tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2010:/selfpractice/48 2006-10-20T20:29:09Z Movable Type 3.31 tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5873 2006-10-20T20:18:51Z 2006-10-20T20:29:09Z

How does Yoga work without vinyasa? Its so much fun anyways, I don't think I could dispense with it. The temp of the room I practiced in this afternoon was 64, but I still worked up a pretty good sweat by navasana. Progressing into handstand with navasana is slow going still, but seems like I am unlocking some secrets. It IS a strength thing, partially, but a lot of it has to do with how you use the breath and pivoting forward, etc. Well, jumpthroughs are progressing along, too. I have started pausing during some jumpthroughs for fun and to work a little strength. On the jumpbacks, I've started pausing and really extending the exhale once I land the feet, in chataranga. I feel like that really builds good strength and good form, too (it becomes obvious when you hold something that you must have good form). I have lost sight of mula bandha as hardcore as I had a hold of it a few weeks ago. I don't know why this has left. Perhaps I need to more consciously engage it, although it doesn't really affect my practice as far as I can tell. I also think its time to start working on dwi pada, but I am pretty comfortable with my practice as it is now. Perhaps thats all the more reason to add on some mayhem....

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice How does Yoga work without vinyasa? Its so much fun anyways, I don't think I could dispense with it. The temp of the room I practiced in this afternoon was 64, but I still worked up a pretty good sweat by navasana. Progressing into handstand with navasana is slow going still, but seems like I am unlocking some secrets. It IS a strength thing, partially, but a lot of it has to do with how you use the breath and pivoting forward, etc. Well, jumpthroughs are progressing along, too. I have started pausing during some jumpthroughs for fun and to work a little strength. On the jumpbacks, I've started pausing and really extending the exhale once I land the feet, in chataranga. I feel like that really builds good strength and good form, too (it becomes obvious when you hold something that you must have good form). I have lost sight of mula bandha as hardcore as I had a hold of it a few weeks ago. I don't know why this has left. Perhaps I need to more consciously engage it, although it doesn't really affect my practice as far as I can tell. I also think its time to start working on dwi pada, but I am pretty comfortable with my practice as it is now. Perhaps thats all the more reason to add on some mayhem. tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5825 2006-10-14T20:15:58Z 2006-10-14T20:22:06Z

Had the opportunity to attend an ashtanga workshop an Asheville ashtanga teacher was putting on this week. Its a 6 day workshop and I only had a chance to go friday morning. Really good group of people though, from my first impression. Would of been fun to have a chance to spend more time there but I am wall to wall with school work these days. Anyways, the teacher putting on the workshop invited me to come when/if I could to demonstrate how I did the vinyasas. I was super honored to be asked to do this and somewhat shocked, too. I guess I don't consider many points of my practice to be worthy of demoing to people wanting to learn as much about the Practice as possible so they can effectively teach. But, I HAVE been working hard on my vinyasas so it felt really good to get recognition. Well, I was somewhat nervous showing how I did the liftups, jumpbacks, throughs, etc. But, it went well, I think. Now I'm super sore from trying so hard and repeatedly showing the vinyasa. Feels really good, I love the sore muscle feel. Lately I haven't had that because my practice has become sort of day in day out same ole' same ole'. Its good to break things up and now I have more motivation to go further in the vinyasas. I am thinking about working more ardently at lifting into handstand from navasana. Seems do-able now, actually, if still quite a few months (years?) of HARD practice. That's all thats going on in my yoga world. Back to school work for me! Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice Had the opportunity to attend an ashtanga workshop an Asheville ashtanga teacher was putting on this week. Its a 6 day workshop and I only had a chance to go friday morning. Really good group of people though, from my first impression. Would of been fun to have a chance to spend more time there but I am wall to wall with school work these days. Anyways, the teacher putting on the workshop invited me to come when/if I could to demonstrate how I did the vinyasas. I was super honored to be asked to do this and somewhat shocked, too. I guess I don't consider many points of my practice to be worthy of demoing to people wanting to learn as much about the Practice as possible so they can effectively teach. But, I HAVE been working hard on my vinyasas so it felt really good to get recognition. Well, I was somewhat nervous showing how I did the liftups, jumpbacks, throughs, etc. But, it went well, I think. Now I'm super sore from trying so hard and repeatedly showing the vinyasa. Feels really good, I love the sore muscle feel. Lately I haven't had that because my practice has become sort of day in day out same ole' same ole'. Its good to break things up and now I have more motivation to go further in the vinyasas. I am thinking about working more ardently at lifting into handstand from navasana. Seems do-able now, actually, if still quite a few months (years?) of HARD practice. That's all thats going on in my yoga world. Back to school work for me! Peace, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5708 2006-09-23T12:16:45Z 2006-09-23T12:25:31Z

I really have hit a tempo with my practice. I feel like the practice week just flies by. I'm generally working pretty hard during practice, but I do not have that deep and bone penetrating tiredness that I experienced this summer. Thats pretty good, because that phase of my ashtanga practice was not the most fun! What has helped a lot in the last few weeks: -Doing "sets" of urdhva dhanurasana - 2x3, raise up for 5 breaths, lower on exhale, raise on inhale for another five, repeat, rest 5 breaths, repeat set. Its great and is just what I need to build stamina. Stamina has been a big hindrance to my vinyasas during second. Now they are feeling stronger which is much more satisfying. -Using MB as a point of dharana. This one is apparent to a lot of practitioners, but only became obvious to me after a few weeks of MB exploration. It really is just the perfect point of concentration. -Extending the breath. This arose from practicing pranayama and I *think* becoming more aware of my breath as a result. I realized at times my breath was borderline gasping. By extending it I have calmed my bodymind and can work on a deeper level than simply muscular tissue. -Taking my time. There is no hurry to "get" dwi pada (I've got my hands full with eka pada!). I've realized the last couple months that the practice works best for me when it is done evenly and not frenetically. The new pose comes when it is ready, at a natural time. I have to mention along this line, my "anxiety" about new poses (especially titta A and pincha M) have decreased dramatically. If I'm not pushing myself for new poses then once the poses come I will feel completely ready for them, rather than maintaining this partial field of doubt and resistance (which probably had a lot to do with my energy levels when transitioning into 2nd). Thats all thats going on in my Ashtanga World. A LOT of other stuff is happening, namely working on applying to graduate school and generally studying/reading/thinking about classes. Life is good, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice I really have hit a tempo with my practice. I feel like the practice week just flies by. I'm generally working pretty hard during practice, but I do not have that deep and bone penetrating tiredness that I experienced this summer. Thats pretty good, because that phase of my ashtanga practice was not the most fun! What has helped a lot in the last few weeks: -Doing "sets" of urdhva dhanurasana - 2x3, raise up for 5 breaths, lower on exhale, raise on inhale for another five, repeat, rest 5 breaths, repeat set. Its great and is just what I need to build stamina. Stamina has been a big hindrance to my vinyasas during second. Now they are feeling stronger which is much more satisfying. -Using MB as a point of dharana. This one is apparent to a lot of practitioners, but only became obvious to me after a few weeks of MB exploration. It really is just the perfect point of concentration. -Extending the breath. This arose from practicing pranayama and I *think* becoming more aware of my breath as a result. I realized at times my breath was borderline gasping. By extending it I have calmed my bodymind and can work on a deeper level than simply muscular tissue. -Taking my time. There is no hurry to "get" dwi pada (I've got my hands full with eka pada!). I've realized the last couple months that the practice works best for me when it is done evenly and not frenetically. The new pose comes when it is ready, at a natural time. I have to mention along this line, my "anxiety" about new poses (especially titta A and pincha M) have decreased dramatically. If I'm not pushing myself for new poses then once the poses come I will feel completely ready for them, rather than maintaining this partial field of doubt and resistance (which probably had a lot to do with my energy levels when transitioning into 2nd). Thats all thats going on in my Ashtanga World. A LOT of other stuff is happening, namely working on applying to graduate school and generally studying/reading/thinking about classes. Life is good, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5670 2006-09-17T21:36:18Z 2006-09-17T21:38:29Z

