But keep in mind that even if you can get up in Headstand, the integrity of alignment in the neck can be severely compromised if there is inadequate lift in the armpit and instability in the shoulder girdle. How you get up is as important as being there! 

In Pincha Mayurasana (Forearm Stand or Elbow Balance), the actions required of the shoulder are confined to a smaller area, which challenges the flexibility and stability of the shoulder girdle directly. When viewed from the side, the optimal placement should be an even column from the base of the pose through the upper arm, armpit, shoulder, torso, pelvis, and legs. That is, the pose should not collapse in the armpits and then compensate by bending in the low back. Sound familiar--the banana shape? 

From your hands and knees, face a wall and place your forearms on the floor. Place a belt or strap just above your elbows so that your forearms remain parallel to each other and shoulder-width apart. Set a block between your hands. These props will help you keep the chest open when you kick up. They'll also help you to get the stability you need from the serratus anterior, a key muscle that attaches the shoulder blades to the back ribs and from which you can properly distribute weight through the shoulder girdle into the back. 

Keep your shoulders in a vertical line directly above the elbows, draw the shoulder blades onto your back, and straighten your legs. You will be in a shortened Downward-Facing Dog with your forearms on the ground. While pressing down into the elbows and the forearms, draw your upper back (the thoracic spine) in toward the chest and slowly walk your feet toward your hands until you get a vertical lift from the elbows all the way up through the shoulders, ribs and waist. Stay in this preliminary stage for several breaths to reinforce the stability and length in the shoulders and armpits. If you have the flexibility in the upper back and the armpits can yawn and open, then bring one leg slightly in front of the other and kick up. 

While kicking up, maintain the 90-degree angle between the forearm and the upper arm by pressing the center of the forearm into the floor and lifting the upper arm off the forearm. This will help keep you from collapsing toward the wall. 

By setting up properly and carefully studying how you go into a pose, you will better identify what needs strength or stability and where you need to elongate and open. Like pruning a garden and watching it flourish, practice with vigilance and you will find that your yoga will become more refined. 

Lisa Walford is a senior intermediate Iyengar Yoga instructor and has been teaching for more than twenty years. She is one of the directors of the Teacher Training Program at Yoga Works, in Los Angeles. She has served on the faculty of the 1990 and 1993 National Iyengar Yoga Conventions and studies regularly with the Iyengars.

On a far more serious note, and for inspiration,  have a look at Mikhail Baryshnikov's sublime serratus anterior....cor(e)!

image source: top image of B.K.S Iyengar from here and Mikhail Baryshnikov from Rebecca Ketchum)

Anatomy Leggings

I'm a big fan of wearing leggings to teach in, it helps students if they can see what I'm talking about...would these be a bit too much? : )
From what i can tell they are anatomically accurate...

From blackmilkclothing.com and found while reading this months Yoga Journal.

Core Competency

Recent article from Jason Crandell in Yoga Journal...worth a read!

"...yoga doesn't build brute force. it teaches you to cultivate a different kind of strength: the strength that results from physical integration and connection. Physical integration is that sense of coordinating different parts of the body so that they work in concert. It's the idea that we become exponentially more powerful when the body works in unison rather then when we isolate a muscle or muscle group. When we learn this, and feel it, we have the powerful and beneficial experience of being whole..."

I like this Jason guy, he seems to know his stuff.  If you don't get the magazine i'll post a link when i find it online, in the mean time try this sequence!

Sequence - A Fine Balance

Something i tried this morning,  i love a balance challenge! Thank you Yoga Journal. 

Before you begin:

Breathing and Meditation
Sit in a comfortable cross-legged position. Using both hands, grasp your thighs and turn them inward, one at a time, and then place your hands, palms facing down, on your legs. Slide your hands toward your waist to create ease in the neck and shoulders. Take 10 full breaths.
Invocation
Chant Om or an invocation of your choice.
WarmUp
Begin by stretching and breathing, either sitting or standing.

Before the sequence:

Do Reclining Hand–to–Big–Toe Pose. Then do Standing Forward Bend, with the balls of your feet on a rolled–up blanket and your heels on the floor. Do 5 Sun Salutations. Then integrate the action of your arms and shoulders by doing Handstand. Next, do standing poses like Triangle and Side Angle Pose, and seated poses like Seated Forward Bend and Head–to–Knee–Forward Bend.

Featured Sequence:

Do all 10 poses, then repeat on the second side.

After the Sequence:

Do Headstand and Shoulderstand.

1. Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward–Facing Dog Pose)
View in Detail	Begin on your hands and knees. Spread your fingers and press your hands firmly into the earth. Inhale and lengthen the sides of your body and exhale, allowing your upper back to soften. Keep your heart descending and your spine long as you lift your hips and straighten your legs. Lift your sitting bones up and take your tailbone down toward your heels.
2. Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)
View in Detail	Lie on your belly with your hands on the floor, by your chest. Spiral each leg inward and press your feet and toenails down firmly. Inhale as you lengthen the sides of your body, then exhale, pressing your tailbone down. Press the lower tips of your shoulder blades toward the back of your heart while keeping the upper shoulder blades broad and open. Root your hands into the earth, and curl up toward the sky.
3. Vrksasana (Tree Pose)
View in Detail	From Tadasana (Mountain Pose), bend your left knee and place your left foot on your inner right thigh. Press that thigh against the foot. Keeping the arches of your feet lifted, spiral your legs in, back, and away from each other. Now take your tailbone down toward the earth—your legs will spiral outward as you do this. Once you've established your steadfast power, reach your arms up and look up with an open heart.
4. Virabhadrasana III (Warrior Pose III)
View in Detail	With your right leg forward and your left leg back, engage Muscular Energy for a supportive foundation. Take your tailbone down to gently lift your lower abdomen. Bend your front leg slightly and lean forward, focusing on the strength and stillness in your core. Come into the balance by stretching both legs. Keep the left leg spiraling inward as you hug both legs toward the midline. Stay for 5 deep breaths.
5. Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose)
View in Detail	With a wide stance, turn your right leg out and your left leg in slightly. Bend your right knee to 90 degrees. Place your right fingertips on the floor about 12 inches in front of your foot, with your thumb in line with your little toe. Hug your legs to the midline and then draw your tailbone and right buttock down to engage your lower abdominals. Once you feel steady, use Organic Energy to open and stretch fully, from your heart through your legs, arms, head, and hands.
6. Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana (Extended Hand–to–Big–Toe Pose)
View in Detail	From Tadasana, bring your left knee toward your chest. Hold the outside of your left foot with your left hand. If your hamstrings are tight, use a strap around the bottom of your foot. Engage your muscles to the bone. Then hug both legs to the midline to find your core. When you're steady, bring your left leg out to the side. Breathe steadily; breathing takes concentration, but it helps you balance.
7. Parsvottanasana (Intense Side Stretch Pose)
View in Detail	From Tadasana, step your right foot forward four feet. Spiral your left leg in 45 degrees. Draw your tailbone down and your abdominals up. Lengthen your side body and press the lower tips of your shoulder blades into your back. Hug your shins toward the midline as you exhale and bend forward.
8. Garudasana (Eagle Pose)
View in Detail	From Tadasana, bend your knees, take your left leg off the floor, and wrap it around your right leg. Squeeze your legs together, which gives your leg muscles a massage and encourages circulation. Wrap your arms around each other, with the right one on top, until the palms meet. Squeeze them together, too. How much can you bend your legs? The more you hug to your midline, the more resilience and balance you'll create.
9. Wild Thing (Vasisthasana variation)
View in Detail	From Downward Dog, bring your weight into your right hand and roll onto the outer edge of your right foot. Step your left foot back and place your toes on the floor with your knee bent at 90 degrees. Exhale and, keeping your right leg straight, push your body away from the floor. Use your legs and buttocks to lift your tailbone and hips as high as you can, until you are almost standing on your right foot. Keep breathing and curl your head back, extending your left arm from your heart and expressing your power and freedom.
10. Vasisthasana (Side Plank Pose)
View in Detail	From Down Dog, bring your weight into your right hand, stack the feet, and come onto the edge of your right foot. Bring your left leg into Tree Pose, then grab the outside of your left foot, press your right palm down, and lift your hips. Extend your left leg while holding the big toe. Firm both shoulder blades into your back. Spiral your chest up, lift your heart, and drop your head back.

Sequence

Side-bending sequence with Jason Crandell via Yoga Journal

Raise Your A-Game!

a·wareness n.

Synonyms: aware, cognizant, conscious, sensible, awake, alert, watchful, vigilant

Awareness is the state or ability to perceive, to feel, or to be conscious of events, objects or sensory patterns. In this level of consciousness, sense data can be confirmed by an observer without necessarily implying understanding. More broadly, it is the state or quality of being aware of something.

As you continue to hone moment-to-moment awareness of your body, breath, emotions, and thoughts in your yoga practice, you'll bring that awareness to your daily life. When you're paying attention, you're more in touch with your thoughts and feelings as they arise in the moment, which is half the battle of resolving them. In other words, when you're able to identify that something is wrong, you can address that particular issue in the moment, rather than ignoring it and unleashing it later in some painful way.

Sources: yogajournal, wikipedia,

Yoga Journal

via google books

Sequence

My favourite sequence this week, found via yoga journal, click the link to see the sequence in full.

Before You Begin

Stand In Tadasana (Mountain Pose) and set your intention for your practice.
Salute Do three to five rounds of your favorite Sun Salutation, building heat in the body.
As you begin the sequence, start by holding each pose for three to five breaths. Then do two more rounds, holding each movement for one breath cycle

1.  Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog)
2. Anjaneyasana (low Lunge) 
3. Ardha Hanumanasana (Half Monkey God Pose)
4. Triang Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasana (Three-Limbed Forward Bend)
5. Parivitta Parsvakonasana (Revolved Side Angle Pose, variation)
6. Parsvottanasana (Intense Side Stretch, variation)
7. Prasarita Padottanasana (Wide-Legged Standing Forward Bend)
8. Ardha Virasana (Half Hero Pose)
9. Anjaneyasana (Low Lunge)
10. Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose)
11. Hanumanasana (Monkey God Pose)

After You Finish

Arch or fold Finish with a series of backbends such as Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose) or Urdhva Dhanurasana (Wheel Pose) or move directly to -finishing forward bends such as Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend) or Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose).
Inversion Do an inversion of your choice: Sarvangasana (Shoulderstand), Sirsasana (Headstand), or Viparita Karani (Legs-up-the-Wall Pose).
Recline Lie in Savasana (Corpse Pose) for 10 minutes. After coming out of Savasana, chant three Oms to mark the end of your practice.

Enjoy!