Marichyasana A

Today I took pictures of marichyasana A, B, C and D. It’s in sum 8 pictures. I thought I’d need an hour, not more. Yet I had to do all pictures twice or even three times. The time was spent well. When I saw the pictures I couldn’t believe it. Why do I move my elbows so high, I wondered. It looks strange. The arms stretch downwards along the body. This supports the forward movement of the upper body.

On the first picture I had moved the elbows close to the body. The elbow doesn’t hang in the air any more. This looks nicer and it feels more correct. The shoulders always move away from the ears. The longer one practices, the more details get noticed.

That I had bound my hair was rather an aesthetic reason.

• Pictures are a.great tool for home practitioners, who have nobody who gives adjustments. But also for those who go to classes it’s very useful to take pictures. A teacher can never ever adjust everything.

• Pictures document the journey. It’s very motivating to see progress.

• Pictures often give me ideas what else I can try.

Marichyasana A, 2012

This third picture is taken in 2012. I realize that I even stretched my arms. I’ll surely try this the next time.

Pictures are one of the best methods to get feed-back.

Cook

The restaurants were closed for a very long time in 2020 due to Covid-19. After a while the restaurants offered ‘meals to go’ Often it’s cold when you get it delivered. It’s the same if you pick it up by yourself. In addition one has always similar meals. Only once I got a pizza during all the months of the lock down.

For me the lock down was an opportunity. I started cooking from the very first day on. I used to be a weekend chef. At 12 pm I usually stood in the kitchen, opened my refrigerator and checked what vegetables I have. I used to cook with recipes and followed the instructions rather exact. This has changed when I started cooking on a daily basis. I became free. I want to use up the remaining fruit and vegetables. Soon I even developed a style. I always prepare different vegetables with rice or noodles or couscous or potatoes or bread. I prepare a sauce which consists of different liquids: coconut cream, white or red wine, tomatoes….. I usually add a lot of different spices. That’s it. I use my cooking books when I like to try something new, which is often the case. Then I vary the recipe. Monday is always my noodle day. We never ate so well. I also know how to prepare some desserts. My mango cream with fresh mango, dried apricot and almond puree with pomegranate on top is a legend. I use always fresh ingredients, we saved a lot of money. I got faster. Nevertheless in sum I need two hours from start to finish. When I leave the clean kitchen it’s usually 2 pm or a bit later.

Cooking became a routine. I’d never cooked so regularly if restaurants were open.

This was for me one of the positive aspects of the last Covid-19 year 2020.

A good approach of cooking is to have few cooking books. Start repeating the recipes. Vary them. Cook them without the book. This builds confidence.

I started to taste the meals before eating. I hated this. Yet it helps to improve the results. Too spicy sauces get some cream or coconut cream. When the sauce is boring I add chili powder or other intensive spices. A spicey dish can get milder with soy yoghurt on top or a piece of bread aside. Very soon I got experienced.

I don’t aim for the perfect dinner, but I like to eat healthy. When the pots are empty after a meal, it’s a compliment. I don’t want to feel so full that I’ve the feeling that I explode. This is scarcely possible with vegetables. 🌽 🍆 🌶 🥒 🥕

My book recommendations:

1. Vegan cuisine I’m almost shocked. The book that I wanted to recommend costs now over 200 USD. It’s my favorite. The one here is probably with less recipes but by the same author.

2. Nigel Slater *I have his book for the summer season. There are books for autumn and winter season available as well. He cooks daily. He asks himself every day what vegetable he’s going to prepare. He is not 100% vegan (but almost). Nigel Slater is cult

3. Vegan India* As a yogi I like Indian foot. My first vegetarian meals were Indian dishes. Most Indians are vegetarians. In the meantime also vegan Indian cooking books are available.

Cooking books can also inspire for the own creations. Just do it. It will improve your health and your life.

I was forced to cook during 2020. It bettered my life. I don’t want to give up the cooking routine.

• This site contains affiliate links which earn a fee per purchase.

