Posts Tagged ‘alignment’
Wednesday, February 16th, 2011
Urdhva Kukkutasana (Upward Cock Pose) registers as 18* on BKS Iyengar’s 60* scale of difficulty in Light on Yoga.
I’ve only done Urdhva Kukkutasana once – the time represented by this photo. Getting into Urdhva Kukkutasana requires taking Padmasana legs in Salamba Sirsasana II, then straightening lifting your head off the ground and straightening your arms. Until the moment this picture was taken, I’ve always been terrified to lift my head off the ground and straighten my arms into the final pose.
So, what changed? What special trick did I use to get into Urdhva Kukkutasana this time? The trickiest trick of all – a powerful combination of courage and curiosity. Usually, the internal monologue in the preparations for this yoga pose is “I’m scared to lift my head off the floor.” But, this time, it was different: “What if I lifted my head off the floor? I can do that!” It wasn’t my alignment that needed adjusting; it was my attitude. Changing the way I approached the pose in my mind opened up the possibility that, this time, it could be different. And, lo and behold, it was!
If, like me, you find yourself thinking this pose just isn’t possible for you, think again. Change your mindset to allow for the possibility that someday – maybe years from now – you’ll do it. You’d be surprised what that simplest of adjustments will do for your practice.
Many of us have had this experience with a “nemesis” pose. What pose opened up to you once you adjusted your attitude?
Tags: alignment, arm balances, arm balancing yoga poses, BKS Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Urdhva Kukkutasana
Posted in Urdhva Kukkutasana | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, November 16th, 2010
In Light on Yoga, Iyengar explains that Marichyasana IV (Pose Dedicated to the Sage, Marichi, IV) is a combination of Marichyasana II and Marichyasana III. This yoga pose registers as 11* on Iyengar’s 60* scale of difficulty.
Many asanas represent a combination or culmination of several yoga poses. Marichyasana IV encompasses both the hip and groin opening required in Marichyasana II and the deep twist of Marichyasana III. To perform the pose fully, as Iyengar does, you must create a great deal of opening in the lotus leg and a great deal of spinal flexibility for the twist. You will discover which of these two elements require more of your attention and focus when you begin to combine the two.
Because I have flexible hips, placing my foot into half lotus is fairly easy. But, twisting my spine enough to take the bind isn’t yet possible. So, I focus on isolating the part of the pose that most needs my attention: spinal and shoulder flexibility. Rather than forcing myself into a contorted and misshapen Marichyasana IV, I back off from the parts of the pose that challenge me the greatest so I can focus in on gently creating more space and openness where there is little.
Perhaps your struggle with the pose will be the opposite of mine. If so, take the bind and work with gently opening your hip toward half lotus. Toy with various placements of the lotus leg. Perhaps that foot can rest higher up your leg, closer to your knee, with your foot flexed. Perhaps you can come to half lotus, resting your knee on a block rather than near the floor.
As with so many combination yoga poses, draw upon your innate strengths to solidify a foundation, then explore the more challenging aspects from there. Most importantly, celebrate that which you can do. And remain curious about that which currently eludes you.
Tags: alignment, asanas, BKS Iyengar, hip flexibility, Light on Yoga, Marichyasana II, Marichyasana III, Marichyasana IV, spinal flexibility, yoga poses
Posted in Marichyasana IV | 1 Comment »
Friday, October 29th, 2010
Supta Padangusthasana (Supine Foot to Head Pose) registers as 13* on Iyengar’s 60* scale of difficulty.
Often, we get so caught up in achieving a perceived “goal” within an asana that we lose sight of the other aspects of the pose. We so desperately want to touch our toes in Paschimottanasana that we’ll round our upper backs to get there. In Urdhva Prasarita Ekapadasana we’re so fixated on reaching our extended leg to the sky that we lose a stable and squared off alignment in our hips.
In Supta Padangusthasana, we often focus so much on grabbing our big toe with our hand or reaching our upward leg as close to our head as possible that we lose sight of the grounded leg’s alignment. As you move your upward leg towards your torso, notice the tendency of your grounded leg to rise away from the earth. The grounded leg lifts to compensate for tightness in the extended leg’s hamstring. So, while you may be congratulating yourself on achieving some perceived goal of reaching your leg closer to your head, you’re reducing the efficacy of the asana.
