My blog moved

This blog moved.

After more than a decade this blog moved. It was not an easy decision. Yet time have changed.

You can find me now here: www.myyogablog.net.

I'm looking forward to seeing you there.

September challenge

This September challenge by Carmen on Instagram is indeed a challenge. First challenge is the asana. One must also find a location and one must take the picture. It's  great if one is able to do the asana, yet it's better to practice an easier version than to injure oneself if the asana is beyond one's capacity. To respect the own limits is demanding, too.

On picture #1 one can see who I fought with this asana. Today I repeated it but wrapped my arm only around one leg. It's still challenging, but safe. No strap was needed. That's the starting point from now on. If this feels good I can go deeper.

Today's pose (picture #2) was only possible with a prop, my wheel. The challenge is about exploring the limits. I feel them almost every day. Some of the asanas I'll integrate in my daily practice. It must feel good to perform an asana.

First lesson learned: Take care. This challenge is about exploring the limits and not performing a perfect asana.

Leg behind head poses

There are 20 leg behind head poses in Ashtanga yoga. The first series has one: supta kurmasana. The second series has already 4 leg behind head poses. It becomes rather advanced in the forth series. To move into a tripod headstand with the leg behind the head is confusing. I tried it lately. That was it, I guess for a very long time.

I learned supta kurmasana when I practiced second series already. It's so much easier to learn first eka pada sirsasana (one leg behind the head) from the second series. Suddenly I was able to do supta kurmasana after having learned to take one leg behind my head. It became even comfortable with time.

These days I work on that lightness again. I struggle with that asanas. I know now how it feels when it feels good to be in such a pose. All the 20 asanas have some craziness. I'm looking forward to learning them. All.

Stretching requires patience and discipline

No matter if one stretches parts of the back of the body or the front body or the sides in order to see progress one must be patient. To force the body into asanas might lead to injuries. On the other hand one must also feel the stretch. It's sort of discomfort. Even breathing and trusting fades away the discomfort. One might be able to get a tiny bit deeper in a pose.

One must learn to be content about every inch deeper. This can be frustrating sometimes, especially if one is an impatient person. Success doesn't come overnight in yoga.

There are asanas like headstand that can be learned within a few minutes if explained correctly.

Yet stretching follows different laws. The older one is the longer it lasts to see progress.

Hard work and time must flow into the practice.

Somehow it helps if one is in love with the process.

It's possible to learn how to learn if we face difficulties. How can one overcome the obstacles?

Discipline remains a key word. Show up, do the work as best as you can.

This picture was taken in 2009. I practiced in the heat of Mumbai. It took me a decade to take the chin to the floor. There must be faster ways, I always think and I know they exist. One can work smarter. One way is to add more repetition. To hold the poses longer is also crucial. Nevertheless stretching takes time.

Being disciplined and being patience are essential skills.

The heat makes the practice easier

The summer heat makes it so much easier to get into poses that require flexibility. I sweat when I practice.

At 6 pm I was on the mat yesterday. This is so late. Most duties were done, so my mind was free from stress of a long to-do-list. I was able to focus on the practice. I get stronger again. It's a joy to realize this.

Every practice makes the next one easier.

I'm happy with my home practice as I can adjust the practice to my needs. I distinguish between a performance and a practice that is focused on learning.

Time to work on my to-do-list. Also today it's long. Yoga comes later again. It's OK to be that flexible. Rules are just an orientation.

It will be late again

I'll start late again. I guess it will be 6 pm when I step on the mat. What counts is that I practice. To be alone at home has other challenges than going to a yoga class.

My practices are satisfying. I realize that I get stronger and flexible with every practice. This motivates a lot.

Primary is a series that is so familiar,

I ran around all day long. I must rest first. Yet, I'm sure tonight I can write a A1 in my calender. This stands for Ashtanga primary done. The A1 and A2 in my calender become more and more. :)

Summer time

To practice when it's got is wonderful. The body is so much more flexible than in winter time.

I'm happy that I can practice.

With all this back pain issues I was not sure if I could go on. But I kept practicing, not often, but I never stopped totally. Now it's time to get back to a more challenging practice. To avoid back pain is the #1 rule.