Sleeping pill for yogis

Lucas from Yogabody calls this asana noodle pose. I learned it in the gravity training lately. Feet and arms hang in the air. This position shall be held for five minutes. This is doable. It’s important to have a soft and thick cushion on the chair or step or ladder or whatever one uses. The height is important as the limbs shall be in the air at least in the beginning. The issue is to get out of the pose. I move my feet slowly to the floor. If one can get into a position, it’s also possible to get out of it. This thought helps. This asana helps to get tired, but I wouldn’t like to stay in this position overnight.

It’s crazy, but it’s true. After this intensive back banding I got tired. As soon as I was in bed, I slept. Deeply. I cannot even remember my last thoughts. To get from day dreaming to night dreaming happened so fast.

I never ever took a sleeping pill in my entire life. But now I’ve found my new sleeping pill. Just in case.

It also works with forward bending positions. Today I held navasana for 5 minutes. Firstly I tried out several variations. Most comfortable was to habe the arms stretched towards the feet. I relaxed and breathed deeply. Very soon I got tired.

I think the trick is to find a position that allows to relax. Deep breathing is important and to stay for a while. Five minutes seems to be a good time span.

As always: Take care when trying something new.

To fall asleep is doable.

But how to wake up?

How long shall one hold a yoga postition?

Halasana, December 2020

There is a story about a yogini who practiced Ashtanga yoga with P. Jois in Mysore. She was practicing sirsasana (headstand) when he told her: Stay. He left the room. Then he might have forgotten about her. An hour later he returned and the yogini was still in sirsasana.

I learned about Indian yogis who moved the body in a position and never left this position for decades. Surely some stories might be legends.

• In Ashtanga yoga most asanas are held for five breaths. In former times eight breaths was the standard. Some of the asanas of the closing sequence are held for 25 breaths like sirsasana, padmasana. Most asanas of the closing sequence are held for ten breaths. It’s recommended to remain in rest pose at the end of the practice for 10 minutes.

• Last year I joined yoga classes of the Sivananda community. The basic asanas were always held for five minutes. This can be a challenge. Yet it’s more likely that a position has an effect on the body. The more advanced a student is, the longer she holds the asanas. To hold an asana up to ten minutes is the goal.

• Lately I flipped through the book ‘Light on Yoga’ by B.K.S. Iyengar *and realized that he also recommends to hold asanas up to 5 minutes or longer. Salamba Sarvangasana shall be held up to 10 minutes.

I learned from other disciplines like gymnastics that it’s important to hold a position minimum a couple of minutes. The body needs time to relax. Only a relaxed body will stretch. Progress comes much faster when an asana is held longer.

The reality can be cruel sometimes. I know back bending asanas that I can hold for one breaths. When I aim at holding urdhva dhanurasana for one minute I struggle. I’m yearning for the peep of my alarm clock when practicing this back bending asana. It’s a process. First one must find out how long one can stand in a position. Then one can stay longer. My timer always helps me to get a feeling of the time. Getting deeper into a position and holding it longer can be done in steps.

My next step is to hold halasana for 5 minutes. I’m very curious.

• This site contains affiliate links which earn a fee per purchase.

Parivrtta tri konasana

A very short blog post today:

Exercise the position in picture three and parivrtta tri konasana will improve. Hold position of picture #3 for two minutes each side. I realized immediate progress of the standing asanas parivrtta tri konasana.

Practicing few additional exercises can make a huge difference.

Tri konasana

I’ll probably repeat the following sentence again and again: There is no easy asana. When practicing Ashtanga yoga the practice starts with the sun salutations. Then follow the standing asanas. They are difficult. All poses feel differently than they look. It’s a challenge to adjust oneself.

All standing asanas are balancing asanas. To engage the legs is important. The feet rather move to each other than apart from each other. The upper body is straight. In order to open the shoulders it can help to move the arm behind the back to the thigh. This allows to give oneself a nice adjustment, it helps to move the shoulder backwards. To stretch the arm like in the second pictures supports the straight line of the body.