These posts were from between August 28-September 12. I haven't had a chance to log them in until now... Chikitsa! Ah...I love primary only days. Much more so now that I'm doing only two thirds of it on a regular basis. The rollback/up asanas are really fun to play around with and move deeper in while searching for that perfect point of balance. It really does seem like the series is purifying, a very effective form of therapy. After practicing this morning my body and mind both were vibrating. Speaking of vibrating, I've been experiencing a semi-strange feeling, right above and deeper inside my body than my perineum - a sort of fast vibrating that comes on anywhere 3-4 hours after practicing. It lasts about 5-10 seconds, is unobtrusive and somewhat pleasant. It feels like a very tenuous hold on a very deep mula bandha. Speaking of bandhas, I really have to say that the biggest benefit of doing pranayama so far has been tightening my hold on mula and uddiyana bandha (specifically uddiyana). Also on a more gross physical level I am seeing a lot of muscular development in my abdominals and obliques. I guess those retentions and deep focus on the bandhas is doing something down there! We'll see... Love, Andy Whose ankles are those!? I grabbed heels on the descent in kapo and then lifted back up and moved hands around ankles. It was sort of a weird feeling, it was not a strain, it felt natural to do it (I moved them there without even thinking about it). Then stayed 8 breaths and pressed up into kapo B (part of the way with hands on soles of feet which feels GOOD). I really think I am on to something here working on opening my chest muscles. Its going to help open my shoulders a lot, I think. Man, I need it, though. Those shoulders have posed one issue after another to me. All part of the process... Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! (Got Heels!) There is no feeling quite like dropping back into kapotasana and having your vertebrae pop one after the other, sequentially, up your spine into the thoracic. Stimulating to say the least. I haven't done my regular practice for 5 days now so I was surprised in kapotasana that I went deeper than ever before (eventually worked into holding somewhere between heels and ankles). I think ankle grab on the descent is coming. There is the possibility of joining a community Ashtanga group here in Boone. Our one Ashtanga teacher here in Boone was talking to me about it last spring and mentioned he wanted to start a group. That would be a great step in my practice, to be allowed the opportunity to practice with others and experience that energy I discovered the few times I've practiced in a mysore style setting. Pranayama Lite Pranayama was a bit of a struggle today. I'm discovering how subtle the body is; any sort of major or abrupt shift in mental/emotional balance drastically affects the physical body. Moving back into my apartment and starting classes is a very big change in my lifestyle. Mainly, I was struggling with exhale retentions (I've been comfortably holding the breath outside for 20 seconds). I backed down to 15 second retentions. The inhale retentions were not a struggle so I kept them at 30 seconds. I was also experimenting around with drinking coffee before pranayama (here's too much information for you, but it helps fully jumpstart the bowels (empty bowels are key for strong pranayama!)). On a similar note, have been experimenting moving around uddiyana/central nauli kriya from before, after, or both. These kriyas feel really good and effectively wake up the bandhas. I'm pretty sure I'll just go ahead and do it before and after. I tell you what, pranayama, nauli, and all those liftup and jumpbacks are really working my core. Its great. I'm still trying to isolate left and right nauli. I just can't seem to figure it out, although the other day while trying to isolate one (I forget which) I think I began to almost achieve it. That alludes to another benefit of these two kriyas - greater abdominal awareness. So, anyways, my exhale retentions have backed down and I will keep them backed down until I can comfortably bring them back up. I think I am going to wait to move onto the third pranayama until I can comfortably do 25 sec inhale retention and 15 sec exhale retention. Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice These posts were from between August 28-September 12. I haven't had a chance to log them in until now... Chikitsa! Ah...I love primary only days. Much more so now that I'm doing only two thirds of it on a regular basis. The rollback/up asanas are really fun to play around with and move deeper in while searching for that perfect point of balance. It really does seem like the series is purifying, a very effective form of therapy. After practicing this morning my body and mind both were vibrating. Speaking of vibrating, I've been experiencing a semi-strange feeling, right above and deeper inside my body than my perineum - a sort of fast vibrating that comes on anywhere 3-4 hours after practicing. It lasts about 5-10 seconds, is unobtrusive and somewhat pleasant. It feels like a very tenuous hold on a very deep mula bandha. Speaking of bandhas, I really have to say that the biggest benefit of doing pranayama so far has been tightening my hold on mula and uddiyana bandha (specifically uddiyana). Also on a more gross physical level I am seeing a lot of muscular development in my abdominals and obliques. I guess those retentions and deep focus on the bandhas is doing something down there! We'll see... Love, Andy Whose ankles are those!? I grabbed heels on the descent in kapo and then lifted back up and moved hands around ankles. It was sort of a weird feeling, it was not a strain, it felt natural to do it (I moved them there without even thinking about it). Then stayed 8 breaths and pressed up into kapo B (part of the way with hands on soles of feet which feels GOOD). I really think I am on to something here working on opening my chest muscles. Its going to help open my shoulders a lot, I think. Man, I need it, though. Those shoulders have posed one issue after another to me. All part of the process... Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! (Got Heels!) There is no feeling quite like dropping back into kapotasana and having your vertebrae pop one after the other, sequentially, up your spine into the thoracic. Stimulating to say the least. I haven't done my regular practice for 5 days now so I was surprised in kapotasana that I went deeper than ever before (eventually worked into holding somewhere between heels and ankles). I think ankle grab on the descent is coming. There is the possibility of joining a community Ashtanga group here in Boone. Our one Ashtanga teacher here in Boone was talking to me about it last spring and mentioned he wanted to start a group. That would be a great step in my practice, to be allowed the opportunity to practice with others and experience that energy I discovered the few times I've practiced in a mysore style setting. Pranayama Lite Pranayama was a bit of a struggle today. I'm discovering how subtle the body is; any sort of major or abrupt shift in mental/emotional balance drastically affects the physical body. Moving back into my apartment and starting classes is a very big change in my lifestyle. Mainly, I was struggling with exhale retentions (I've been comfortably holding the breath outside for 20 seconds). I backed down to 15 second retentions. The inhale retentions were not a struggle so I kept them at 30 seconds. I was also experimenting around with drinking coffee before pranayama (here's too much information for you, but it helps fully jumpstart the bowels (empty bowels are key for strong pranayama!)). On a similar note, have been experimenting moving around uddiyana/central nauli kriya from before, after, or both. These kriyas feel really good and effectively wake up the bandhas. I'm pretty sure I'll just go ahead and do it before and after. I tell you what, pranayama, nauli, and all those liftup and jumpbacks are really working my core. Its great. I'm still trying to isolate left and right nauli. I just can't seem to figure it out, although the other day while trying to isolate one (I forget which) I think I began to almost achieve it. That alludes to another benefit of these two kriyas - greater abdominal awareness. So, anyways, my exhale retentions have backed down and I will keep them backed down until I can comfortably bring them back up. I think I am going to wait to move onto the third pranayama until I can comfortably do 25 sec inhale retention and 15 sec exhale retention. Peace, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5669 2006-09-12T21:34:56Z 2006-09-17T21:35:43Z

