A BRIEF JOURNEY . . .
When I wrote my blog yesterday, I thought 'how boring is this; writing about "parrot words"'. Yet, of all my blog entries, this one got the most comments!!!! (Most of those comments came through Facebook, so are not reflected here.) Another example of "keep it simple" works.
I taught one class yesterday - YogaHour. It was a smaller group than normal, so we took a journey into Hanumanasana. One hour is the time it takes me to get warmed up to even try that pose, so the smaller group made it more available - fewer people to get through the warm-ups and to worry about. These students had not tried the pose before, so we used the wall. Back foot against the wall, front leg extending into the room - with a bolster and blanket(s) available to slip under the hamstring and rest into once their extension was complete.
I learned that, for me, the wall provided support for the back leg -- which (on me) will always try to go off in a direction not desired in this pose. With something to press into, I could keep the back leg in alignment while focusing most of my attention on the front leg. Then, with the bolster and blanket(s), I could actually stay there a while, allowing the front leg to rest into the support (props pressing into the thickest part of the hamstring muscles).
A year ago, I vowed that I would get into this pose. Still working on it, though I have to admit my efforts have not been very dedicated. I am further into the pose, more relaxed in the knowledge of how to get there, just not 'there' yet. Maybe I will re-enliven that effort.
Not a lot of time left after our attempts at the pose, got in a gentle hamstring reliever and a twist, then savasana. The short journey, tho, was fun. One student's comment: "life changing".
I taught one class yesterday - YogaHour. It was a smaller group than normal, so we took a journey into Hanumanasana. One hour is the time it takes me to get warmed up to even try that pose, so the smaller group made it more available - fewer people to get through the warm-ups and to worry about. These students had not tried the pose before, so we used the wall. Back foot against the wall, front leg extending into the room - with a bolster and blanket(s) available to slip under the hamstring and rest into once their extension was complete.
I learned that, for me, the wall provided support for the back leg -- which (on me) will always try to go off in a direction not desired in this pose. With something to press into, I could keep the back leg in alignment while focusing most of my attention on the front leg. Then, with the bolster and blanket(s), I could actually stay there a while, allowing the front leg to rest into the support (props pressing into the thickest part of the hamstring muscles).
A year ago, I vowed that I would get into this pose. Still working on it, though I have to admit my efforts have not been very dedicated. I am further into the pose, more relaxed in the knowledge of how to get there, just not 'there' yet. Maybe I will re-enliven that effort.
Not a lot of time left after our attempts at the pose, got in a gentle hamstring reliever and a twist, then savasana. The short journey, tho, was fun. One student's comment: "life changing".
This morning - Gentle Yoga at 10 am.
Have a nice Wednesday,