To have a correct head position is not easy, too. It’s already good, when the head doesn’t hang. This looks lazy.

Many call this pose tri konasana, the full name is utthita tri konasana. Utthita translates ‘stretched’, konasana means ‘triangle’. The pose forms only straight lines with the body. Having the word stretched in mind helps to give meaning to the asana.

It’s a pose that is great for pictures. Arms, legs and the body are seen clearly. The limbs are separated from each other. It’s an asana that opens the upper body.

My yoga week began this morning at 6 am. At 5 am I got up, at 6 am I was ready. It was still dark, yet I didn’t like to switch on a light because I didn’t like to wake up my beloved E. It was absolutely OK to start before sun rise. It’s not necessary to see the details of the surrounding. At 9 am I had an intensive practice behind me, I was showered and I enjoyed a tiny breakfast. What a start.

Letting go

Saturday is my day off. My days have a structure that I follow very flexible. I don’t even set an alarm clock to get up early. Usually I wake up on my own rather early. Today I did grocery shopping in the morning, when the shops were still rather empty. Tonight when we strolled around I realized a long queue standing in front of the grocery store. It rained. I thought it’s always a good idea to get up early. Some people surely have no alternatives, they can only go shopping in the evening, when everybody does it.

In 2020 I enrolled for a workshop ‘becoming minimalist’ I didn’t realize how much excess I’ve hoarded over the years. I don’t see myself as a hoarder. Most things have their place. But I had accumulated too many things. This is for sure. To let go of all my wool and knitting projects was probably the most difficult task. I found a group of people who knit scarves for homeless people. This made it easy to let go.

Things come slowly into our homes. I started projects, then something else seemed more important to do. Yet the first and second and third project still lingered in the drawers and shelves. The unconsciousness knows about it. Sometimes the projects wake up from the underground and inform the consciousness. They complain. Don’t forget me. This creates lousy feelings. With all these possessions that need attention it can be that one can feel overwhelmed without knowing why. I always think that I’ve so much to do. I have a lot to do, but my life should be manageable. I’ve no pets, no kids.

Today I went through this blog here and deleted neglected pages. They became a burden, too. It’s wishful thinking that I can update three blogs in addition to all the other activities.

Bit by bit I’ll feed the remaining pages. The vegan blog, the back bending blog, the gravity page, they all had to go. It’s too much. One yoga blog is enough. Saturday is my day off from yoga. It gives me opportunity to write also about other topics than asana practice.

Within the last 12 weeks I also went through my yoga props. Not everything was used or useful. I use my three yoga mats, but I don’t need five. Twelve yoga pants are too many.

Discarding of things and living with less made my life already easier. I feel relieved. It’s a journey an ongoing process to let go of things, bad habits and so on. Having less possessions helps to focus on what is important.

Flowing through life with ease is so much easier with less possessions.

Three similar asanas

The first asana is uttanasana. It Sanskrit it means ‘intense stretch’.

The second asana is called hasta padanghustasana. It means ‘hand-toe stretching’. Hasta means hand. Pada means foot and anghusta means big toe.

The third asana is called pada hastasana, which translates ‘hand-foot posture’.

The asanas are rather similar, yet also different.

The pictures show me that there is still potential. Yet when I started with yoga I could scarcely touch the floor with my fingers when my legs were stretched.

Lately I improved all the forward bending asana. I let gravity do the work. The crucial difference was the time. I hang in the following pose for 5 minutes.

M legs are slightly bent and I hang forward. It’s important not to move. One can close the eyes, it’s OK to open the eyes. The hands shall not touch the floor. Gravity does the work. Exhaling shall be much longer than inhaling, because it helps to relax. Only a relaxed body is able to stretch. The nerve system must feel save. The most important point is: Stay in this position for five minutes. This makes the difference. Progress will come fast.

