Living Yoga

I just began reading the book The Secret Power of Yoga by Nischala Joy Devi.  It is a translation, or interpretation if you prefer, of the Yoga Sutras, the original philosophical texts that are considered the spiritual foundation of a yoga practice.  It is required reading for any yoga teacher training program whether you believe in the spiritual aspect of a yoga practice or not.

Nischala Joy Devi’s translation in The Secret Power are from a feminine, heart centered and positive prospective.  Now, this doesn’t sound like something I would normally go for because I don’t even like chick flicks, but I was intrigued and picked up a copy.  I just began and plan to devour it slowly but what struck me already was her choice to use positive words in place of negative words.  In the introduction she mentions that in the original sutras (from a masculine perspective) a word translates to “non-stealing,” but that even though there is a “non” in front of it, our eyes & mind focus on the negative part “stealing.”  Nischala swaps “non-stealing” with words like “honesty,” “generosity,” and “integrity.”

This made me think about all the many ways in our society we focus on negative things instead of the positive.  On the news there are far more stories about war and crime than there are about generosity and charity.  I have to admit that I’m addicted to Lost and 24, both shows loaded with testosterone filled violence, I enjoy being shocked and on the edge of my seat.

Only 16 pages into it and The Secret Power of Yoga has already got me thinking.  Fighting violence and negativity with more of the same, only gets you double the negativity and violence.  I’m glad Nischala made her version of the Sutras positive.

In what ways can we start swapping negative words out with positives?

When I decided today’s blog post would be about balance and focus in a yoga practice I googled the term “standing balancing in yoga.”  An article from the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health came up.  What caught my eye was the detailed description on how to do the standing balance, the Flamingo Pose (!), or Marulasana.  I had no idea there was a Flamingo Pose, guess you learn something new every day!

Balance and the ability to focus are directly connected.  After all, if you aren’t fully present while practicing a standing balance, you’ll most likely be all over the place.  Balancing is difficult for most beginning yoginis (although women kick butt in balancing over men), but gets easier with practice.  Some helpful points for standing balances:

-    Find an object not moving to focus on and keep your eyes on it even if you fall out of the pose.
-    Keep your breath steady.
-    Feel the bottom of your standing foot grounded evenly on the mat with toes spread wide.
-    If you fall out, come right back into it to tell your body you aren’t giving up that easily!

In time you’ll find that as your mind settles down, your body does too and balancing becomes a piece of cake.  Nothing can knock your Flamingo down!

People always ask me what I think of hot yoga.  It isn’t my favorite but I occasionally sub hot yoga classes at one of the gyms I teach at in NYC.  People really love it, but as a practitioner I have mixed feelings about it.

Hot yoga has recently become popular because of the Bikram Yoga style, which created controversy when his set sequence of postures became patented (how can you patent something that’s thousands of years old?), but isn’t the only style of hot yoga around.  Some studios offer variations on the Bikram sequence, others offer vinyasa style classes in a heated room.  Guess people just like being hot, sweating and wearing little clothing.

Why not just hang out in a steam room or go to the beach?

I can see the benefits: the heat allows the body to be more flexible so one can deepen the postures and she’s probably profusely sweating any toxins out of her body.  Um…but that might be it.  The downsides are: she’s unnecessarily taxing her body while already doing a physical activity, she has a false sense of flexibility since she probably isn’t that flexible in a cooler environment (thus risking muscle pulls), and if she isn’t careful can suffer from dehydration and heat exhaustion.

My take: if you’re young and relatively healthy, try some hot yoga classes of different styles, but if you’re out of physical shape, have any medical conditions, are older, have high blood pressure or are already very flexible, then hot yoga isn’t right for you.  When in doubt, consult a medical professional before trying it.

Oh yeah, and you definitely want to bring your own, clean mat!

Last Sunday I ran the Adidas Run For the Parks 4 miler in Central Park.  It was my first race in almost 4 years after my first run last Wednesday (with the sore muscle drama) in over a year.  It was a blast.  You might be thinking that I’m only a yoga person, why am I talking up running?  Well, they compliment each other beautifully.  Yoga stretches where running tightens and running keeps the body in great cardiovascular shape.  To me they are the same except running is moving forward on my feet.

If you’ve always wanted to try running but have been intimidated, don’t be!  Here are some reasons why running is an awesome sport:

-    It’s free (after the cost of running shoes and race fees).

-    You can run at any pace you want and can be in any shape to do it.

-    When you compete in a race regular folk run in the same event with famous & elite athletes.

