For May we’ll be practicing Garudasana or Eagle Pose. Garuda was a mythical eagle who had the beak and wings of a bird but the body of a man.

To come into eagle stand in tadasana and find a focal point, then inhale the arms out into a T-shape, as you exhale cross the arms at [...]]]>

Garudasana

For May we’ll be practicing Garudasana or Eagle Pose. Garuda was a mythical eagle who had the beak and wings of a bird but the body of a man.

To come into eagle stand in tadasana and find a focal point, then inhale the arms out into a T-shape, as you exhale cross the arms at the elbows in front of you,* bring the forearms together in front of your face, letting the hands clasp.  Then shift your weight into the right leg, bending the knee, and simultaneously extend the left leg, wrapping it over top of the right leg, trying to get it as high on the thigh as possible.  If your body allows, continue to tuck the back toes behind the right calf.  Muscle bulk may make some of the wrapping in this pose more difficult at first.  The lower you sit in this pose the more intense it becomes.  If you are new to practicing eagle you may want to build up to the full expression of the pose as the effects to the cardiovascular system become intense when coming out of it..  Once in the pose, think of squeezing the legs and arms together.  This compression aids in increasing circulation for the limbs, like a spinal twist does for the torso and vertebral column.  The increased circulation can help alleviate muscle cramps in the calves, remedy varicose veins, and remove stiffness in the shoulders.

This is the most compacted of the standing asanas, which affects the shape of the lungs and therefore our breathing capacity. The crossed arms compress the ribs, and therefore the lungs, while the angle of the hips compresses the lower abdomen.  Your inhaled air will find some of those hard to reach places of the lungs (particularly the very upper cavity). So be aware of keeping the breath even and full in the pose—as you are squeezing the limbs together, feel that you are squeezing the breath in and out.

Inhale. Exhale. Repeat.

*Within great traditions of yoga there is some debate about which arm and leg correlate.  For instance, the great yoga master B.K.S Iyengar and Leslie Kaminoff, author of Yoga Anatomy, instruct us that the top leg and bottom arm should be the same.  While David Coulter, author of Anatomy of Hatha Yoga, and Sivananda yoga instruct us to have opposite knee on top and elbow on the bottom.  That said you may find the teachers at Hosh instructing both versions—by the end of the month you can decide which version you prefer for yourself.

Although having no Sanskrit equivalent, dolphin has the potential to transform your  practice. For one thing, it is probably the single great training pose for headstand.  It can also provide a great alternative to Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha [...]]]> For April, get ready to practice Dolphin and Dolphin Plank pose when you step into a Hosh class.

Although having no Sanskrit equivalent, dolphin has the potential to transform your  practice. For one thing, it is probably the single great training pose for headstand.  It can also provide a great alternative to Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) for students with wrist injuries.  But as a general rule it helps to develop upper body strength, hip flexibility and core strength—both of the back and the abdominals—that is vital to a safe and deep yoga practice.  The strength carries through the rest of our practice.  The focus on our breath and our core in dolphin brings an awareness that will strengthen other postures.

Start from childs pose or a table top position and bring the forearms down to the ground so that the elbows come directly underneath the shoulders—you can check this distance by bringing opposite hand to opposite elbow.  Keeping the elbows where they are, interlace the fingers, releasing the bottom pinky inside the palms to give yourself a very flat base, or if you prefer, stack the hands on top of one another, palms face down.  Now—as if you were coming into down dog—tuck the toes under and begin lengthening the hips up and back.  As you actively push your weight back with the shoulders and triceps the head will come into the V-space created by the forearms—let the neck be long.  Ideally the hips will be flexed at a 90 degree angle.  Decide if your stance is the right length to accomplish this.  If the lower back and hamstrings are tight, especially when first entering the pose, bend the back knees slightly.  This will help to lengthen in the back and get the 90 degree sweet spot.

The energetic action of dolphin is the same as in downdog: the shoulders rotate outwards, opening the scapula, the entire upperbody reaches up and back through the hips.  The quadriceps rotate inwards, as hamstrings rotate outwards.  The legs are actively engaged and the heel is their leader, reaching towards the floor.

In Dolphin Plank the emphasis becomes even more about resisting gravity through the action of the legs, the core, and the triceps.  The arms are kept in the same stance, but the body is aligned as in the plank: the stance may be slightly longer, the hips lift in line with the shoulders, the tailbone tucks down, and the head comes further forward over the forearm V, so that the sternum is in line with the hands.

If you sense the hips collapsing or feel tension in the lumbar spine, try lowering down to one knee, keeping the other leg extended and the heel flexed for a few breaths, then switch the extended leg for the same number of breaths.