Many people sit all day long. Nevertheless it becomes more and more difficult also for those with a sedentary life to bend forward when getting older. I’m sure, that people who bend forward every day in the above way will be able to do this till the age of 100. They won’t need a person who helps putting on shoes. Staying flexible gives independence. What a gift.

To bend forward is also an inversion for those who don’t like to do headstand for whatever reason. Sometimes health issues prevent people to do poses.. The heart is above the head in this forward bending asana. This is the criteria for an inversion. This pose is refreshing and energizing.

All stretching asanas help to become patient. Yet practicing correctly helps to progress faster.

Utkatasana

Utkatasana, December 2020

There is no easy asana. In order to get to the above picture I had to repeat the pose several times. I spotted many weaknesses that I could avoid. A pose often feels differently than it looks.

The challenges:

• The asana aims at strengthening the leg muscles. The deeper you go, the more challenging it is. My goal was to lower the body as much as possible. Before getting into utkatasana I pose the flat hands next to the feet and bend my legs. From there I get into utkatasana.

• I realized that I made a hollow once I was in that pose. This makes it easier. To prevent this, I engaged my abdomen. The position of the hips changes. My back remained straight.

• To have the arms in line with the body requires rather open shoulders. The shoulders move away from the ears, yet the arms stretch upwards.

• The thumb likes to get in distance to the other fingers. It looks so much better when the hands are a unit. This is rather an aesthetic issue.

Utkatasana is part of surya namaskars B and the standing asanas of Ashtanga yoga.

There are also variations of this asana. It’s possible to have the thighs parallel to the floor. It’s easier when the arms are stretched forwards and not upwards. One can hold this pose as long as possible.

Also the exit of this asana can vary. One can jump back. It’s possible to go first in bakasana position. From bakasana one can move into a handstand.

I’m happy with getting into bakasana and jumping back from there.

Suryanamaskara, the neck and drishti

I know people and yogini who have a long and flexible neck. Others have rather stiff necks. We can move the neck in all directions. There is also a neutral position. In order to find my neutral position I hang forward and relaxed the neck. My feeling is as if the head falls back slightly. To pull the chin to the chest requires a bit energy.

• When I practice suryanamaskara I move the neck a bit out fo the neutral position. I don’t get to the limit. It looks wild when yogini through their head backwards in urdhva mukha svanasana (upward facing dog). Yet is this really necessary? Dristi is the third eye when practicing urdhva mukha svanasana. It’s not looking to the ceiling or upwards. It feels more harmonious to move the head only a tiny bit backwards when looking towards the third eye.

  Chaturanga dandasana is another pose which feels better for me when I don’t throw back the head. The body shall be stable and in line. It’s more likely that my body hangs through when the head moves backwards. My focus is rather to push the hands against the floor. The shoulders move backwards. The abdomen is engaged. To go to a limit with the neck is distracting. It’s not the focus. The neck must get protected. There are asanas like sets bandhasana that stretch the neck. This asana also require a lot of strength of the neck. Most asana don’t have the neck as a focus.

• The neck position and dristi influence each other. It’s important to know that scarcely one looks at a certain point, the toe for instance or the navel. It’s always looking towards the navel or towards the toes. This In mind it’s not necessary to try seeing a gazing point. The dristhi has the work to calm the eyes. They shall focus and not look around. A direction is given. To see a precise point is not necessary.

• At the end one ‘hands up’ is missed on the above series. I omit it. I’d rather feel like a jumping jack when I do this pose at the end. Surya namaskars is repeated five times. After uttanasana I return to samasthitih. When I start with suryanamaskara again I stretch and my arms move towards the ceiling. This is enough. To omit one of the ‘hands-up-position’ at the end was not my idea originally. I tried it and I think it feels better.

• When practicing urdhva mukha svanasana the chin moves towards the body. I move the head only slightly out of its natural position. When the abdomen are engaged it’s not possible to see the navel. It makes no sense to go to the limit with the neck.