-    It makes your legs look so hot!

-    When you race total strangers cheer for you and you get free bagels!

-    There are groups all over you can join to help you stay motivated.

I could go on but you get the point.  Get out this spring and find a 5K near you to get started.  You’ll thank me when your legs are lookin’ hot.

Whether you’re at home or the office or your home-office, grab a strap, tie or belt to do this awesome shoulder stretch.

The weather has been so gorgeous in New York City that last week I decided to go for a run for the first time in over a year.  After all, I teach indoor cycling and yoga and I figured I’d be in awesome shape.  Yes, and no…

My cardio condition was in such great shape that I felt like running 5 miles.  Fabulous idea!  Nope.  Even with 20 minutes of yoga after, my muscles were wiped out because I didn’t listen to my body and over did it.  By the next day I practically needed a walker to get around and was wincing as I shuffled down the stairs in the subway station.

Normal muscle soreness is an excess of lactic acid (a by-product of muscle contractions) and other waste products in the muscles.  Generally, yoga does help by getting the blood moving in the muscles.  Hot baths with ginger and massage with oil can also help.

The most important thing is listening to your body and respecting your limits.  And rest when you need it.  Trust me.  A thirty two year-old with a walker is not sexy.

My jaw dropped when I read that Madonna, also an Ashtanga yoga practitioner, is going to be fifty this year. Fifty! That’s 5-0! When I was younger I didn’t get her, but now I admire her. She looks incredible (her body is sick), she’s constantly reinventing herself, paving new territory and cranking out #1 singles.

I don’t care if she lip syncs in concert, that wheel pose is beautiful.

Thanks to www.smh.com for the image.

I teach classes in New York City that are 45 minutes of indoor cycling followed by 30 minutes of yoga.  Last week a new student says to me that he may not stay for the yoga portion because he’s never taken a yoga class before.  I hear this a lot at the gyms, “I don’t want to take the yoga because I’ve never done it before.”  Uh…didn’t everyone have a first time taking yoga class?  Why not now?  After all, you don’t want to be an 80 year-old yoga virgin.

No yoga instructor in their right mind would expect a newbie to know how to do the poses perfectly, which is why there are classes and it’s called “practice.”  Even the seemingly most advanced practitioners are still working to open their postures up further, there’s never a finish line in yoga.

When you take your first class, get to the studio or gym a little early and tell the instructor that this is your first class (ah, be gentle) and inform her of any injuries or conditions you have.  I always keep a special eye on the brand new beginners to make sure they are in correct alignment in the postures.

So find a yoga class near you.

Have fun!

In the book The War of Art by Steven Pressfield one’s territory is referred to as an area of expertise, passion and creative fulfillment.  It can be anything from fitness to finance, whatever excites you and gives your eyes that sparkle when you talk about it with others.  Your territory is something that you show up to do every day.  I love the way Steven puts it in the book, “If you were the only person alive on the planet, what would you still do?”  That’s your territory.

I would still do yoga and run.  I’m also actress and love doing it but probably wouldn’t perform if there wasn’t an audience to play to.  So yoga wins.  What is your territory?

Love it.  Own it.  Every day.

The first things I used to think of when I heard the term “core strength” was a flat tummy and ripped abdominals. Yes, those can be nice too, but are secondary in yoga. Not everyone with ripped abs has core strength.

Having core strength in a yoga practice (and in your life) allows you to open up your posture, giving more space for your lungs and other internal organs to function at their best and in turn creating more strength and flexibility in your body. Primarily in yoga when we refer to the core we’re talking about the inner core, not the external abdominal muscles that crunches and sit-ups build.

Try this: Sit comfortably on the floor or in a chair and close your eyes. Notice how your butt is resting on the seat and how your lower back and belly respond to that. If your lower back is arched, you’re not engaging your core. Now imagine that you’re tucking your tailbone underneath you and drawing your belly button back in towards your spine. Keep breathing. This action should bring your sit bones more firmly on your seat (this also helps with hip flexibility) and your lower back to lengthen upwards. Notice what it did to the rest of your body. Probably your chest and shoulders are now more open and confident. Did it change your attitude also? It changes mine.

That’s an awareness exercise and from there you can take that core awareness to more difficult exercises like boat pose and scale pose. It is a simple action that takes little effort and creates more space in your body to breathe and function. Keep reminding yourself during your yoga practice or any other time of the day and notice how it changes everything.

Flat tummy and ripped abs are simply icing on the core cake.