What is it to maintain a practice with this Yoga? It sends powerful ripple effects throughout my body and mind. Of course the practice is strong and is meant to effect this type of change, but also I think a lot of this comes from being a person who thrives best under a routine and pattern. Indeed, I often find myself trying to regulate my life (not always succeeding!) to an even cadence. With that, I've learned a responsibility to myself and my well-being to allow change and in fact embrace change. Going back to school has been a big change in my life, in a great way. I really am suited to be a student. I love the books, the afternoons studying, morning preparation, the essays and papers to write, and the planning for future academic involvement. It also gives me a perfect environment to cultivate my Ashtanga practice. Its also, incidentally, one of the main reasons I haven't been filling in this blog as routinely as I have been. I hope to fall into a pattern and be able to start back to regular entries though (I've posted this new entry and also one retroactive entry from a week or so ago that I didn't have time to post before). What's new? Well, I've been steadily practicing away at first and my chunk of second (stopping after eka pada sirsasana). I've started binding feet in supta vajrasana and leaning back in a bend (although I haven't been able to go back all the way without having my legs anchored down). But I feel like I can anatomically learn to do it without support or help from another person. I have started consistently nailing bakasana B on the second attempt (three days in a row now). I feel like the muscle memory and coordination is developing so I'll be able to start getting it first attempt. This will be a great improvement in the flow of that chunk of the series since messing up there breaks the concentration quite a bit (add that to the fact that I'm "nearly done" and its hard to kick the dharana back in at that point). I've started to really enjoy the twists after bakasana. When I first started doing them I didn't have a clue about how to go about practicing them. They didn't seem as "twisty" as mari C/D or pasasana and I was very confused jumping in and out of them in vinyasa (still am to a certain extent - which leg tucked? which leg on top? twist to what side?). They really do work unique grouping of muscles though, stretching and strengthening. They feel great also! And that leads to eka pada sirsasana. I really like this asana and on those really flexy days I see how its going to be such a pleasure to practice (with the leg staying without having to hold). But, usually on all normal flexibility days its quite a struggle and I'm sure not a very aesthetically pleasing sight to witness (thank god for self-practice! ha!). I try to just evenly breathe and calmly work at my edge at that moment in time, but it doesn't always happen and I find myself struggling sometimes. I think the primary reason for this is that putting my leg behind my head is the first asana in the Ashtanga system that has really challenged my flexibility in such a way that there is "no way, no how" to pass on before spending quite some time working on opening it. So, I'm stopping at eka pada (spending ten breaths each leg) until I can do it comfortably, unassisted with hands, and without strain on the neck. It might be beneficial I think in the near future (even without achieving effortless leg behind head) to start practicing the forward bend component of eka pada. I've never tried it, but it would seem to help open the hips in a way that might be symbiotic to the upright version. But, being stopped at an asana is OK. Its probably even a good thing for me to stay at one point for a little while and work on not only hip opening but also stamina/strength building. My practice is just going to keep getting longer and longer so it will pay in the end to take time slowly building it, making sure not to "overextend" myself. The more weeks that roll by are not wasted of course. I know I still need this solid and steady effort in first series work (which I will need before I decide to "split" and do only second series, sometime around pincha mayurasana). So, the process of daily practice continues. I am so happy to be able to practice and live in this way. Its...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice What is it to maintain a practice with this Yoga? It sends powerful ripple effects throughout my body and mind. Of course the practice is strong and is meant to effect this type of change, but also I think a lot of this comes from being a person who thrives best under a routine and pattern. Indeed, I often find myself trying to regulate my life (not always succeeding!) to an even cadence. With that, I've learned a responsibility to myself and my well-being to allow change and in fact embrace change. Going back to school has been a big change in my life, in a great way. I really am suited to be a student. I love the books, the afternoons studying, morning preparation, the essays and papers to write, and the planning for future academic involvement. It also gives me a perfect environment to cultivate my Ashtanga practice. Its also, incidentally, one of the main reasons I haven't been filling in this blog as routinely as I have been. I hope to fall into a pattern and be able to start back to regular entries though (I've posted this new entry and also one retroactive entry from a week or so ago that I didn't have time to post before). What's new? Well, I've been steadily practicing away at first and my chunk of second (stopping after eka pada sirsasana). I've started binding feet in supta vajrasana and leaning back in a bend (although I haven't been able to go back all the way without having my legs anchored down). But I feel like I can anatomically learn to do it without support or help from another person. I have started consistently nailing bakasana B on the second attempt (three days in a row now). I feel like the muscle memory and coordination is developing so I'll be able to start getting it first attempt. This will be a great improvement in the flow of that chunk of the series since messing up there breaks the concentration quite a bit (add that to the fact that I'm "nearly done" and its hard to kick the dharana back in at that point). I've started to really enjoy the twists after bakasana. When I first started doing them I didn't have a clue about how to go about practicing them. They didn't seem as "twisty" as mari C/D or pasasana and I was very confused jumping in and out of them in vinyasa (still am to a certain extent - which leg tucked? which leg on top? twist to what side?). They really do work unique grouping of muscles though, stretching and strengthening. They feel great also! And that leads to eka pada sirsasana. I really like this asana and on those really flexy days I see how its going to be such a pleasure to practice (with the leg staying without having to hold). But, usually on all normal flexibility days its quite a struggle and I'm sure not a very aesthetically pleasing sight to witness (thank god for self-practice! ha!). I try to just evenly breathe and calmly work at my edge at that moment in time, but it doesn't always happen and I find myself struggling sometimes. I think the primary reason for this is that putting my leg behind my head is the first asana in the Ashtanga system that has really challenged my flexibility in such a way that there is "no way, no how" to pass on before spending quite some time working on opening it. So, I'm stopping at eka pada (spending ten breaths each leg) until I can do it comfortably, unassisted with hands, and without strain on the neck. It might be beneficial I think in the near future (even without achieving effortless leg behind head) to start practicing the forward bend component of eka pada. I've never tried it, but it would seem to help open the hips in a way that might be symbiotic to the upright version. But, being stopped at an asana is OK. Its probably even a good thing for me to stay at one point for a little while and work on not only hip opening but also stamina/strength building. My practice is just going to keep getting longer and longer so it will pay in the end to take time slowly building it, making sure not to "overextend" myself. The more weeks that roll by are not wasted of course. I know I still need this solid and steady effort in first series work (which I will need before I decide to "split" and do only second series, sometime around pincha mayurasana). So, the process of daily practice continues. I am so happy to be able to practice and live in this way. Its a great thing to be a part of. tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5621 2006-09-10T01:00:15Z 2006-09-10T01:29:22Z

Well then! I haven't done an entry in quite some time. This one will be short but with the promise of a couple retroactive posts to come tomorrow. I have been wall to wall with work and settling into classes. It been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The leg behind the head odyssey has completely changed in feeling and effort. Its been epic, the last few practices everyday after practice a different part of my body was sore, first the hamstring, then the hips, then the lower back, then finally the neck. And then one day things just felt strangely a LOT more open. The right side is now staying without holding, but cradling head with hands to protect strain on the neck and the left side is coming along nicely, about half the time its as open as the right and the other times it needs a few more breaths to get there. I'm spending 20 breaths total in eka pada sirsasana every practice (10 each side after supta k and 10 each side doing eka pada at the end of my practice). That has really helped me a lot. Oddly I haven't been doing much extracurricular passive stretching and it hasn't seemed to hinder me at all. I did some stuff today and could noticeably tell a difference between passive flexibility compared to last time I had tried some. I do feel like it helps keep things open. Pretty soon I hope to start forward folding in eka pada sirsasana and then someday try to figure out dwi pada! Bakasana B went VERY well last week. I nailed it every single practice, first try, which was a great feeling. We'll see how this week goes. I'm learning its best to not focus so hard on improvement or goals and just let things come as they will. I notice the change and fluctuation but try not to obsess over getting "better." Classes are good for that, I am so busy my practice has been just one of the important things of the day. After that I have to shower quickly and munch down some food then head out to classes (early classes at 11!). As we say (inside joke): I'm almost like a real person now. Pranayama has settled into a great pace. Its great to wake up with the 1, 2, 3 punch of zazen, pranayama, and asana. That puts zing into my day but sometimes a little fuzzy headed for a couple hours! Peace and Love! Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice Well then! I haven't done an entry in quite some time. This one will be short but with the promise of a couple retroactive posts to come tomorrow. I have been wall to wall with work and settling into classes. It been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The leg behind the head odyssey has completely changed in feeling and effort. Its been epic, the last few practices everyday after practice a different part of my body was sore, first the hamstring, then the hips, then the lower back, then finally the neck. And then one day things just felt strangely a LOT more open. The right side is now staying without holding, but cradling head with hands to protect strain on the neck and the left side is coming along nicely, about half the time its as open as the right and the other times it needs a few more breaths to get there. I'm spending 20 breaths total in eka pada sirsasana every practice (10 each side after supta k and 10 each side doing eka pada at the end of my practice). That has really helped me a lot. Oddly I haven't been doing much extracurricular passive stretching and it hasn't seemed to hinder me at all. I did some stuff today and could noticeably tell a difference between passive flexibility compared to last time I had tried some. I do feel like it helps keep things open. Pretty soon I hope to start forward folding in eka pada sirsasana and then someday try to figure out dwi pada! Bakasana B went VERY well last week. I nailed it every single practice, first try, which was a great feeling. We'll see how this week goes. I'm learning its best to not focus so hard on improvement or goals and just let things come as they will. I notice the change and fluctuation but try not to obsess over getting "better." Classes are good for that, I am so busy my practice has been just one of the important things of the day. After that I have to shower quickly and munch down some food then head out to classes (early classes at 11!). As we say (inside joke): I'm almost like a real person now. Pranayama has settled into a great pace. Its great to wake up with the 1, 2, 3 punch of zazen, pranayama, and asana. That puts zing into my day but sometimes a little fuzzy headed for a couple hours! Peace and Love! Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5463 2006-08-18T14:16:22Z 2006-08-18T14:40:41Z