How I practice suryanamaskara has changed over the years. Firstly it has been a good warm up only. These days I work more precisely on every asana.

Experiment.

Every body is different.

Ashtanga primary

Nov 2020, squat

Friday is primary day. I was looking forward to primary and all the forward bending asanas. Today I realized that I’m far away from my practice a few years ago. This is frustrating. I got so weak. It’s not possible to do all the vinyasa. If one likes Ashtanga, one must also like the vinyasa system, the dynamic connection between the asanas. That is an important part that makes Ashtanga to what it is. What is also true: If it were easy, it would be boring.

I consider to practice primary also on Wednesday. I’ll reflect on some supportive exercises.

Today was my last Ashtanga practice of this week. It feels deserved to have a day off.

Meeting point: Zoom

Nov 2020, hip stretching

At 3 pm European Time stiff people meet at zoom to get more flexible. People join from 28 different countries. It’s possible to see many of the participants. Lucas is the trainer. Within fifteen minutes we stretch our hips. Every day two positions and alternatives are shown. Today was hard for me, I guess for others, too. Yet todays stretching will make back bending easier.

The course lasts 21 days. I’ll get to know 42 positions that stretch the hips in all possible ways. It’s an inspiration for sure. Above all one feels less alone on that globe during lockdown light. My phone is the window to that world. I think this is so special, I couldn’t have imagined a few years ago that I’d have a phone that allows me to watch other people stretching. I’m happy to be part of such a nice community.

What after these 21 days?

I learn that stretching can be rather relaxing. Indeed the goal is to relax. Exhaling shall be double as long as possible. This calms the nervous system. Then stretching is possible The method makes me even tired. Stretching before going to bed is like a sleeping pill. It’s so much better than watching TV.

Stretch and then sleep. What a lovely evening routine.

How long shall one hold an asana?

How long shall one hold an asana?

The different yoga styles have different answers.

• When practicing Ashtanga yoga the asanas are held for 5 breaths. In the early years an asana was held for eight breaths. This makes a long practice even longer. So one day one must had made a decision: 5 breaths are enough.

• The Sivananda yogis hold asanas much longer. The more experienced a yogi is the longer he hols an asana. 5 minutes are standard also for beginners. 10 minutes in headstand is part of the advanced practitioners.

• The BKS Iyengar students also don’t count breaths. They stay in an asana with all the props for quite some time. It makes no sense to get in and out of a composition of body, blocks, straps, chair, wall and whatever. Once you’re in, you stay. Voluntarily.

• In Yin Yoga the asanas are held very long. Once I was in a yin yoga class. To hold the asanas for an ‘eternity’ can be rather challenging. The class was about bearing the pain for me. But that’s what stretching is. I prefer the word discomfort, but discomfort is part of stretching.

Those girls and boys who train for gymnastics know that when they want to stretch, they have to hold positions rather long. The nerve system must feel safe. Stretching happens best when mind and body are relaxed. To create a calm and nice atmosphere with even candles can make sense. A relaxed face, perhaps even a little smile on the face might create miracles.

After today’s gravity class created by Luccas (Bodywork) someone asked if the gravity training is like yin yoga? The answer was' ‘no’. It rather belongs to the gym. Yin yoga shall stretch the ligaments. I don’t know if this is true, I cannot imagine this.

All the training is supposed to complement whatever someone is doing as sportive activity: yoga, running, weight lifting and so on.

I experience a certain imbalance in my body. This is not new. All the forward bending asanas are rather easy for me. Stretching the hip flexor hurts and is a challenge. I did too long primary only.

Learning never stops. I also learn through my mistakes. They are part of every learning process no matter what it is.

Keep practicing, keep learning.

Gravity training

I joint a workshop offered by Lucas (Yogabody). He focuses on gravity training. The course I booked concentrates on hip opening.

I’m very much interested in the method. I had already bought another course and I realized how effective the method is. Especially the stretching that aimed at the upper body and shoulders helped me a lot in my regular Ashtanga practice.