I even managed it to practice 'on the road'. Yet best is to be at home with all my props and all the time I need.

Keep practicing.

Believe in yourself

It's soccer world cup. I love to see the matches. But I also love to listen to the interviews of the players. The world best soccer player (Ronaldo) said that he always believed in himself. In addition he practiced more than all the others. When his colleagues were under the shower already after a match, he still played with the ball.

Believe in yourself is such a precious hint. Doubts plaster the path. I'm glad that I didn't give up my yoga practice. I probably had too many days when I didn't practice, but perhaps these breaks were necessary. I had to avoid inflammation.

This back injury is now 2 years back. I heal in steps. My feeling is that I leaped ahead again. In the beginning of my practice I was not 100% pain free. I exercised variations of some of the standing asanas. But then the pain disappeared. Totally. I could do even supta kurmasana without much preparing asanas.
When I feel pain, it's of short duration. It fades away very quickly. After the practice I feel good. That is I can even take the steps without pain. Yep it has been that awful.

I'll keep believing that one day this back pain belongs to the past again.

What I realize. I love Ashtanga yoga. The huge weakness is that there is no didactic. One is left alone more or less. Best case is that learning of new asanas is very ineffective. Instead of mastering an asana within 6 months, it can last 10 years. Worst case is that this missing reasonable approach to very demanding asanas injures people. That's what I experienced.

This is my new topic here. How to be a good autodidact. How to learn asanas effectively. How to understand asanas.

What was possible today on the mat fulfills me with great joy. I have hope again that I can return to my former strength and flexibility. I can still progress. It will be a lonesome ride. I miss a yoga group, but by now I cannot imagine to get back to any of the groups here in Munich. In the meantime there are even choices. But I have my blog and readers and this keeps me motivated, too.

You're one practice away from good mood

This morning I got up rather early. It was about 6 am. It's much later than 2 years ago when I got up at 5 am, but 6 am is still early. It's bright day already. Sun rise is at 5:15 am. Time is good to get up at 5 am again. I remember that I loved it to get up just before sunrise.

So today I was very busy. I had to pick up my suitcase. I had to get to the post office. Chores had to be done as we expect guests. Flow was experienced. When it was lunch time I went to the Indian restaurant round the corner. Siesta time, I thought and after lunch I went to bed to nap. When I woke up I felt as if I had been dead. I wasn't, but I felt so lame. So lame. Again I postponed my yoga practice. Energy was low, then I remembered a quote that I saw on twitter: You're one work out away from good mood.

I schlepped myself on the mat with the attitude: Whatever happens is OK.

It's so true:
You're one yoga practice away from good mood.

I keep practicing

This morning I was so tired. Suddenly I realized why. I wanted to give up drinking coffee. So this morning I had prepared a cup of tea for myself. It was Earl Grey Tea and I love it. But it didn't wake me up. At 10 am I was in bed again. The telephone woke me up after 20 minutes. I had slept again. I still felt like in trance. Tired. Bad mood. Lame. And I had so many plans for today's yoga practice.

I managed  to go out of the house after the phone call to get batteries. This was an item on my to-do-list. On my way home I stopped at a bakery, ordered a cup of coffee and my fav cake. Mood improved, I felt energy. I was motivated to practice. I bought strawberries for the after yoga snack and headed home.

Yes, I practiced. This quote is so true:You're one practice away from good mood.

Friday is my forward bending day.
These days I work more on the method how to learn a pose than to hurry through one of the Ashtanga yoga series. I take my time and my timer. Some asanas I hold for one minute. Oh, a minute can be so long when I'm in a split pose. I know it's important to relax, to breathe deeply and evenly.
To hold the poses longer than 5 breath can be very useful. 5 breaths is too short to have an impact on a stiff body. That's why I hold some of the challenging poses longer. I always add the splits and hold them for one minute. I see already results. Yet this could be a topic for next blog posts.

Happy relaxed weekend to everybody.

Urdhva dhanurasana

2018

The chin touched the wall. External clues help to get deeper into a pose. I'm glad that I practiced, I'm glad that I could experience 90 intensive minutes on the mat.

Nevertheless my practices don't refresh me. They exhaust me. I need to sleep in the afternoon. My body needs to relax. It seems so. I feel done.

