Now that I wrote about relaxing my face, I'm realizing how much farther I have to go. My practice these days remains pretty much the same, and will until the sciatica goes away and/or the Lyme arthritis in my arms and hands gets better. That means I'm getting to know this subset of asanas pretty… Continue reading Face yoga again
Category: mulling things over
Face yoga
We were watching Michael Phelps winning medals at the Olympics the other night, and one of the commentators remarked upon the calm in Phelps's face as he tore towards the finish. He said that if a swimmer's face tightens up, his whole body tightens up, and it slows him down. I've been thinking about this… Continue reading Face yoga
What’s the difference?
I am excited about going to the beach tomorrow, and woke up early with lists running through my head - what to pack, errands to run today, things to do to leave the house empty, etc. After a while I got up and did a PT routine for my arthritis, followed by an hour or… Continue reading What’s the difference?
Goodness
A few standing poses every day, some breathing, and boy, I am feeling better in some fundamental way. When my hands hurt (or some other part of me), I have been realizing I'm not breathing, just holding onto the pain. I inhale, exhale a little longer, and my posture shifts and my pain lessens. Practicing… Continue reading Goodness
Good things about home practice
This list doesn't count the really obvious benefits, like deepening your practice. You can practice in your pajamas, or naked if you really want to. Say you're in down dog and your shirt is falling in your face. You can just take it off. You can find a mirror or other reflective surface so you… Continue reading Good things about home practice
Obstacles, pushed aside
Yesterday I was quite chuffed that I had a good practice. I did a blend of the Iyengar sciatica sequence from the big (and I believe somewhat inaccurate in its first edition) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health by B.K.S. Iyengar and Sam Dworkis's Recovery Yoga. I started after I had gone for a walk… Continue reading Obstacles, pushed aside
What’s important
I've known for a long time that these things are important. Somehow reminders keep coming around. Fascia - the big bag of connective tissue our physical bodies are in. I encountered Paul Grilley's work first in an article in Yoga Journal where he talked about the wide range of differences from one body to another.… Continue reading What’s important
Extensions, please
Yesterday I thought I'd buffalo my way through doing more than I have been in my practice. I momentarily lost my mind and forgot that my joints are completely pushed apart by fluid and that the soft tissues holding them together are not in the right places. So I almost defiantly started off with Trikonasana… Continue reading Extensions, please
Something to work with
I've been trying not to write about how bad my joints have felt, because I didn't know why, and also because I hate it when people whine about their illness all the time. As it turns out, I have Lyme disease. I'm hoping it's in the early stage (a piece of information I don't have… Continue reading Something to work with
Even the bedridden
My teacher recently sent me a piece of the Yoga Sutras about obstacles to practice (1.30): "These obstacles are disease, inertia, doubt, heedlessness, laziness, indiscipline of the senses, erroneous views, lack of perseverance, and backsliding." I struggle with several of these, or maybe all of them. It's good to know that other people have struggled… Continue reading Even the bedridden
Practice Notes 