I’m curious which positions are introduced during the coming 21 days. I checked them already as we got also access to former videos. To see a position and to do it is a difference. Another huge difference is to hold an asana up to 5 minutes. This is a crucial part of the method. Holding positions for a long time is effective and that’s what the course is about.

The gravity method in sum:

• Let gravity work for you. It’s rather passive stretching. To relax in a position is important.

• The breath helps to relax. Exhaling is double as long as inhaling. One shall exhale through the mouth, but exhaling through the nose is also possible.

• The positions are held up to 5 minutes.

• A warm up is not necessary.

A very good time for the stretching exercises is the evening before bed time. The exercises are like a sleeping pill. There are positions of another course by Lucas that make me even sleep while I’m still in the position. The bretzl arms relax me so much that I fall asleep despite that awkward position of the arms.

It’s nice to practice in a community. At 3 pm we all meet at zoom. People join from all corners of this world. To be part of such an inspiring group makes the Covid-19 lock down light rather bearable.

A few words to the first asanas (see pictures:

• The hips shall be parallel. The stretching aims at the front side of the hip of the leg that is stretched backward. Having open hips helps a lot in back bending.

• The hands can rest on the foot and knee of he bent leg, but then the height is different. I prefer to use blocks therefore.

• The arms shall be stretched.

I think there is potential when I look at the pictures

The second asana is easy for me. Why ever. It’s a good one for stiff people.

Learning never stops.

My new altar

A few days back I took pictures of myself doing yoga. The space where I practice these days is rather tiny but for me it’s a big enough. When I checked the pictures I realized how cluttered they were. In the corner that can be seen in the picture were books. This little shelf was full of books and the little Buddha stood in the left corner preventing the books from falling. It was so distracting and not beautiful at all. Again I went through my books with the goal to discard as many as possible. Books that I haven’t read for several decades, I very likely won’t read in the next decade. Also the yellowed books had to go. Even donation shops don’t take such old books. I still found knitting books. It’s too time-consuming for me in the meantime. I have different interests. At the end of the evening I was surprised by myself I had created this little altar. I love empty space. The buddha statue is now the one and only subject in that corner. It’s not in competition with all the books. Now its true beauty can be seen. It was my first buy at Ebay. I was enthusiastic when it arrived decades ago. A certain Helmut was the seller. This little buddha was packed so nicely. It was love at first sight when I had removed all the packing paper that should protect the statue.

This morning very early, it was still dark, I stared at the buddha. I got lost in time. I loved the space around him. The simplicity of this place is so intriguing. I need more of this calm areas, I thought. I skipped yoga. Before breakfast I started discarding books. Motivation was excellent. Sometimes I think desperation whips me forward. Books are no clutter. Books are my friends. When I read it’s like having a conversation with an author. Some authors become mental friends. Yet there can be a too many. Lately I heard an interview with a woman (Elke Heidenreich). Once she said that she wants to read a book every day. In that interview she said: One cannot read everything. This is so true. So this morning I updated and upgraded my shelves. I managed it to create other empty spaces. What a relief. What a joy.

When I’ll start my yoga practice tomorrow morning I’ll look at my little buddha with the closed eyes. I’ll know that time was not wasted. This little statue that sits in a most beautiful empty space will miracle a smile on my face.

Keep it simple.

Keep practicing

Nov 2020

Keep practicing.

Not everybody likes the yoga practice. Yet it’s so rewarding. I like it. I like the shapes that one can form with a body. Focusing on breathing makes lively. One practice is over and I’m looking forward to the next one.

It’s a Corona-November. Restaurants are closed. My cooking skills get better and better. I also know recipes that are delicious and quick to prepare. My spicy red lentil soup is a legend.

Yoga can be a red thread in a life.

