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Day 2: Anusara Yoga
It’s difficult to explain this, but what keeps me coming back to a particular yoga session or teacher is the overall “tone” of the class, comparable to describing the aftertaste of a good wine or dining experience. The ingredients may all be there but it’s in how it’s all put together and experienced by the students that makes it effective and memorable. And so far my experience with the Anusara classes is, well – a jerky kind of energy – where students don’t know what’s coming or how to get out of the yoga poses and so it’s stop – go – stop – next go…
Today’s teacher was obsessed with explaining how to make the sides long by, what looked like to me, a kind of scrunching the shoulders up to her ears. Bizarre, as I watched her demonstrate the “long torso” by lifting her shoulders, both in the Cobra and standing balancers. I’m sure it took her many years to figure out the long torso look but it’s just not translating for us. OK, if I don’t understand what “fill the back with air” means, (and I’ve been around the proverbial yoga block!) then I’m gonna assume the other silent students in the room are also puzzled. (That look of knowing you’re not doing it right but don’t have a clue why).
And I ache at the end of the class – in not necessarily a healthy way – with my wrists still hurting from yesterday and my middle back tweeking after today’s yoga session.
My friend asks me how the Anusara yoga class was when I get home. I shrug my shoulders (making a long torso!)
– OK, just OK and head for a long soak in the tub.
Six Days of Intense Anusara Yoga
- Day 1: A Closer Look at Anusara Yoga
- Day 2: Anusara Yoga
- Day 3: One Size Fits No One
[tags]anusara yoga, yoga poses,teaching yoga[/tags]
It is unfortunate to come out of a yoga class with pain. I know I have had the same experiences. One thing I have done to help me is to let the teacher know before hand. For example “Last week, I had a pinchy lower back after class.” The teacher can then give you better cues and maybe remind you to engage the legs or whatever it is that you need to be mindful of. Most teachers teach because they want to help you. A dialogue between the student and teacher is the only fair way to expect someone to assist your needs.
Side body long is simple, guide the shoulders up temporary, and then rotate them on the back, shoulderblades move tinto the chest without “puffing” the chest out, as you mentioned, you actually puff the kidneys, like filling the kidneys like to balloons, it really feels good you should give it a try, The heart area is actually encouraged to open and soften, not puff out, as you mentioned or stick out, or sink in. Most folks are doing one or the other.
The heat you talk about in Bikram Yoga is to me like taking pain killers before class so I cannot “feel” where my body requires work, the tension you feel is because your re-educated muscles, recruiting muscles that have been getting away without working. Heat, painkillers, reduce sensitivity to the body and its actually state. So the weak areas continue to stay weak and the overstretched areas continue to be overstretched.
Awesome page! Thanks alot for taking your time to publish this, as I found it extremely informative! I enjoy doing yoga because it has definitely helped me open up my mind and body!