2000

This was my urdhva dhanurasana in 2000. It looks rather wild. My urdhva dhanurasana of 2018 looks more disciplined and more precisely.

2011

Mistakes happen. To keep the legs parallel with a strap is not a good idea. It's much better to put a block between the thighs and to hold it. This makes the legs strong. With a strap around the legs, they move outwards. This is not the intention. 

2013

I'm sure that practicing urdhva dhanurasana was good for my body. The pictures show how slow progress can be.
The pictures also show why I'm so impatient these days. How I practiced made it impossible to progress faster.

In order to progress I recommend myself to hold this asana longer than 5 breaths. 5 breaths is too short. The body won't really stretch within such a short time.
In order to get stronger it makes sense to move into that pose more often. Up and down, up and down 10 times every day, that's what makes strong. And strength is needed. Finally I want to come up from that pose.

Another intensive practice

It was the afternoon when I started primary. I get stronger again, slowly, but it's remarkable. My joy is huge that my back pain is almost not existent. I have to adjust few asanas. The closing sequence is possible again. 

After the practice I feel good as well. I'm exhausted, but that's it. I don't have to do fascia massages or twists to get my body back to normal 

To practice at home allows me to focus on myself. I can rest if possible. 

Splits are always part of my program. 

After two years of doubts, I'm sure now that my yoga practice can improve again. This injury was a wake-up call. Self-study is necessary To do every day the same asanas without reflecting if this is still useful makes no sense. In the meantime a lot of information is available about almost everything that is important: nutrition, strength training, cardio. There are tips and tricks about how to do the asanas. It's easier these days to create a safe practice.

Tomorrow I'll focus on back bending. 

Back bending

No, I don't begin from point zero again. But sometimes it feels so. Today was my back bending day. I don't rush through the back bending asanas of the second Ashtanga series. I add asanas, I repeat asanas, I use props. Walking down the wall is so helpful. The goal is that the asanas must feel good. I know how this feels. My experience is that the closer the asana comes to the perfect form, the more comfortable and easy it seems to be.

The 90 minutes on the mat practicing back bending were must intensive. Afterwards I was so tired. I took a siesta later and slept, still exhausted from my effort to get deeper and deeper into the asanas.

Most difficult is to alter from back bending to forward bending. I practice usually soft counter poses, but to get from kapotasana to eka pada sirsana seems impossible within one poractice.

Practicing anything also means to work on the mind. Believing that something is possible is a huge step in direction of this goal.

We have summer weather here already. This helps.

Tomorrow primary is on the schedule again. Focus is the vinyasas.

I'm so thankful, that practices are possible again.

Celebrating tiny successes

1. In April I practiced more often than during the other months in 2018.
2. Today I did chakrasana again.
3. My lack of strength is more striking than my back pain. I'm getting stronger with each practice.
4. I enjoy my practice.
5. Yoga nidrasana was possible. I could begin with the next focus that is to relax in that pose.
6. Also the closing sequence was possible.

I'm thankful that I can practice again. What a gift.

90 minutes

I think my back bettered again.

When I practice I experience my lack of strength more than the back pain. Less and less asanas I have to adjust. After my practice I feel rather good. I often forget my back. I'll keep practicing with attention. Pain must be avoided. Also 'easy' asanas are worth doing. I take my time.

It's almost impossible to go from deep back bending asanas to forward bending asanas. I practice modest counter poses. The leg behind head poses are impossible after the back bending asanas. Instead I practice a few soft forward bending asanas from first series.

Today I focused on back bending. I did a lot of preparation exercises. I used the wheel and the wall to support the back bending. The wheel allows passive stretching. The wall offers resistance. Both techniques are supportive.

What really bettered during the last decade of yoga practice is my concentration. I'm able to stay 90 minutes on the mat. I'm able to practice and to focus on the breath without taking breaks.

Patience is required.

Every time when I practice I see the necessity to work on strength.
Every time when I practice I see the necessity to hold the challenging asanas longer than 5 breaths only. Stretching takes time.

Tomorrow I'll practice primary. The focus are the vinyasas: flexibility, strength and technique.

