Ashtanga Yoga Practice - Improving the core

Since I don't have anything else to do while I am in Thailand I am starting to practice 4 hours per day. After my morning practice I usually go for a swim to relaxe my muscle and in the afternoon I start exploring other path outside of Ashtanga.

For instance I am now practicing Pilates, I really missed that practice, I used to practice and teach Pilates when I was living in Paris 5 years ago. I do miss it a lot but I am getting back to it which is a very good news.

Steve Hyland let me borrowing the Yoga Wheel from the studio, and I am discovering how can I use it instead of a Ball or instead of a Reformer for instance. It is pretty intense practice and I am realising that I kind of lost my core by only practicing Ashtanga Yoga.

Or maybe it is because I do not practice well, but Pilates moves are essentially for the core muscle. The passage from lying down to the Teaser is slightly difficult with this manduka travel yoga mat.

Very thin and my sacrum does not like it, therefore I am not stable because of the pain it occurs to my sacrum.

And as a result this morning I did my first "baby lolasana, I was very happy about it but was unable to reproduce it ;-)

So now I am looking forward to the next morning practice.

Have a good day!

Chaturanga Dandasana the return....

Since the last couple of weeks I am correcting, adjusting my practice. I used to micro bend my knee while bending forward, I don't  do it anymore and as a result it is a huge improvement for my pelvis motion, now I really feel my sit bones lifting up while jumping back and jumping front and the stretch for a forward fold is starting from my lower back, new sensation.

Then I remembered what Iain told us during the immersion last month. The elbows in Chaturanga Dandasana should be on the side, slightly open but surely not below the rib cage which will led the upper body to round, basically a real full plank using only the strength of the arms and the torso and not cheating by contre balancing the body weight on the triceps.

I realised that day I was cheating in my Chaturanga Dandasana.

So I corrected it and once again it is a huge change in my practice. First of all I really need to push against the floor in order to keep a plank pause and then from here going into Urdha Mukha Svanasana takes more effort than I ever thought. I am really working more my pectoralis major and minor, gliding my scapula down into the serratus interior and stretching like I never did before the triceps muscle.

What does it mean???

Well it mean, and it very unfortunate, that I was practicing wrongly, cheating most of the time in the most important part of the practice, how can I lift up and jump back if I am not building my upper body correctly, I can't, it can not happen, it is a "simple" foundation that I have been avoiding because probably of laziness and mostly a lacking of awareness.

I have been compensating a lot, now I am renewing my practice and building a new body. As a result I am not chasing any new asana, I am perfectly fine with the Primary Series and have absolutely no urge of going further. I need to rebuild my foundation.

Kurmasana okay but Supta Kurmasana.... why I can't do it?

My practice is becoming a flow, my body is bending properly, I really enjoy all asanas and I am stuck in Supta Kurmasana. I don't understand why my hands are not reaching each other, I am completely flat on the floor, maybe my legs need to be higher toward my shoulders.

Sharat adjusted my Marichyasana D :-)

It was a good practice but Supta Kurmasana remained a mystery. I will watch some video on Youtube and see what I can get from it.

- Namaste -

2nd Day, Week 4 - KPJAYI David Roche

Starts: 4.45 AM
Ends: 6.30 AM

I was distracted today as the lady on my left side was practicing the secondary series, I was amazed by her grace, she was so light, no sound, beautiful body move, all asana done perfectly without forcing, strong and flexible. I could have stop my practice just to watch her moving.

It is then useless to precise that I was not focus at all. I was practicing physically but without awareness of what I was doing. Of course I start comparing me to her, well first of all she is probably 10 years younger than me, she looks fresh, and I do believe that she has been practicing as well for the last 10 years so there is no comparison at all between her an me, I would never become her and I would never have her level of practice. 

And beside she is one of the assistant of David Roche, I like her very much.

I have been adjusted in Baddha Konasana and really like it, I first thought that my knee will not be able to handle the adjustment but it did and all my torso was down the floor. 

I did not feel any pain in my body as I am practicing variation for my left knee so it was a good practice after all.