Pranayama! It could not come at a more appropriate time for me in my Yoga practice. It is helping me understand the purpose of my Yoga practice. Practicing asanas and pranayama is an exciting journey, as I have set out with a sense of Self-discovery. In not knowing exactly why (or leaving this question open-ended) I have allowed myself to exercise some old thoughts, prejudices, and ideas out of my system. Like sitting meditation, this practice resists definition. It is the Self. It is Life, the rippling of mind, time, and space. Rechaka Kumbhaka: Emptiness. I feel a sense of non-abiding. Yet also there is a sense of immediateness and connectedness. There are no boundaries. Puraka Kumbhaka: Form. The energy running through my body is tangibly present, pulsating even. It feels useful. As if, given the opportunity to learn, I could manipulate it to reach a great inner resevoir of strength. I am backing away from my asana practice for a few days to let my body and mind heal. I will take my rest time actively (running, gently stretching, working on core muscles). I think this is not only a good idea physically, but also mentally. I start classes on tuesday and I need to be fresh and ready to dedicate myself to my studies. Also I am really looking forward to having access to the swimming pool on campus. I plan to build up to swimming a mile (32 laps of the 50m pool) regularly. I think this will be a great opportunity to build lean upper body mass as well as condition and regulate breathing/lung capacity and generally get myself back into cardiovascular shape. I will continue with my pranayama practice everyday (the first two sequences now take me 30 minutes to complete). Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice Pranayama! It could not come at a more appropriate time for me in my Yoga practice. It is helping me understand the purpose of my Yoga practice. Practicing asanas and pranayama is an exciting journey, as I have set out with a sense of Self-discovery. In not knowing exactly why (or leaving this question open-ended) I have allowed myself to exercise some old thoughts, prejudices, and ideas out of my system. Like sitting meditation, this practice resists definition. It is the Self. It is Life, the rippling of mind, time, and space. Rechaka Kumbhaka: Emptiness. I feel a sense of non-abiding. Yet also there is a sense of immediateness and connectedness. There are no boundaries. Puraka Kumbhaka: Form. The energy running through my body is tangibly present, pulsating even. It feels useful. As if, given the opportunity to learn, I could manipulate it to reach a great inner resevoir of strength. I am backing away from my asana practice for a few days to let my body and mind heal. I will take my rest time actively (running, gently stretching, working on core muscles). I think this is not only a good idea physically, but also mentally. I start classes on tuesday and I need to be fresh and ready to dedicate myself to my studies. Also I am really looking forward to having access to the swimming pool on campus. I plan to build up to swimming a mile (32 laps of the 50m pool) regularly. I think this will be a great opportunity to build lean upper body mass as well as condition and regulate breathing/lung capacity and generally get myself back into cardiovascular shape. I will continue with my pranayama practice everyday (the first two sequences now take me 30 minutes to complete). Peace, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5457 2006-08-17T14:26:37Z 2006-08-17T14:43:50Z

It has been a hard practice week for me. Everything has felt multiple times harder than normal, my shoulder has been hurting on and off both during practice and during the day. I am interested in how my mental and emotional stability is affected by my physical stability and the perceived quality of the practice from day to day. I modified my regular practice again since my shoulder wouldn't take much today. I practiced up to navasana and then went to closing. It was touch and go for awhile there whether I would cry out in anger/self-pity, which looking back on it after an hour or so of distance seems kind of silly. But, at the same time the practice means a lot to me. I think what is happening is the pranayama practice I am doing right before my asana practice is bringing up a lot of latent emotions/mental states I have regarding my practice. I am carrying around quite a lot of mental baggage in regards to what I think and feel about my practice. What it should be like. How things aren't good if I'm not feeling strong. I don't want to come off as a whiner or a complainer, but at the same time I want to declare my weaknesses openly, honestly, and up front. The fact that Ashtanga Yoga crushes me physically, mentally, and emotionally from time to time is not a fault of either the practice or me as an individual. In fact, it is a reason that I chose as intense a practice as Ashtanga, and continue to try to practice it at an intensity suited to this type of transformation. I am looking for change, for growth. At the same time, like in the midst of rechaka kumbhaka, I am aligning with the complete stillness and unity of reality. It has always been like this: quiet. Love, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice should be like. How things aren't good if I'm not feeling strong. I don't want to come off as a whiner or a complainer, but at the same time I want to declare my weaknesses openly, honestly, and up front. The fact that Ashtanga Yoga crushes me physically, mentally, and emotionally from time to time is not a fault of either the practice or me as an individual. In fact, it is a reason that I chose as intense a practice as Ashtanga, and continue to try to practice it at an intensity suited to this type of transformation. I am looking for change, for growth. At the same time, like in the midst of rechaka kumbhaka, I am aligning with the complete stillness and unity of reality. It has always been like this: quiet. Love, Andy]]> tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5449 2006-08-16T15:05:52Z 2006-08-16T15:47:21Z