No excuses

It's also possible to practice at night. Why not. It's done and I feel excellent. Every practice counts.
Time to sleep.

To practice is important

I was out. It was fun. I met nice people. It was an entertaining day that could go on and on.

I decided to leave the party and stepped on my mat. When I realized how weak I became I knew that it was the best decision I could do. I practiced  being attentive and not forcing anything. I practiced  being content. To stay strong and flexible means to practice. One must sweat. One can feel when the muscles get stronger, they burn. One can feel when the body gets deeper and deeper into a pose. If nothing is felt, nothing happens.

One practice further. I like the path. I like seeing results, but I also like how to get there.

Lately I read: Success teaches you nothing. So true. Mistakes, failure are opportunities to learn. For sure.

Today I struggled more with my weakness and my stiffness rather than with my back injury. This is a good sign.

Yoga on the bed is nonsense

In addition we have Saturday today and this is a day off from yoga for the Ashtanga yoga practitioners.

I need an intensive warm up. Sometimes it's fun to experiment and to play around.

The exercise on the picture is for me still one of the best to approach kapotasana. First one has to find a good distance to the wall. Then one can walk down the wall with the hands. I repeat this asana several times usually. I think now that it's worth to repeat it much more often than I do by now.
This is the plan. Doing this exercise feels good.

It's useful to have a block between the feet or knees. It helps to keep the legs engaged and this protects the lower back. It also allows to move deeper into the pose. A strong foundation is always important.

Enough yoga on my yoga free day.

Vasisthasana

Vasisthasana is the pose of day 8 of the Instagram challenge #flylikeayogi. The last time I took a picture of this pose goes back to 2012. Also this pose won't become part of my daily practice again. I prefer working on the side splits and forward splits. This will make this pose easier, too.

After 90 minutes my alarm clock reminded me to come to an end. I practice so slowly these days and I add so many preparation asanas that I've not enough time to do all poses of second series. After the twists 90 minutes are over. That's OK because I really work on asanas.

Sometimes I also practice easier versions and enjoy them. I need time to relax, too. Also today I used a timer and set it to one minute to hold some of the difficult poses a bit longer than just 5 breaths.
How to learn is so important. It's as important as the goal.

It has been a practice that exhausted me. At least the back bending asanas felt good.

Tomorrow I'll work on forward bending asanas again.

The splits

I work on the splits on a daily basis. Eka pada koundinyasana (see picture) is not part of my practice. This pose was the asana of day 6 of the #flylikeayogi challenge on Instagram.

A picture never tells the truth. I couldn't hold this pose for  second. I had luck that the camera made click at the right moment.

I just realized that this asana is not part of one of the Ashtanga yoga series. There are so many asanas, it's crazy.

I work on the splits because it opens the front side of the hips. This will help me to get deeper into back bending poses.

Working on the splits is stretching.

Here are tips for stretching
1. Relax (into stretch). Smile even. Breathe deeply. Enjoy.
2. Exercise daily with a lot of care. Injuries are set backs. Consistency is the key.
3. Be patient and enjoy the ride.
5. I try to hold the splits i.e. longer and longer. Today I used a timer. 1 minute was my goal. Oh my, one minute can be very long. Without my timer I wouldn't have held this pose that long.
6. Repetitions are another tool to work effectively on any stretching.

To do the splits on the ground or in the air are different challenges. First step is to do the splits on the ground. Eka pada koundinyasana was just a pose that I wanted to explore. Is it possible, I wondered.

Today I practiced primary. Really I feel like a hero. My back complained first. I kept practicing. At the end my body felt relaxed. My mind was exhausted. I feel excellent now, AFTER the practice.

What a joy to write an A1 in my calender. It means I practiced first Ashtanga series. It's the 6th time that I practiced in March. Halleluja.

My plan for tomorrow:
I'll add the forward splits as a preparation for the back bending asanas.
I'll do 3 repetitions, holding the pose for 1 minute.

Ustrasana:
3 repetitions
Kapotasana:
5 repetitions
Urdhva dhanurasana 5 repetitions.

With this plan I feel as if I'm on an autobahn towards my goal to perform the back bending asanas mentioned above.