The challenge

Getting into sirsasana with straight legs, Nov 2020

Many poses of the challenge #pressingmatters look easy till I try them. It’s not the first time that I experience this when I follow a challenge on Instagram created by Carmen (@cyogalife). Trying something new is interesting. We’re on day 5 and twice I took already a picture of an easier pose that is suggested. I try the more challenging asana as well, yet safety first. If a new movement feels too awkward for me, I stop trying. I like to explore new variations of asanas. Sometimes I integrate them into my daily practice. If this is not possible I leave it behind me. I wonder: Is this a variation that I want to exercise daily? If the answer is ‘no’, I keep practicing and forget about the variation. To slow down and to do less is often good advice.

On the mat every morning I have my own challenges. It’s mainly back bending. I’m far away from where I used to be. I practice and this is what counts. I trust in the process. Asanas feel so much better already. Bridge pose felt amazing today. I could enjoy being in that pose. I repeated it three times. This is progress.

Tomorrow is Ashtanga yoga primary day. I love it.

Embrace discomfort

Bakasana, Nov 2020

Since more than a decade I tried to eliminate all possible discomfort. I realize that it’s not possible. Discomfort comes, discomfort goes. Then something else arises at the horizon that isn’t pleasant.

I remember my pranayama teacher from India. He told me that he showers cold every day, even though warm water is available. He prepared himself for the times when warm water was not available.

We can learn to live with discomfort. Then it becomes easier to bear. An example: When I feel the stretching I focus also on the breath. I keep breathing evenly. This helps to relax despite the stretching discomfort.

Simply observing what happens is another method. With time we can learn to distinguish different sensations in the body. We might get closer and closer to our limits.

Discomfort helps us to learn and to grow:

• A cold shower in the morning strengthens the immune system.

• Taking the steps instead of the elevator is good for the heart.

• Preparing meals is time-consuming, but healthier as the meals in restaurants.

The more often we face a difficult situation the easier it becomes to handle this situation.

Today I wanted to omit bakasana with straight arms. I’m not able to do it, I thought. But I tried it. It was not easy to move forward. I did it. When I saw the picture I loved it. Never before my arms were stretched like in the picture. This gives me self-confidence.

My lesson for today: Don’t avoid discomfort. Start easy. With time it becomes more and more satisfying to go through difficult situations. That’s how we learn.

Sitting on the sofa all day long is not really inspiring.

Keep practicing. Stay open for surprises.

Use it or lose it

Upavishta konasana, Nov 2020

We lose 40 % of our muscles between 40 and 80 if we don’t train them. This has a huge influence on our lives. I also read that when we have to go to a hospital we lose 1% of our muscles every day because we usually lie in bed all day long.

Therefore I think we don’t have a choice if life shall not aggravate. We must train our muscles 💪. If we want to stay flexible we have to stretch, too. It’s not always fun. Me too, I’m not always in the mood to put in the necessary work. Yet moods change. Practicing daily is easier than having an on and off relationship with the daily yoga session.

Easier said than done.

I prefer to stretch than doing strength training. Both is important. I don’t avoid to build strength anymore.

On the picture is upavishta konasana. Every day I exercise forward splits and side splits. I consider these asanas as basic asanas. When I learned to move forward instead of downwards upavishta konasana improved. The spine keeps rather neutral. To bow the back is not recommended. The above asana opens the hips. It’s relieving for the back. Engaging the leg muscles helps to get deeper into the pose. The legs move to the center and not away from it.

Yet as always experiment, compare how different movements feel.

November challenge

Bakasana variation, Nov 2020

We have another lockdown due to Covid-19 virus. It will last till the end of November. In addition it’s raining today. It’s autumn at its best. Few leaves hang on the trees till the next breeze will blow them to the ground. I cooked a spicy Indian inspired meal with potatoes and carrots. All restaurants are closed. Another months that gives me the opportunity to improve my cooking skills.

Carmen started another challenge called #pressingmatters. I’m in. Time shouldn’t be an issue. Every day is a good day to practice yoga.

Back to bakasana: The task is to hold this asana for one minute. I practice bakasana every day. Tomorrow I shall see how long I can hold this asana.