Crazy Bikram Fun

Here is Nitin showing us all up with his crazy Camel Pose. "Who does he think he is?"

The Wandering Yogini

Life’s journeys can be like grapevines, twisting around each other, some ending, while others can seemingly twist into eternity. This metaphor is true for my many journeys, so much so, that sometimes I find it difficult to differentiate between them. Which came first? Which am I on? Which have ended? These many journeys are so closely intertwined, they compose one solid branch that is the core of my existence. So, as we’ve all question; what came first the chicken or the egg, I too question what came first the yoga or the travel?



For majority of the time I am convinced that the travel came first; but then again, I think back to my childhood and vaguely remember singing to the trees—if this isn’t a form of yoga, I just don’t know what is. My first “real” yoga class took place in Maui; but I remember sitting in prayer in my hotel room in Costa Rica before that, and before that I recall falling into meditation in the temples outside of Tokyo. These are all forms of yoga, which are so deeply intertwined with my love of travel, almost as if the two go hand in hand. I can’t fly without practicing pranayama breathing, or practicing an asana at the back of the plane. And even when I have absolutely no intention of practicing my practice seems to find me (see image attached to blog post: http://freeyogini.blogspot.com/2008/04/bend-it-through-bikram.html) as during a hike in the south of France I found my “OM”.

It’s the most powerful moment when that realization hits you that this practice is one of the core threads in your life. It changes you…it’s changed me. Which is why I’ve become the wandering yogini.

Down Dog Dilemma

Since last Saturday I’ve been thinking about my Downward Facing Dog, my sad, slippery, down dog.

According to Yoga Journal, Adho Mukha Svanasana is one of the most widely recognized yoga poses. It is supposed to stretch the shoulders, legs, and spine; strengthen throughout the entire body; remove fatigue; increase blood flow to the sinuses; calm the mind, lift the spirits, and improve digestion.

In my practice, all I feel is blood rushing to my face and head, my hands slipping on my mat, and the heel of my hands pressing (uncomfortably) into the floor. I attempt to stabilize, but find myself swaying side-to-side. Where is my balance in this “not so resting” pose?

This morning, all of the sudden, I had one of those “Ah ha!” moments. Again, I am reminded of my lesson in human anatomy. I’ve realized that my elbows hyperextend, which is probably resulting in this loss of balance, and worse yet, puts unnecessary tension and pressure in my joints.

I am mentally forcing myself to be more aware of my body in this posture. I think about it, visualize it, and practice it daily.

And then comes this: An emailed picture of “Sofie’s Perfect Down Dog.” Sofie, a friend’s Lab, so perfectly arches her back and stretches out. She looks so relaxed and happy. I’m learning from her; striving to find this sort of blissful sensation in my own down dog!

Face to Floor

I don’t know if it’s because I wore yoga clothes to work today, or because I touched my head to the ground in Separate Leg Stretching, or because the sun was out and shining beautifully; whatever the reason, I am radiating happiness. I feel this sense of pure joy washing over me. I stretch my arms behind my back and smile. I inhale “OM” and attempt to lock my knees. Everyday I find my practice improving and here, finally, my forehead reaches the ground. I still have work to do…but wow “face to floor” OM.

Crows and Coconuts

High off of the sunshiny weekend I galloped (yes galloped) happily around the Bikram studio. I patiently waited for the 4:30 class to end, for the students to leave so that I could score some freestyle floor time. The room slowly emptied and I quickly laid my mat down, stretching all the way to the floor.
Nitin sat across from me, savoring the spare minutes in the heated room. He stretched his arms and then used his strength and pure core balance to push his whole body up in Salamba Sirsasana (Headstand Pose). I watched, almost jealously, as he maintained the position.
He slowly, methodically, rolled his legs down, toes touching the ground first and then came out of the pose. Refreshment washed over his face. He kindly offered to spot me in my attempt… my poor poor attempt, in which he practically held my legs in place. As I felt the blood rushing to my face he asked me if I could breath, I gasped out a little “no” and he slowly released my ankles. I less than gracefully rolled out and came to my feet.
Once I could breathe again I pushed myself back on my head and practiced bringing my knees to my chest. I realized that the key to this practice is core strength—I kept my abs hard and squeezed every muscle in my body, from my tippy toes to my fingers as I pushed up.
One can only stand on their head for so long (or I can only stand on my head for so long). So I came down to my mat and flipped on all fours, brought my knees to the back of my arms and pushed up into Bakasana (Crow Pose).
Now it was Nitin happily and jealously watching, waiting to take his turn. I tried to maintain that sweet balance, as to not come crashing to earth face-first. Nitin followed my lead and pushed into Crow one, two, three… and crash, face planted into the floor with a loud coconut bang. He looked up absolutely dazed, that “where am I” sort of look.
Once he reoriented himself, he laughed off his coconut crash.
We may be getting a little inversion happy, just last week I crashed and burned in a handstand. Regardless of these little accidents our practice is improving. We may have little battle wounds, signs of dedication; I wear them proudly and have to giggle away these little pains, so that I can gallop (yes gallop) into my next practice.