If we really want to get our dolphin going (imagine popping up and down out of the water) we can push back in forth between the two, inhaling into the dolphin plank, and exhaling into dolphin.  Inhale.  Exhale. Repeat.

On your exhale release into childs pose.

There are numerous ways to come into Ardha Matsyendrasana and many variations of the pose itself. Throughout March, we will explore some of these versions in class so that you can find which are most [...]]]> March’s pose of the month is Ardha Matsyendrasana or Half Spinal Twist (literally translated from Sanskrit: Half Lord of the Fishes Pose).

There are numerous ways to come into Ardha Matsyendrasana and many variations of the pose itself. Throughout March, we will explore some of these versions in class so that you can find which are most appropriate and satisfying for your practice right now.

Seated, with your legs outstretched in front of you (as if preparing for a forward bend), sit up tall from the base of your sits bones (ischial tuberosities).  Inhaling, bring the left leg into the chest and cross the foot over the right thigh, keeping the calf and shin perpendicular to the floor.  Then bring the right foot back beside the left hip (if the hips are tight, try this sitting on a blanket, or keep the right leg extended out long).  Inhale the arms out into a T-position and then exhale as you twist to the left, simultaneously releasing the left hand to the floor near the sacrum, and allowing the right arm to cross over the left knee, let the gaze follow the left shoulder. If the torso begins hunching forward in doing this, let the right arm gently hug the outside of the left knee.  If you are able to maintain extension in the spine and want to explore, you might try 1) reaching with the right hand for the inside of the left foot, or 2) bending the right elbow, bringing the forearm perpendicular to the floor, or 3) reaching for the inside of the right thigh with the left hand.  Explore which of these variations give you a little bit of leverage to augment the twist.

Keep in mind that the thoracic and cervical spine (the chest and neck areas) are much more flexible than the lumbar and sacral areas.  For this reason it is important to control the torsion from deep in the belly (so that you give yourself more than just a nice neck and shoulder stretch). The main idea is to find a variation of arms and legs that allows you to sit up straight and twist from the sacral and lumbar area first.  If these two things are happening you will get much more satisfaction from the posture and you are on your way to a more flexible spine. So instead of muscling yourself into a version of what Bendy Bill next to you can do, come to a place where you can lengthen as you inhale, and twist from below the navel as you exhale. With each inhale try backing off the twist slightly to aid the extension of the spine.  Be mindful of keeping the shoulders level and the hips relaxed.

On an exhale release back to center, and take a gentle counter twist to the left, letting the left arms cross over the left knee and glancing out over the right shoulder.  Then come back to center and repeat on the opposite side for equal time.

Practicing this half spinal twist not only helps us to increase the lateral flexibility of the spine, but it also allows us greater flexibility in backward and forward bending, in addition to wringing out the spinal column, allowing fresh oxygen enter.  This same wringing action also improves digestion and tones spinal nerves and ligaments.

Inhale to lengthen. Exhale to twist. Repeat.

There are many ways one can come into pigeon—whether beginning from a seated pose, tabletop, or downward dog, ultimately the front leg is bent on the floor, with the heel resting somewhere between [...]]]> For February the pose of the month at Hosh is half-pigeon Kapothasana, or more fully Eka (one) Pada (foot) Raja (royal) kapothasana (pigeon pose).

There are many ways one can come into pigeon—whether beginning from a seated pose, tabletop, or downward dog, ultimately the front leg is bent on the floor, with the heel resting somewhere between the groin and the left edge of the mat (depending on your hip). The opposite leg is back with its entire length prone on the floor. The hips are level and squared off to the mat and the upper body lengthens over the front leg coming into a forward bend, resting on wrists, forearms, or coming all the way down to the floor. In the back bending variations, the legs remain the same, but the torso is vertical, with the chest puffed forward (like a pigeon) and the head and neck reaching back.

The folded forward variation we generally practice at Hosh intensifies the stretch in the hamstrings and the piriformis of the front leg because more weight is over the front leg than in the back bending version of the pose. Tightness in the piriformis (which connects the top of the femur to the inside of the pelvis) is a common cause for pain in the sciatic nerve, because the two cross. Therefore kapothasana is a great preventative stretch. The piriformis’ main job is to act as a stabilizer muscle for the hip. It takes a good minute for its natural spindle reflex to stop firing and for release to begin. This is why in the beginning of this pose it often seems like the body is fighting it. It is also why we call it the yin of our yoga—because it requires calm sustained stretching to release.

In this pose especially it is important to treat your body mindfully so that it trusts you enough to release. Since the mind often begins to chatter more noisily during these more passive poses, actively focus on the breath: inhale into the hip, exhale to release. Inhale. Exhale. Repeat.

Kapothasana by Tara, pictures by Becca