Well, I was grasping at my ankles on monday and apparently (as far as I can tell) this is the cause of my shoulder flaring up again with some pain/instability. This started sometime after yesterday's practice (which as far as I remember was pretty normal, if not a little sluggish). I choose the words grasping in a nonphysical sense or I should say metaphysical sense. That is, my attempts to reach my ankles were an overstepping of my limits. I've dealt on and off for the past couple years with the concept of self-violence in personal discipline and willpower. Its been good for me to think about remaining natural and nonviolent not only of course to others but also myself. This might at any point in my development mean to pull back, rest, and recuperate, rather than pushing forward with some sort of military-like, brutal will power. This kind of pushing has no place, for me personally, in my Yoga practice. It draws my energy away from where I am trying to place it. So, today I did not do my regular practice. Instead I went for a run (haven't been running in so long!) and came back and did some core work and some leg stretching. It felt luxurious to do this kind of thing, but at the same time realized how weird it is to do asanas without vinyasa. I don't see how people do it regularly! Once my shoulder is feeling better I plan to modify my backbending sequence to build, strengthen, and open my shoulders to be ready to eventually work towards grabbing ankles in drop back and work on Viparita Chakrasana, which seem to me how I want to focus my effort in backbending. My first step is to start working on handstands after doing Urdvha Dhanurasana. I feel like my back is plenty open but what I am lacking is the stability to support myself through the shoulder girdle inverted in deep backbends. I think this kind of strength will be able to be cultivated through working on handstands. Plus I figure it will help prepare me for pincha mayurasana coming up (which as I have posted before I am a bit anxious about starting since it is a pose that is VERY difficult for me). Pranayama practice is going well. I can see how it is going to be a great thing for me to practice regularly. I still do not see clearly what exactly is going on in my body or mind. I am growing to love the feeling of the exhale retentions, the absolute stillness, as well as the expansiveness of inhale retentions. I am settled on working on the first two pranayamas (exhale retentions (15 seconds) and inhale retentions (20 seconds)), which eventually integrate into each other to be practiced together once the separate retentions have been "mastered" (whatever that means). So far the retentions and the pranayama practice itself have been relatively relaxed (as I have reported) besides a bit of muscular fatigue in my abdominal muscles. Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice metaphysical sense. That is, my attempts to reach my ankles were an overstepping of my limits. I've dealt on and off for the past couple years with the concept of self-violence in personal discipline and willpower. Its been good for me to think about remaining natural and nonviolent not only of course to others but also myself. This might at any point in my development mean to pull back, rest, and recuperate, rather than pushing forward with some sort of military-like, brutal will power. This kind of pushing has no place, for me personally, in my Yoga practice. It draws my energy away from where I am trying to place it. So, today I did not do my regular practice. Instead I went for a run (haven't been running in so long!) and came back and did some core work and some leg stretching. It felt luxurious to do this kind of thing, but at the same time realized how weird it is to do asanas without vinyasa. I don't see how people do it regularly! Once my shoulder is feeling better I plan to modify my backbending sequence to build, strengthen, and open my shoulders to be ready to eventually work towards grabbing ankles in drop back and work on Viparita Chakrasana, which seem to me how I want to focus my effort in backbending. My first step is to start working on handstands after doing Urdvha Dhanurasana. I feel like my back is plenty open but what I am lacking is the stability to support myself through the shoulder girdle inverted in deep backbends. I think this kind of strength will be able to be cultivated through working on handstands. Plus I figure it will help prepare me for pincha mayurasana coming up (which as I have posted before I am a bit anxious about starting since it is a pose that is VERY difficult for me). Pranayama practice is going well. I can see how it is going to be a great thing for me to practice regularly. I still do not see clearly what exactly is going on in my body or mind. I am growing to love the feeling of the exhale retentions, the absolute stillness, as well as the expansiveness of inhale retentions. I am settled on working on the first two pranayamas (exhale retentions (15 seconds) and inhale retentions (20 seconds)), which eventually integrate into each other to be practiced together once the separate retentions have been "mastered" (whatever that means). So far the retentions and the pranayama practice itself have been relatively relaxed (as I have reported) besides a bit of muscular fatigue in my abdominal muscles. Peace, Andy]]> tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5443 2006-08-15T15:06:11Z 2006-08-15T15:17:31Z

Every once in awhile I have to step back and take a deep breath and acknowledge that my asana practice is not a linear process. I cannot expect to be "better" than I was yesterday for days and days in a row. I will say it is very satisfying to notice improvement in this practice, but I often get caught up in the process and become emotionally attached to my strength, stamina, and flexibility gains. So, naturally, I have off days (or even weeks) from time to time. I feel tired, heavy, my muscles aren't responsive, my bandhas are sleepy, etc. I notice my happiness and equanimity is often attached to whether or not I had a "good" practice. Its been a hard pill for me to swallow in my asana practice and my meditation practice. A zen teacher once warned me of the "demon of joy" and the effects this type of attachment to joy and blissful feelings in one's meditation practice could bring about (that is, a straying off the path, a chasing of feelings, emotions, and mental states). I think the corrollary in asana practice is the demon of improvement. For me personally, my asana practice is primarily done as a way to cultivate discipline and purify my body. Always returning to this point is similar to returning to the breath during the course of meditation. When one's attention and awareness stray onto errant thoughts, be they positive or negative, one simply redirects one's attention on what is central and meaningful in one's practice (life). Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice Every once in awhile I have to step back and take a deep breath and acknowledge that my asana practice is not a linear process. I cannot expect to be "better" than I was yesterday for days and days in a row. I will say it is very satisfying to notice improvement in this practice, but I often get caught up in the process and become emotionally attached to my strength, stamina, and flexibility gains. So, naturally, I have off days (or even weeks) from time to time. I feel tired, heavy, my muscles aren't responsive, my bandhas are sleepy, etc. I notice my happiness and equanimity is often attached to whether or not I had a "good" practice. Its been a hard pill for me to swallow in my asana practice and my meditation practice. A zen teacher once warned me of the "demon of joy" and the effects this type of attachment to joy and blissful feelings in one's meditation practice could bring about (that is, a straying off the path, a chasing of feelings, emotions, and mental states). I think the corrollary in asana practice is the demon of improvement. For me personally, my asana practice is primarily done as a way to cultivate discipline and purify my body. Always returning to this point is similar to returning to the breath during the course of meditation. When one's attention and awareness stray onto errant thoughts, be they positive or negative, one simply redirects one's attention on what is central and meaningful in one's practice (life). Peace, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5437 2006-08-14T15:39:43Z 2006-08-14T17:08:30Z

I find it very interesting how Ashtanga Yoga manifests itself simultaneously on a very subtle and very physical plane. There's the muscular load, the spinal flexibility, lactic acid, etc. Then there's the feeling of energetic fields interacting within the body. Are they separate? I don't think so, one is a reflection of the other. Its become kind of a tradition for me to practice only second series on day two of my practice week (although I've only done it twice now). Its really fun for me to explore second series without the fatigue of having done first series, but at the same time really highlights how much I need first series still. A very strange thing happens to me on these days - my eyesight kind of "fuzzes" for an hour or two after practice. Right now my eyesight is still a little blurry (its always a bit blurry my eyesight is not very sharp!). But, its wild after coming out of savasana my eyes really have trouble focusing. I'm guessing its just something to do with all the backbending and not very much forward bending... Bakasana B still didn't go today after three tries. I feel like I'm working myself up into bit of a frenzy about it so I am just going to back off any self induced pressure and just let things work themselves out. Its not worth getting worked up and stimulated because I feel like "I should be able to do this pose." I decided to try to go for my ankles in a drop back today and was pretty surprised that I almost got them! I touched my heels which was cool. Need to do some thinking and figure out how to focus on strengthening my shoulders during the backbending sequence, because they are really my weak point in all things backbend related. Its both a physical and a mental thing, I think. As soon as I get into that position with my arms rotated back and under pressure, they just seem to lose all power and stability. Its really a pretty scary feeling to all of a sudden lose fine control of my limbs. I think emphasizing power in the urdhva dhanurasanas is in order and perhaps increasing the amount I am doing. I'm really NOT worried about spinal flexibility now and perhaps will just entirely focus on the UD's from the ground (which actually does provide a nice spinal bend, but primarily works my strength/flexibility in the shoulders). Pranayama notes: I added on puraka kumbhaka onto rechaka kumbhaka. I think this is the best idea as they really complement each other. The traditional ratio is 5:4 (inhalation retention: exhalation retention) but to keep things simple I am doing 1:1 (10 sec inhale retention: 10 sec exhale retention). I will hold my ground here as the next step (combing puraka and rechaka kumbhaka) seems like quite a step up in intensity and one would really want some familiarity with the individual retentions before combing in one breath. Pranayama, like asana, I am so happy to be able to practice. I feel like all the hundreds of hours of sitting meditation I have been doing the last 6 months have been preparing me for both a pranayama and asana practice. It feels very natural to me to make this step now in my practice. It is so interesting to feel the energy going through my body (I feel it so far pretty uniformly in my torso and legs). Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice I find it very interesting how Ashtanga Yoga manifests itself simultaneously on a very subtle and very physical plane. There's the muscular load, the spinal flexibility, lactic acid, etc. Then there's the feeling of energetic fields interacting within the body. Are they separate? I don't think so, one is a reflection of the other. Its become kind of a tradition for me to practice only second series on day two of my practice week (although I've only done it twice now). Its really fun for me to explore second series without the fatigue of having done first series, but at the same time really highlights how much I need first series still. A very strange thing happens to me on these days - my eyesight kind of "fuzzes" for an hour or two after practice. Right now my eyesight is still a little blurry (its always a bit blurry my eyesight is not very sharp!). But, its wild after coming out of savasana my eyes really have trouble focusing. I'm guessing its just something to do with all the backbending and not very much forward bending... Bakasana B still didn't go today after three tries. I feel like I'm working myself up into bit of a frenzy about it so I am just going to back off any self induced pressure and just let things work themselves out. Its not worth getting worked up and stimulated because I feel like "I should be able to do this pose." I decided to try to go for my ankles in a drop back today and was pretty surprised that I almost got them! I touched my heels which was cool. Need to do some thinking and figure out how to focus on strengthening my shoulders during the backbending sequence, because they are really my weak point in all things backbend related. Its both a physical and a mental thing, I think. As soon as I get into that position with my arms rotated back and under pressure, they just seem to lose all power and stability. Its really a pretty scary feeling to all of a sudden lose fine control of my limbs. I think emphasizing power in the urdhva dhanurasanas is in order and perhaps increasing the amount I am doing. I'm really NOT worried about spinal flexibility now and perhaps will just entirely focus on the UD's from the ground (which actually does provide a nice spinal bend, but primarily works my strength/flexibility in the shoulders). Pranayama notes: I added on puraka kumbhaka onto rechaka kumbhaka. I think this is the best idea as they really complement each other. The traditional ratio is 5:4 (inhalation retention: exhalation retention) but to keep things simple I am doing 1:1 (10 sec inhale retention: 10 sec exhale retention). I will hold my ground here as the next step (combing puraka and rechaka kumbhaka) seems like quite a step up in intensity and one would really want some familiarity with the individual retentions before combing in one breath. Pranayama, like asana, I am so happy to be able to practice. I feel like all the hundreds of hours of sitting meditation I have been doing the last 6 months have been preparing me for both a pranayama and asana practice. It feels very natural to me to make this step now in my practice. It is so interesting to feel the energy going through my body (I feel it so far pretty uniformly in my torso and legs). Peace, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5429 2006-08-13T20:57:34Z 2006-08-13T21:14:38Z