Done

This morning we had to leave the house really early. We were downtown till 2 pm. Being flexible can mean a lot. It's possible to postpone a yoga practice to a later time of the day. At 5 pm I was on my mat. I thought the body must be super flexible at such a late time. The opposite was the case.

After the standing asanas I tried eka pada koundyasana. It's today's pose of the Instagram challenge #flylikeayogi. It was not possible. I was stiff and I would have needed more preparation asanas. I didn't like to sacrifice my back bending for the Instagram challenge. I don't care to be late. I can post my picture tomorrow.

I'm so glad that I didn't omit my practice. Also the difficult ones are important. After an hour I only practiced what felt good. I took it easy. I'm glad that I did urdhva dhanurasana several times. This was it.

Tomorrow I can practice in the morning again. I'll work on strength and forward bending asanas, primary so to say.

Tomorrow I'll have a timer handy. The plan is to hold the difficult asanas for 1 minute.

Picture is taken yesterday. It's parsva bhuja dandasana or grasshopper.

I need to warm up to do poses like tittibhasana

Tittibhasana is the third pose of the challenge on Instagram #flylikeayogi. Today I integrated this pose in the first Ashtanga series. It fits in after kurmasana. By then I was flexible enough to stretch my legs.

I work on strength and the vinyasas. Today back pain faded away the longer I practiced. I could jump up and down.

I love the asana practice.
Yet I realize that yoga is so much more for me.

1. It helps me to relax from other issues in my life. When I practice yoga it is as if I choose my favorite issues. I prefer to find out how to get into grasshopper pose than to search a craftsman who can repair doors that don't close anymore.
2. It improves my concentration skills.
3. My discipline muscle gets trained.
4. With each practice this yoga activity becomes an even stronger routine.
5. I take care of my nutrition.

I could go on....

Today I slept 2 hours after my practice. I was like dead. I know this tiredness. I somehow need a lot of sleep after having practiced yoga. This tells me that I have exhausted myself.

Tomorrow I focus on back bending.

How to learn?

I joined the challenge #flylikeayogi on Instagram created by Kino. Every day we shall do and post an asana for 10 days. Bakasana was the second asana.

Yesterday on the third day tittibhasana was on the list. I had not time to warm up. To do the pose out of the blue is not possible. I loved to do tittibhasana, I lost it.

This morning I practiced mainly back bending asanas. To switch to a forward bending asana like tittibhasana would have been impossible. Am I out already after the second pose? It can be....

I love the classes on omstars.com that accompany the poses. They are so helpful. So much is covered within an hour: easier variations, preparation asanas, strength, flexibility and technique exercises. Following the classes helps to learn an asana very fast. This is why I join a teacher. In my opinion a good teacher can help to accelerate the process of learning. Kino is an excellent teacher.

This reminds me how disappointed I am how learning happens in the Ashtanga yoga community. One shall practice daily. That's absolutely great advice.
One is allowed to practice till an asana that one isn't able to do. Then one can hear: You stop here. If lucky one gets an adjustment every day when trying this asana. Yet usually this challenging asana is practiced for 5 breaths. One can hope that it gets better every day. If not one is stuck there till the rest of one's life. The teaching of Ashtanga yoga is stuck in the last century. In addition it became very inflexible. The challenge is to teach too many students at the same time. The easiest way is that everybody (every body) has to do the same. There is no time for individuality. I got injured following this method of learning asanas. I learned much less than I could have learned if I had practiced more often on my own.

Why not using blocks?
Why not doing additional strength exercises, if it helps?
Why not exercising variations?
Why not giving some useful explanations?

When I went to Ashtanga yoga classes my main learning source were the mistakes of the other yogis.  I don't know how often I thought: don't do this, don't do that.

Learning has revolutionized in the last decade. I try to profit from the insights of a fitness community.

These days I practice at home. My practice becomes more and more my own practice. The Ashtanga yoga series are like a skeleton of a tree. They are the basis, the orientation of my practice. I want to practice close to series. Yet I change it if it's better for my back. Soon leaves will decorate the stems and the branches of the trees. They stand for variations, flexibility. They keep the practice lively. Adding asanas, trying variations keeps the mind awake. Exploring new movements deepens the understanding of this art. Why not doing this?