July 23rd, A so so practice - Mysore Yoga Practice

Starts: 4.45 AM
Ends: 6.15 AM

Well after my rewarding day as of yesterday this morning was another story. I don't know if it is related to the monsoon that just started but my body was not responding well to the practice and especially my knees.

From now and then I will stop all the Ardha Padma because my left knee can not handle it anymore.

I refuse the adjustment of one of the assistant, first of all I don't like how she is adjusting and second thing she came to me while doing Ardha Baddha Padma Paschimottanasana - she was about to push from my UPPER BACK, right where I was rounding on purpose because of the pain in my knee and I told her "No" - then she told me "touch" while pointing my left knee. She thought I had pain in my hamstrings and I told her the pain was with my knee.... Therefore she did not came back to adjust anything on me.

I love to be adjusted don't get me wrong, but for some reasons the adjustment they are giving at the Sarawasthi's shala make me cringe a little bit.... for instance they are pressing directly on the knee to bring them back on the floor while in Badakonasana.... one of the student, I do believe she is Russian got scare also during one adjustment and told David to stop it. I think she was about to cry.....

I understand that the Primary Series is not about be aligned but more about to go down, catch the big toe, twist as far as we can, bend back with straight legs etc.... but when the body is not ready or when you know that you need to save your body from certain movements I do not understand while we are pushed to do so.... the goal of Yoga (if there any) is not to break your body, I want to be able to walk until my late 90s if I go that far in life, I don't care of grabbing, touching, bending, I want to practice in a safe mode....

Rob Lamport Chiropractor from UK told me that he does not know any Ashtangi WITHOUT any injuries due to the practice.... I don't want to go on that path...

Tomorrow is the last day of the 3rd week and I will give a full day off to my body on Saturday. Even though I feel stronger my joints are crying....

- Namaste -

May 5th, 2016

Well it was a very good practice. I did one of my best Kukutasana.

Did not dare to do any chakrasana because my neck is back on track so I have to be gentle with my body.

But practice fulfill me J

Evening practice: A lot of Suraya Namaskara (Ashtanga Style). Core exercice (Pilates!).

April 27th, 2016 - I am back!

Back to the Yoga Mat, one of the best practice ever.

Did all full vinyasa for each asana. Did my first Supta Kurmasana in full, with BOTH LEGS behind my head and feel so comfortable.

John told me to release my legs and I did not want to, I was fine, no pain, standing on my coccyx with both legs behind my head, hooking them from the ankles, I feel so good.

At one point I had to jump back… but hopefully tomorrow I will be able to redo it.

Can’t wait to go back on the mat.

My stamina is up, my body is not painful, I feel stronger than ever, my mind is in peace.

April 26th, 2016 - Grrrrrrr

No practice. Second day of menstruation.

April 24th, 2016

After the day off the body is very responsive, I think I have built my stamina. Very good practice, did the hand stand with assistance and 5 drop back with assistance.

Shirshasana wihtouth the head touching the floor still needs to be improve but it will.

Love my practice, feeling very happy.

First the time of these two last week I did not feel tired after the morning practice, but full of energy.

Unfortunately for me John asked me to come for the 5.30 Am practice…. So tomorrow will be another day, I am not an early bird practitioner… will see how my body will respond, will need to wake up at 4.00 am as I can not jump from my bed to my yoga mat right away…

To be continued….

April 22nd, 2016 - FULL MOON DAY

Class was not compulsory and scheduled at 6.00 AM, woke up 20 minutes earlier…. Did not have any coffee….. Led class so 50 students in the shala… and some people are doing restorative where I am standing…..

Don’t know how it reaches my mat but a rat poo was spread on my yoga blanket. The smell was awful; need to remove it before it infects my yoga mat. However a bit of it has been spread into my hair, so whatever happens as soon as I am on my back the smell of the rat poo is coming to my nostrils…

During the backward vinyasa I roll over the lady who was in restorative yoga, I think I broke her arm…. However she did not move…

Class was good, I am building my stamina J

End of Week 2.