There's something special about the first day back to practice after taking a rest day. What strikes me as especially different is the vinyasa flow and rhythm. Things aren't better or worse, they are just different. I struggled a little through my second series poses. I decided to start doing Laghuvajrasana by grabbing ankles instead of upper calves (as I had been taught at a local ashtanga class). This changes the pose quite a bit, of course. I was very happy that I could feel it much more in my quads rather than my back. I'm not really that desperately looking for more backbending in the practice past the updogs and urdhva dhanurasanas as I feel my back is open enough right now for the asanas I'm practicing. My weak links are my leg muscles and my shoulders so I am looking for anything that will strengthen and open them simultaneously. Well, ankle grabbing in laghu and heel grabbing in kapo satisfies this quad and shoulder search, respectively. Kapotasana was a little wonky today, though, and I didn't go directly for a heel grab. I think I probably could of I just spaced out while entering into it (yes dharana!). And Bakasana B didn't go today after three attempts, though all attempts felt pretty light and *almost* there. I think I need to integrate some missing peice to the bakasana B puzzle before I can consistently do it. I am pretty sure its not a strength thing. Its probably dristi or some subtle bandha thing. I'll keep at it, its quite a fun asana to work on! Backbending was voluminous but not very inspiring. I just went through my dozen backbends and folded into the security of paschimottanasana, thinking of nothing. An update on pranayama practice: Its going quite well. After 3 days of just practicing the 10sec:10sec ujjayi pranayama I decided to start the first pranayama of the Ashtanga sequence (rechaka kumbhaka). My ratio was 10:0:10:10 and it felt very natural and not forced at all. I would close my eyes during the retentions and try to confront mula/uddiyana bandha and become more and more familiar with this "mindspace." I'm really trying to understand what is going on with pranayama...it is obviously very subtle and is going to take some time (to me this type of exploration is a joy). I imagine as I begin being able to hone in even stronger on mula and uddiyana bandha and add on the next couple sequences (puraka kumbhaka/puraka and rechaka kumbhaka) things get a little more intense. I feel like it has already affected my asana practice and my ability to hone in on the breath and bandhas during the practice of the postures (especially I see the ability for change in forward folding in regards to deeper breathing). I will remain open eyed and joyous during the exploration of this new terrain. The Ashtanga practice is so dynamic (like everything, really). One would think that practicing the same asanas day in and day out would get tiresome due to the repetitive nature. It is quite the opposite actually. Every day of practice is a chance to discover something new, deeper, and more expansive (and inclusive). I feel very fortunate to be able to practice this. Love, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice There's something special about the first day back to practice after taking a rest day. What strikes me as especially different is the vinyasa flow and rhythm. Things aren't better or worse, they are just different. I struggled a little through my second series poses. I decided to start doing Laghuvajrasana by grabbing ankles instead of upper calves (as I had been taught at a local ashtanga class). This changes the pose quite a bit, of course. I was very happy that I could feel it much more in my quads rather than my back. I'm not really that desperately looking for more backbending in the practice past the updogs and urdhva dhanurasanas as I feel my back is open enough right now for the asanas I'm practicing. My weak links are my leg muscles and my shoulders so I am looking for anything that will strengthen and open them simultaneously. Well, ankle grabbing in laghu and heel grabbing in kapo satisfies this quad and shoulder search, respectively. Kapotasana was a little wonky today, though, and I didn't go directly for a heel grab. I think I probably could of I just spaced out while entering into it (yes dharana!). And Bakasana B didn't go today after three attempts, though all attempts felt pretty light and *almost* there. I think I need to integrate some missing peice to the bakasana B puzzle before I can consistently do it. I am pretty sure its not a strength thing. Its probably dristi or some subtle bandha thing. I'll keep at it, its quite a fun asana to work on! Backbending was voluminous but not very inspiring. I just went through my dozen backbends and folded into the security of paschimottanasana, thinking of nothing. An update on pranayama practice: Its going quite well. After 3 days of just practicing the 10sec:10sec ujjayi pranayama I decided to start the first pranayama of the Ashtanga sequence (rechaka kumbhaka). My ratio was 10:0:10:10 and it felt very natural and not forced at all. I would close my eyes during the retentions and try to confront mula/uddiyana bandha and become more and more familiar with this "mindspace." I'm really trying to understand what is going on with pranayama...it is obviously very subtle and is going to take some time (to me this type of exploration is a joy). I imagine as I begin being able to hone in even stronger on mula and uddiyana bandha and add on the next couple sequences (puraka kumbhaka/puraka and rechaka kumbhaka) things get a little more intense. I feel like it has already affected my asana practice and my ability to hone in on the breath and bandhas during the practice of the postures (especially I see the ability for change in forward folding in regards to deeper breathing). I will remain open eyed and joyous during the exploration of this new terrain. The Ashtanga practice is so dynamic (like everything, really). One would think that practicing the same asanas day in and day out would get tiresome due to the repetitive nature. It is quite the opposite actually. Every day of practice is a chance to discover something new, deeper, and more expansive (and inclusive). I feel very fortunate to be able to practice this. Love, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5419 2006-08-11T21:35:44Z 2006-08-11T20:55:26Z