I practiced second series today. I enjoyed to write in my calender that I had practiced. It's the third practice this month.

A new month, a fresh beginning

In January I practiced 5 times.
In February I practiced 10 times.
I plan to practice minimum 15 times in March.

Today I practiced primary, because it's Friday. I added some asanas to have a more interesting practice. I omitted some vinyasas, because I got so weak.

Kino has started a new 10 days challenge on Instagram and I'm in. It's called #flylikeayogi. Here is my Instagram account for those who like to join the fun.
On Omstars Kino has prepared a practice, duration 1 hour. It prepares for the poses. Her classes are very smart with a perfect didactic. She offers easier and more difficult variations so that everybody has something ot work on. The asanas become more difficult gradually. Strength training, flexibility training and technique are part of the classes.

Today Bakasana is the flight pose. The video will get sent later that day. Yesterday I watched it and practiced later trying to remember the asanas. I think it makes more sense to practice with the PC close to me. It should be doable to follow her instructions while watching the video.

90 minutes asana practice and I feel so much better. This practice can do miracles.

To return to my practice as it used to be 2 years ago is difficult. I work on my attitude. It's possible to improve. I know, that my body is not yet too old.
A few days back I read that an 85 year old man wanted to reach the top of the Himalaya. He passed away on the return. He wanted to be the oldest man who was on top of that mountain. So 85 years and so much ambition. 'I can' is my mantra, too.

Not amused

This morning I woke up and back pain was back. Has my yoga practice caused it? Perhaps my body position during the night has been awkward? I don't know. I tried to convince myself during the day that all is fine. You're OK, back, I told myself. One hour ago pain disappeared totally. Suddenly it was gone. I tried to feel at least a bit of uneasiness, yet in vain. As it came, it disappeared.

We were so busy today. In the morning was no time for yoga and now it's too late. The body had a day off and a bit more time to recover. Perhaps this was necessary. I know that I'll have time tomorrow.

My yoga is my linchpin. I like to see it that way. My yoga practice is my health insurance. It will keep me strong and flexible. It's an important practice.

A compliment

Today my mother-in-law made me a great compliment. She said that she was astonished how relaxed I was. And she thinks that this came from my yoga practice.

This is one of the goals of yoga. It might be a side effect that comes from daily practice over years probably decades. One day the body is stiff, the next day it's very flexible. It goes on like this year in, year out. After some years one learns to observe the ups and downs without judging. It's as life is. One knows the next day the practice can have new surprises. It makes no sense to generalize. Only because today a practice was great, doesn't mean that the practice tomorrow has to be great as well.

Even though the circumstances are a bit challenging right now, I practiced. I had to practice in a living room without any blocks and other support. For the time being I need my wheel to bend backwards. Yet, I managed it to practice before breakfast. Oh my I was stiff. The 90 minutes on the mat went over so fast.

We'll have lunch in a restaurant today. Will I be strong enough to skip the dessert? I'm not sure.

We're all practitioners at different levels. :)

Also a stiff practice is a worth doing it. I feel good.

Wonderful

Primary today.

I become stronger again. Today my mind was so busy with the vinyasas that I had forgotten the back pain.

It's so fulfilling to practice.

In a hurry again........ I can clearly say, the most important activity of my day is done already. What is more important than my health? Deep breathing? Being focused? Enjoying the simple things in life?

60 minutes count

I practiced before 12 am. In the afternoon I won't practice anymore, this is the experience. Either I find time in the morning or I'll have a day without yoga. After some inner discussions I stepped on the mat. The last practice was last Friday. Five days is a too long break. I felt it. After 60 minutes I was done.

Let's focus on the positive stuff:
1. I practiced.
2. It feels good to take it easy from time to time.
3. In January I practiced 5 times. In February I practiced already 8 times. There is still potential, February is not yet over.

It's good to have a plan. Today I tried some back bending exercises that I saw on the Internet. These exercises were all too demanding. They were more challenging than kapotasana or urdhva dhanurasana. It makes more sense to repeat some good exercises or to hold them longer than to add too many exercises.

All asanas felt good 2 years ago. I reached my limits, but they felt good. This is the point that I want to reach again. I understand the sentence that one has to work through the pain. Often it's true, but one has to differentiate. If one is injured it's nonsense to work through the pain.