Iyengar beautifully demonstrates Supta Padangusthasana with his leg touching his head and his grounded leg rooted into the ground. Notice how in my version of this pose, my bottom leg rises away from the earth, especially at the back of my thigh.
For now, I prefer to explore Supta Padangusthasana in it’s more preparatory stage, reaching my hand around my big toe and yearning my shoulder down toward the mat. Even then I must continue to reach my grounded leg back down to the earth. When you reach for your big toe, if your bottom leg lifts off the ground, situate a strap around the ball of your extended leg’s foot and hold onto the strap instead.
Rather than viewing pieces of a pose with a goal-oriented mindset, look at the pose from all angles. Viewing the asanas as the sum of all their parts invites a more holistic approach to the practice.
Tags: alignment, asana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Supta Padangusthasana, yoga
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, October 27th, 2010
Iyengar registers Chakrasana (Wheel Pose) as 4* on the 60* scale of difficulty. A 4* asana may seem like one you can jump right into, but handle Chakrasana with great care.
Personally, I can’t or won’t do this pose. I’m not sure which. The pose requires you to begin in a variation of Halasana with your hands planted on the ground, then gently roll your shoulders off the mat and roll onto your head. Yikes! The minute I read these instructions my cervical spine (the area of my spine where my neck is) was on red alert.
I find the risk of injuring or compromising my cervical spine in this pose to be too great to attempt the asana in its entirety. Iyengar, no doubt, performs the asana with ease, but as a far less skilled practitioner, I don’t feel comfortable exploring a pose that puts so much direct pressure on such a delicate part of my spine. For me, the initial preparatory stage of the pose meets my edge.
Moral of the story: Honor your edge and respect your neck. You only get one cervical spine. Make sure you handle it with care.
Which poses do you believe should be approached with the utmost care and caution? How do you honor your edge within your practice?
Tags: alignment, asana, cervical spine, Chakrasana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, neck, yoga
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Sunday, September 12th, 2010
Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose) registers as 10* on the scale of difficulty.
My version of Setu Bandha Sarvangasana looks somewhat different than what Iyengar describes as the pose. In my Setu Bandha Sarvangasana, my feet are hip distance apart, my knees are directly over my ankles, and the entire back of my arms press into the ground to help lift my hips higher. In Iyengar’s Setu Bandha Sarvangasana, your feet touch, your legs are straight, and your hands press into your lumbar spine to help lift your hips higher. Even the way we come into the pose is different: I approach Setu Bandha Sarvangasana from a supine position, with the soles of my feet on the earth; Iyengar approaches the asana from Salamba Sarvangasana I.
Given the number of differences between Iyengar’s version and my version, I wasn’t surprised to see that, when I try Iyengar’s version, I end up somewhere between my typical practice and his instructions. My feet remain slightly apart and my knees remain slightly bent. These deviations from Iyengar’s instructions weren’t so much a conscious choice as they were a force of habit. We often become so accustomed to how we approach an asana that approaching it from another angle becomes difficult. Even when we make an earnest attempt to try something new, sometimes our habits remain written on our bodies.
Yoga unravels many of the habits of our bodies – our tendencies to slump through our shoulders, to crank our necks into wacky positions, to stick out our bellies. But, we create habits in our yoga practice as well. Ritual and consistency always have their place on the mat, but remain aware of tendencies to fall into rote expressions of the poses. By challenging yourself with new adjustments to familiar asanas the poses remain alive, vibrant and genuine. And isn’t that what it’s all about?
Tags: alignment, asana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Setu Bandha Sarvangasana, yoga
Posted in Asanas, Setu Bandha Sarvangasana | No Comments »
Saturday, September 11th, 2010
Parsva Sarvangasana (Side Shoulderstand) registers as 9* on the scale of difficulty.