I decided to begin a daily pranayama practice. Its a pretty deep committment so I wanted to make sure I really had the drive and motivation to see it through. I already have a pretty intense asana routine so I was hesitant whether I needed to add pranayama now or not. But, my post-practice energy levels have stabilized (for now), and I probably won't be adding any poses that will really tax my strength levels for the coming few weeks. Its going to be a lot of hip opening, of course, with the eka padas, but I don't *think* that will plunge me back into the state of exhaustion I was in when I first started practicing second series (only about a month ago!). Anyways, I am going to take it VERY slowly and build the retentions up from practically nothing. A lot of people wouldn't recommend starting a pranayama practice alone without the guidance of a teacher, but I feel a deep, deep pull towards understanding the breath. I see pranayama translated as "breath control" frequently. But, to me I am approaching it more as "breath understanding" or "energy awareness." Some very deep things are happening with my practice of Nadi Shodana and I think beginning a pranayama practice is the next step to understanding this practice. Paraphrasing a great taoist saying, "in the course of practice, knowledge is exchanged for understanding." Right now I am going to do for a week or two (or until strong and comfortable) just the preliminary 10 minutes of ujjayi breathing (10 second inhales: 10 second exhales). Its amazing that already I have discovered that inhaling for 10 seconds is not that difficult given a sturdy seat, straight spine, and open chest. I think after a little while 15 second inhale/exhales will not be difficult (right now after a little experimentation I start straining after 12 seconds and by 14 I have "maxed" out). I will develop a strong 10 second inhale/exhale before progressing on to the retentions (which starts with holding breath outside body!). Here are some notes that JMS on the ezboard posted. By the way anybody reading this that has any other notes on Ashtanga Pranayama and would like to share it with me PLEASE contact me. "Terminology: puraka=inhalation; rechaka=exhalation; kumbhaka=retention. Ujjayi Pranayama: 10-second inhalations and 10-second exhalations with no retention, focusing on mula bandha and uddiyana bandha and the movement of energy in sushumna nadi (five minutes). Rechaka Kumbhaka: Three times, focusing on mula and uddiyana bandha, especially during the time of retention. Start with a short retention (five seconds) and gradually increase it. Retention time should be gauged by the quality of the subsequent breath--if there is any grasping quality to the breath, the retention needs to be shorter. Puraka Kumbhaka: Three times, adding jalandhara bandha during the time of retention. Again, start with a short retention (10 seconds) and gradually increase it, again carefully observing the subsequent breath for any signs of unsteadiness, and adjusting the retention time accordingly. Puraka Kumbhaka and Rechaka Kumbhaka: Three times--once the two different types of retention are mastered separately, the next stage is to put them together so retention is done on both ends of the breath. The traditional ratio for the retention times is 5:4, so if the inhale retention is held for 10 seconds, the exhale retention would be held for 8 seconds. Follow the same guidelines for determining a proper length of retention. Nadi Shodana Pranayama: Alternate nostril sequence using retention after both inhalation and exhalation. The first inhalation is taken through both nostrils with the first exhalation made through the left nostril. The first round of retentions begins by inhaling through the right nostril, then exhaling through the left, then inhaling through the left and exhaling through the right. This completes one round of four separate retentions. Perform three rounds of this same sequence and finish with an inhale through the right without retention and an exhale through the left, again with no retention. Three rounds of this sequence entails 12 retentions in all. The traditional ration here is 1:1:1:1, that is, the length of inhalation, inhale retention, exhale, and exhale retention are all equal. For this practice, the thumb of the right hand is used to close the right nostril and the ring finger is used to close the left. Ujjayi breathing is not done with this sequence, rather the breath is drawn in directly from the nostril. " I still need to talk to someone about the pattern you use with rechaka/puraka kumbhaka. I'm hoping within a week or two when I'm ready to start on that the information will be provided for me. Primary today was low intensity. I have had a very intense week of asana so I did not push myself overly...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice I decided to begin a daily pranayama practice. Its a pretty deep committment so I wanted to make sure I really had the drive and motivation to see it through. I already have a pretty intense asana routine so I was hesitant whether I needed to add pranayama now or not. But, my post-practice energy levels have stabilized (for now), and I probably won't be adding any poses that will really tax my strength levels for the coming few weeks. Its going to be a lot of hip opening, of course, with the eka padas, but I don't *think* that will plunge me back into the state of exhaustion I was in when I first started practicing second series (only about a month ago!). Anyways, I am going to take it VERY slowly and build the retentions up from practically nothing. A lot of people wouldn't recommend starting a pranayama practice alone without the guidance of a teacher, but I feel a deep, deep pull towards understanding the breath. I see pranayama translated as "breath control" frequently. But, to me I am approaching it more as "breath understanding" or "energy awareness." Some very deep things are happening with my practice of Nadi Shodana and I think beginning a pranayama practice is the next step to understanding this practice. Paraphrasing a great taoist saying, "in the course of practice, knowledge is exchanged for understanding." Right now I am going to do for a week or two (or until strong and comfortable) just the preliminary 10 minutes of ujjayi breathing (10 second inhales: 10 second exhales). Its amazing that already I have discovered that inhaling for 10 seconds is not that difficult given a sturdy seat, straight spine, and open chest. I think after a little while 15 second inhale/exhales will not be difficult (right now after a little experimentation I start straining after 12 seconds and by 14 I have "maxed" out). I will develop a strong 10 second inhale/exhale before progressing on to the retentions (which starts with holding breath outside body!). Here are some notes that JMS on the ezboard posted. By the way anybody reading this that has any other notes on Ashtanga Pranayama and would like to share it with me PLEASE contact me. "Terminology: puraka=inhalation; rechaka=exhalation; kumbhaka=retention. Ujjayi Pranayama: 10-second inhalations and 10-second exhalations with no retention, focusing on mula bandha and uddiyana bandha and the movement of energy in sushumna nadi (five minutes). Rechaka Kumbhaka: Three times, focusing on mula and uddiyana bandha, especially during the time of retention. Start with a short retention (five seconds) and gradually increase it. Retention time should be gauged by the quality of the subsequent breath--if there is any grasping quality to the breath, the retention needs to be shorter. Puraka Kumbhaka: Three times, adding jalandhara bandha during the time of retention. Again, start with a short retention (10 seconds) and gradually increase it, again carefully observing the subsequent breath for any signs of unsteadiness, and adjusting the retention time accordingly. Puraka Kumbhaka and Rechaka Kumbhaka: Three times--once the two different types of retention are mastered separately, the next stage is to put them together so retention is done on both ends of the breath. The traditional ratio for the retention times is 5:4, so if the inhale retention is held for 10 seconds, the exhale retention would be held for 8 seconds. Follow the same guidelines for determining a proper length of retention. Nadi Shodana Pranayama: Alternate nostril sequence using retention after both inhalation and exhalation. The first inhalation is taken through both nostrils with the first exhalation made through the left nostril. The first round of retentions begins by inhaling through the right nostril, then exhaling through the left, then inhaling through the left and exhaling through the right. This completes one round of four separate retentions. Perform three rounds of this same sequence and finish with an inhale through the right without retention and an exhale through the left, again with no retention. Three rounds of this sequence entails 12 retentions in all. The traditional ration here is 1:1:1:1, that is, the length of inhalation, inhale retention, exhale, and exhale retention are all equal. For this practice, the thumb of the right hand is used to close the right nostril and the ring finger is used to close the left. Ujjayi breathing is not done with this sequence, rather the breath is drawn in directly from the nostril. " I still need to talk to someone about the pattern you use with rechaka/puraka kumbhaka. I'm hoping within a week or two when I'm ready to start on that the information will be provided for me. Primary today was low intensity. I have had a very intense week of asana so I did not push myself overly hard and just made my way slowly through the series. I did a minimum of backbends, also, and finished with leisurely closing sequence and long savasana. I'm looking forward to my day of rest tomorrow, my shoulders, back, and core muscles are needing it (not to mention my brain!). Peace and Love, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5408 2006-08-10T21:35:44Z 2006-08-10T21:50:39Z