So, I'm ready for the next tasks. Oh, it's lunch time. This break feels deserved.

Exploring back bending asanas with a strap

First picture: The idea is to stretch the legs. It's incredible difficult, but I saw a lady doing this.
Second picture: The idea is to walk the hands to the foot along the strap. This is also very difficult.

I'm not sure if these exercises make sense. Some exercises are more difficult than the asanas that I want to approach with these exercises. Yet one attempt is nothing.

There are so many crazy poses. I'm fascinated. Tiny changes can make a huge difference.

My favorite preparation asana for the back bending asanas are the forward splits. Then next exercise is walking down the wall with the hands. This stretches the upper body. To repeat these two exercises already makes a difference. It prepares the body perfectly for the asanas, like kapotasana and urdhva dhanurasana. I could aim for 5 repetitions of these preparation exercises. I could aim for holding the poses 1 minute. A minute can be rather long.

I progress

I progress. I get stronger again. Also today I did all the vinyasas of primary series. It was hard. That's how it is. To get stronger again is hard work. My practice lasted 90 minutes. It was a concentrated practice. I didn't like to interrupt it. The picture is from last week. 

At the end of my practice I whisper: Thank you. So much is possible. As yoginis we strive for a healthy body, that is we train our body to get strong and flexible and relaxed at the same time.

We also exercise contentment. One day we're weak, the other day we are super flexible. We observe and move on, don't we? We practice detachment from the daily ups and downs. This is challenging, too.

To detach from the daily stories that the mind creates can be as difficult as doing handstand.
After a yoga practice I usually have interrupted the repeating stories of my mind. After the yoga practice that implies focusing on the breath I often have a refreshed view of things. Often I'm relaxed, new perspectives can be seen. I feel so much better after each practice. This motivates me to step on the mat.

Observe what is and move on. Don't give proud and frustration too much attention. It's just another story. It's relative. Also feelings change, often very quickly. Inhale and exhale. I think that's what a daily practice wants to tell us.

Bhekasana

The picture shows the classic pose. In the past I was able to reach the floor with my fingers. In the end position the heels touch the floor. It's a long journey down. The past is over. I pick myself up where I am now. In order to prepare this pose some yoginis practice eka pada bhekasana. They put one leg in the position while  the other leg remains stretched. Then they alter legs. My favorite preparation is to lie on my back with the legs bent and the feet next to the body. This stretches the thighs enormously. 

There are always preparation poses, easier variations of a pose and more demanding ones. 

This morning I searched the Internet and found a more demanding variation called supta bhekasana. In this version the back faces the floor and it's rounded. The hands press the feet upwards. I was astonished how difficult it is. I used blocks to explore the version. My knees are in the air. I can try to move them toward the floor. 

Another interesting variation is to do eka pada bhekasana in ustrasana. I'll explore this asana next time. 

To get a good adjustment in bhekasana is wonderful. Sometimes there is no substitute for a good teacher. 

My focus was back bending today. 90 Minutes  is enough. After my intensive back bending asanas I was no more able to do the twists. Fine. Flexibility has many levels. By now I cannot move from intensive back banding asanas to intensive forward bending asanas or intensive twists. The body doesn't allow it. I don't mind. Tomorrow I'll focus again on forward bending asanas.

Sharath's list

Here is a story that I found in the book 'Awakening the spine' by Vanda Scaravelli. She wrote the book when she has been already 80 years old, with decades of yoga experience.

Page 110:

"A man was walking along a road, followed by two foreigners. It happened that this man saw something glittering on the path. He picked it up, observed it, and put it in his pocket.
The other two, behind him, saw what he did and one said to the other: "A bad thing for you, isn't it?" But the other man, who was the Devil, answered: "No, what that man just found is the truth, but I shall help him to organize it".

Yoga cannot be organized.

Any organization or business is not a democratic structure. There are rules, but the member usually have limited influence.

What the chaos in the community tells me: Keep practicing. Focus on the breath, the dristis. Make your own experiences. A yogini is relaxed. Always. Life seems to be unfair, it will always be so.
Cultivate a home practice. It has difficulties, but that's the path.