Iyengar’s version of Parsva Sarvangasana is much more dramatic than mine. Lowering your legs as low to one side as Iyengar does requires great strength in your arms, your wrists, your abs and your back. Today, I don’t have the strength to lower my legs as far to the ground as Iyengar’s. That’s okay. When I find myself faced with poses I’m simply not strong enough to take on fully, I thank myself for what I hope will be many years of yoga practice ahead of me and I remind myself that the practice is not a competition – not even with myself. It’s always enough to just be present, curious, and lighthearted.
How is your yoga practice always enough, just as it is?
Tags: alignment, asana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Parsva Sarvangasana, yoga
Posted in Parsva Sarvangasana | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 8th, 2010
Parsvaika Pada Sarvangasana (Side One-Legged Shoulderstand) registers as 6* on Iyengar’s 60* scale of difficulty.
As with Eka Pada Sarvangasana, in Parsvaika Pada Sarvangasana you must pay careful attention to both legs. Often, we get so caught up in the desire to reach our right foot down to the ground that we forget about the left leg. Then, the left leg sways over to the right in an attempt to assist the right leg closer to the floor. As a result, the right side body crunches, limiting the openness of the pose.
When you practice Parsvaika Pada Sarvangasana, actively press up through the ball of your left foot and internally rotate your left leg. As you lower the right leg down to the ground, remain watchful of the left leg’s position. If it starts to sway over to the right, back out of the fold in the right leg a bit to allow your left leg to remain straight and strong.
Tags: alignment, asana, Eka Pada Sarvangasana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Parsvaika Pada Sarvangasana, yoga
Posted in Eka Pada Sarvangasana, Parsvaika Pada Sarvangasana | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
Eka Pada Sarvangasana (One Legged Shoulderstand) registers as 5* on Iyengar’s 60* scale of difficulty.
This pose combines two of my favorite asanas – Halasana and Salamba Sarvangasana I – into one magical moment. But, when you extend your right leg overhead into Halasana, you may compromise the alignment of your left leg by externally rotating your left inner thigh open, away from your midline. Instead, your upstretched leg should internally rotate so that your inner thigh rolls in toward your midline and you square off your hips. However, sometimes we get so focused on watching the right foot reach the floor that we lose sight of the alignment of the left leg.
Rather than focusing on reaching your right foot to the ground, focus on maintaining the alignment of the pose. Perhaps try the asana with the crown of your head about a leg’s distance away from a wall so that you can gently place the ball of your right foot onto the wall behind your head. This adjustment will allow you to explore your way into a deeper expression of Eka Pada Sarvangasana more carefully – listening to the feedback in your left leg the whole time.
Tags: alignment, asana, Eka Pada Sarvangasana, Halasana, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Salamba Sarvangasana I, yoga
Posted in Asanas, Eka Pada Sarvangasana, Halasana, Salamba Sarvangasana I | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, August 17th, 2010
Niralamba Sarvangasana II (Unsupported Shoulderstand II) registers as 4* on the scale of difficulty.
Iyengar says, “This is the hardest of the Sarvangasana poses. It enables one to extend the spinal vertebrae more than in the other Sarvangasanas and thus helps one to achieve a perfect Salamba Sarvangasana.”
Extending the vertebrae in Niralamba Sarvangasana II isn’t quite so easy, though. As I discovered in Salamba Sarvangasana II and Niralamba Sarvangasana I, maintaining an erect spine grows increasingly difficult in the Sarvangasana cycle since you must rely more and more heavily on your back muscles to support you. Since I’m not yet capable of supporting my weight on my upper back, I don’t reap the benefits of Niralamba Sarvangasana II.
All practitioners struggle with acknowledging the moments when an interest in “achieving” a pose gets in the way of experiencing the pose’s benefits. Sometimes, we become so focused on an end goal that we fail to connect with the most important effects of the asanas. Practicing Niralamba Sarvangasana II put me in direct contact with the interplay between achievement of an asana and the call to honor one’s body. Ultimately, I heeded the call and gently replaced my hands on the earth.
Tags: alignment, Iyengar, Light on Yoga, Niralamba Sarvangasana I, Niralamba Sarvangasana II, Salamba Sarvangasana II, yoga
Posted in Asanas, Niralamba Sarvangasana II | 1 Comment »