I feel like I'm learning to float...slowly, very, very slowly. I guess there is no other way for my body to learn this type of movement other than slowly, patiently developing the strength and kinesthetic awareness that is needed. What is really helping me is to think about integrating all movements throughout the practice into one giant flow (instead of percieved blocks of postures). Also bandhas. I'm discovering in the seated forward bends a deeper mula bandha than I had known before. This is helping a lot with grounding my legs and sit bones and helping me extend the spine toward the feet. I still don't understand the incorporation of mula bandha and the vinyasas. It seems the application of mula bandha only wants to pull me toward the ground rather than let me keep floating. Kapotasana feels so good after 4 days in a row of practicing. I drop pretty quickly (still not in one smooth exhale!) and find heels with only a moment of hesitation. A weird thing if happening my arms are shaking/trembling (I guess with effort) while rotating them backwards for the grab. This is also happening a little with u. dhanurasana and I had went through a phase of trembling with uthpluthi. I guess its normal and is something that "works itself out" within a few weeks of practice. I landed Bakasana B on the second try today! I think I'm figuring out the movement required to do a slow float toward armpits. It feels really good bandha wise to nail this and then really pull with muscles/bandhas to generate lift during the 5 breaths. I'm really tempted to try to press up into a handstand during either A or B. Maybe sometime soon just for fun! After reading an ezboard thread about Bakasana B I am convinced the best way for me to practice it is to float into it and not worry about jumping into a handstand and lowering. The former is developing a strength/awareness that I need later for tittibhasana and also to develop the floating entries to bhuja and kurmasana. The latter can be worked EVERY vinyasa during the jumpthrough so it seems kind of pointless to me to try for it given the special learning opportunity of Bakasana B. Backbends were pretty gnarly as they have been all week. Something inside of me has clicked and I have really started throwing myself into them. There is so much to learn from them and so much to open physically, mentally, emotionally, and (I maybe hesitate to add) spiritually. Peace and Love, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice I feel like I'm learning to float...slowly, very, very slowly. I guess there is no other way for my body to learn this type of movement other than slowly, patiently developing the strength and kinesthetic awareness that is needed. What is really helping me is to think about integrating all movements throughout the practice into one giant flow (instead of percieved blocks of postures). Also bandhas. I'm discovering in the seated forward bends a deeper mula bandha than I had known before. This is helping a lot with grounding my legs and sit bones and helping me extend the spine toward the feet. I still don't understand the incorporation of mula bandha and the vinyasas. It seems the application of mula bandha only wants to pull me toward the ground rather than let me keep floating. Kapotasana feels so good after 4 days in a row of practicing. I drop pretty quickly (still not in one smooth exhale!) and find heels with only a moment of hesitation. A weird thing if happening my arms are shaking/trembling (I guess with effort) while rotating them backwards for the grab. This is also happening a little with u. dhanurasana and I had went through a phase of trembling with uthpluthi. I guess its normal and is something that "works itself out" within a few weeks of practice. I landed Bakasana B on the second try today! I think I'm figuring out the movement required to do a slow float toward armpits. It feels really good bandha wise to nail this and then really pull with muscles/bandhas to generate lift during the 5 breaths. I'm really tempted to try to press up into a handstand during either A or B. Maybe sometime soon just for fun! After reading an ezboard thread about Bakasana B I am convinced the best way for me to practice it is to float into it and not worry about jumping into a handstand and lowering. The former is developing a strength/awareness that I need later for tittibhasana and also to develop the floating entries to bhuja and kurmasana. The latter can be worked EVERY vinyasa during the jumpthrough so it seems kind of pointless to me to try for it given the special learning opportunity of Bakasana B. Backbends were pretty gnarly as they have been all week. Something inside of me has clicked and I have really started throwing myself into them. There is so much to learn from them and so much to open physically, mentally, emotionally, and (I maybe hesitate to add) spiritually. Peace and Love, Andy tag:blogs.ashtangi.net,2006:/selfpractice//48.5402 2006-08-10T00:26:25Z 2006-08-10T00:48:10Z

It seems like lately I'm spending the majority of my day in a backbend! Well....not really, but it DOES seem like its either backbending or resting from backbending. Ah....the joys of not working and having no responsibilities. I don't take it for granted as this situation will be gone to never return (was it ever here?). Its a full moon tonight and I'm not sure if that corresponded with my practice feeling strong as it was or not but I did have a very powerful and smooth practice, for what its worth. I had a bit of a duh moment regarding bringing feet through on jumpbacks. That is to really engage the hip flexors and bring the feet close to the torso. I had this action in my mind, of course, since it is necessary to execute in order not to drag the feet, but I think raising it to the conscious level is really going to help me develop the strength/stamina to be able to smoothly bring feet through EVERY time (not just on the first 2/3rds of the vinyasas). I'm also really putting some effort into trying to generate some lift once feet are brought through the arms in order to get the weight shift thing going so I can extend the feet back. I'm just not keying in on the muscle and bandha usage that I need to get this lift going. Also the breath needs to lengthen rather than being so sharp and short lived (how do I expect to float if I'm inhaling so fast? I don't know). This can be worked while also working smooth inhales in between navasanas, instead of sharply breathing up and down. I can aim to swing feet through and attempt some lift in between every navasana. I finally landed bakasana B on my third try this morning. My mother was passing by and I asked her to watch me for inspiration. It worked - it was my best landing to date, I really slowed down through the last half of the movement and very carefully settled into arm pits. It was an awesome feeling! I video taped my practice this morning and realized that things need to be tightened up a bit. I can definitely try to get into and out of asanas more in pace with one breath instead of sneaking in a breath (in mari D, bhuja, kurmasana, etc). Here's a list of things I gleaned from watching the video of my practice that I want to work on: - longer/deeper inhales and exhales - stronger uddiyana, bring breath into chest - dristi - arm position in forward bends (binding wrists) - lift higher on vinyasas - stop fidgeting/spending uneccessary breaths getting into and out of asanas - really work the updogs (thoracic) - relax face muscles - ground legs in forward bends (mula bandha) - still unnecesary movements in navasana - work on swinging through and lifting in between every navasana - lift butt higher in bhuja-titti transition so as not to drag feet - really go for floating into entry for bhuja and kurmasana - more spinal curve in garbha p. so as to smooth the rolls - deeper twist in pasasana - neck alignment in dhanurasana - less breaths "sneaked in" preparation during 2nd series backbends - work kapo entry in one exhale - ankles in kapo - work shoulder alignment in kapo B - straighten arms completely in bakasana - float the bakasana exit That might take awhile! Good thing I got the rest of my life. Peace, Andy...

AR http://blogs.ashtangi.net/selfpractice It seems like lately I'm spending the majority of my day in a backbend! Well....not really, but it DOES seem like its either backbending or resting from backbending. Ah....the joys of not working and having no responsibilities. I don't take it for granted as this situation will be gone to never return (was it ever here?). Its a full moon tonight and I'm not sure if that corresponded with my practice feeling strong as it was or not but I did have a very powerful and smooth practice, for what its worth. I had a bit of a duh moment regarding bringing feet through on jumpbacks. That is to really engage the hip flexors and bring the feet close to the torso. I had this action in my mind, of course, since it is necessary to execute in order not to drag the feet, but I think raising it to the conscious level is really going to help me develop the strength/stamina to be able to smoothly bring feet through EVERY time (not just on the first 2/3rds of the vinyasas). I'm also really putting some effort into trying to generate some lift once feet are brought through the arms in order to get the weight shift thing going so I can extend the feet back. I'm just not keying in on the muscle and bandha usage that I need to get this lift going. Also the breath needs to lengthen rather than being so sharp and short lived (how do I expect to float if I'm inhaling so fast? I don't know). This can be worked while also working smooth inhales in between navasanas, instead of sharply breathing up and down. I can aim to swing feet through and attempt some lift in between every navasana. I finally landed bakasana B on my third try this morning. My mother was passing by and I asked her to watch me for inspiration. It worked - it was my best landing to date, I really slowed down through the last half of the movement and very carefully settled into arm pits. It was an awesome feeling! I video taped my practice this morning and realized that things need to be tightened up a bit. I can definitely try to get into and out of asanas more in pace with one breath instead of sneaking in a breath (in mari D, bhuja, kurmasana, etc). Here's a list of things I gleaned from watching the video of my practice that I want to work on: - longer/deeper inhales and exhales - stronger uddiyana, bring breath into chest - dristi - arm position in forward bends (binding wrists) - lift higher on vinyasas - stop fidgeting/spending uneccessary breaths getting into and out of asanas - really work the updogs (thoracic) - relax face muscles - ground legs in forward bends (mula bandha) - still unnecesary movements in navasana - work on swinging through and lifting in between every navasana - lift butt higher in bhuja-titti transition so as not to drag feet - really go for floating into entry for bhuja and kurmasana - more spinal curve in garbha p. so as to smooth the rolls - deeper twist in pasasana - neck alignment in dhanurasana - less breaths "sneaked in" preparation during 2nd series backbends - work kapo entry in one exhale - ankles in kapo - work shoulder alignment in kapo B - straighten arms completely in bakasana - float the bakasana exit That might take awhile! Good thing I got the rest of my life. Peace, Andy