I'm ready for second series today.

Primary today

What motivated me today to start my yoga practice?
1. I remembered how great it feels to cross out another day in my calender when my practice is over. This is done now and it was satisfying.
2. I watched a movie on omstars, Kino's yoga channel. The 20 minutes tutorial on vinyasas inspired me. I started my practice afterwards.

Yoga can help to get to know yourself when you observe your behavior. I know that documenting actions motivates me also in other areas of my life. It's the same with all the learning tutorials that are available these days. They can give the last kick.

After this movie by Kino I wanted to practice all the vinyasas. I think that the vinyasas make Ashtanga to what it is. This is the specialty of this style of yoga. I got so weak in the last 2 years that it was a great effort just to do them. I couldn't hold chaturanga dandasana. I landed on my belly and rested a fracture of a second before I moved into upward facing dog. But I'm already strong enough to do them. Rome wasn't build in one day. The same is true for my muscles. They need time to grow and to get stronger.

Every practice is a tiny step in the direction. I'll regain the poses only when I practice. Thinking of them is not enough.

I always think of the quote by?????
If you think you can, you're right.
If you think you can't, you're right, too.

I can. I can. I can.

Oh, you're so flexible

Oh, you're so flexible.

Yes, after more than a decade of practicing Ashtanga yoga I got flexible.
A stiff person can become flexible. It's possible.
On the picture is not a flexible person by nature, but someone with discipline. The form is only the surface.

I didn't give up and worked on my crazy goals to lift my legs in that pose. If you try this on a daily basis for years, frustration is inevitable. But one can stand this feeling of frustration. It's temporarily.

Something went wrong, I thought. I explored the pose and found out that it makes no sense trying to lift up the legs. I pointed the feet and stretched the legs forward. Suddenly the heels were away from the ground. They lifted from alone. Reaching the goal was more or less a side effect.

One could formulate a philosophy from this experience: Stretch and you'll lift.

Or: Do something differently.

Or: A decade is nothing, keep practicing.

An asana has reached a peak level, when the outer form is correct AND when the asana feels good. Right now kurmasana is possible, but it doesn't feel good. To hold the pose for 5 quick breaths is enough. There is room to develop this pose again. One day it will be pure pleasure again to stretch into this pose and to relax.

Habits, that make a difference

In January I reflected on habits.

First a definition: A habit is something we do on a regular basis that lasts let's say under 5 minutes, often it's shorter. It's quickly done. It can have a huge influence on one's life. There are positive habits like getting up early and negative habits like smoking. Sometimes one must be a detective to find these little habits that are often performed unconsciously.

One of my favorite habit is to take an ice cold shower in the morning after the warm shower. It's so refreshing. I cultivate this habit since decades.
One of my habits that I wanted to eliminate is to buy a magazine when waiting in line in a grocery store. It costs me so much money and I don't have the time to read all that stuff.


Back to my yoga practice: I wondered if I have habits relating to that practice. The yoga practice is more than a habit. It deserves the name activity. It last longer than just 3 minutes. Much more energy flows into that action.

To dedicate the practice to someone can be a habit in the beginning.

A habit that motivates me is to write in a calender when I've practiced. It's so satisfying to write it down. To fill in the months of my calender with A1 and A2 (Ashtanga first series and Ashtanga second series) is such a little tiny action with a huge influence. I want to decorate the months with my A1 and A2. This tiny habits motivates me to practice.

Salabhasana A and B

My idea yesterday was to practice second series as usual, till I reach the back bending asanas. If an asana feels weak, I wanted to add exercises. At the end of these exercises I wanted to repeat the classic form. I was curious if the performance would be better.

The first exercises aims at opening the chest. The second exercise supported the legs to come up. Shalabasana strengthens the back. To build muscles is always good. It's surely not my favorite asana, but I think it's a good beginning. It's getting harder from now on. 

 


The picture at the end allow me to go deeper into the pose. The additional exercises, the repetitions make sense.
Of course there are many many other exercises. I find it helpful to know in advance what exercises one wants to perform. To make decisions during the practice weakens the mind. It's exhausting enough to keep practicing all the asanas.

After the twists 90 minutes were over. My yoga week has started before breakfast.