What I'm Reading Now: The Daily Bandha: How to Balance Opposites in the Foot and Ankle

Hmmmm, somehow I lost my posting for this in cyber space?? And I really like what I had written. Guess this is a lesson on NON-attachment! ;)

SO what I really loved about this posting from The Daily Bandha is learning HOW to balance our various muscles in the foot and anke and how to be AWARE of this whole area. We spend so much time in our shoes that our feet lose that natural strength and connectedness with the ground beneath us. Yoga gives us the opportunity to reconnect.

(Image courtesy of The Damily Bandha)

Read the posting below and let me know what you think!

The Daily Bandha: How to Balance Opposites in the Foot and Ankle

Namaste

What I'm Reading Now: The Daily Bandha - A Tip for Helping Hyperextended Elbows & Knees

This is a great blog posting. I have already used the tips in it in my classes yesterday and today. Cick on the link below to read. It is really illuminating!

(Image courtesy of Daily Bandha)

The Daily Bandha: A Tip for Helping Hyperextended Elbows and Knees i...: "Aligning the bones accesses their inherent strength so that yoga poses ultimately require less muscular effort to maintain. For example, in..."

So I didn't add much to this posting when I initially wrote it because I was chewing on it. Quite a bit actually. I see lots of Downward Facing Dogs every day... and many of them have elbows alignment such as that shown above left. I have always searched and continue to search for the best ways to convey to my students HOW to adjust alignment and feel comfortable in each and every pose they settle into. But I do need to remember that we all hear things and understand them in OUR own time. Sometimes we can hear the SAME thing said to us every day for a year and yet we haven't LISTENED to it... we haven't really HEARD it. So perhaps I need to listen a little more and learn to adjust in a different way so that my students can hear what they need to hear. In the meantime... as I said at the beginning of this posting, please do click on the link and read Ray's blog entry. He knows how how say it!

Happy Weekend.

What I'm Reading Now: The Daily Bandha - A Benefit of Using the Big Toes in Yoga

Lately I have been following this blog as I am delving deeper into anatomy and understanding so much more about how our bodies move and why we need to do things certain way in yoga and as we move through our lives in sports and daily activities. Yoga brings us the awareness we need to begin the process in each of our own UNIQUE bodies.

As we move through various poses in my classes I often mention grounding through the base of the big toe, feeling the gentle and subtle engaging of the muscles in our legs. Read Ray's wonderful explanation and look at Chris' revealing drawings to understand this further:

The Daily Bandha: A Benefit of Using the Big Toes in Yoga

(Image Courtesy of Daily Bandha)

I feel that all of our connections to the ground, whether our feet, hands, sitting bones, even knees in some poses need to be balanced and subtle and energized. This provides us with proper and even balance throughout the body.

So Ray begins his posting with this question:

"Have you ever noticed how the pelvis seems to drift backwards in standing forward bends, especially Uttanasana?"

Hmm, UH, YEAH! I notice it in myself and in my students. In our effort to bend and "touch our toes"... we neglect to do the adjustments to bring the pose into alignment.. for our body:

I begin by taking stock of my hamstring's flexibility that day. If necessary, bending my knees so I feel comfortable as I settle into Forward Fold. I inhale and lengthen my sitting bones to the sky and exhale releasing my heart towards my legs. I then further awareness by grounding the big toes into the mat. This helps to bring the pelvis into the correct positon for this pose. In Uttanasana I really feel my breath, often bending my knees so much so that my torso rests on my thighs. Only as I feel the release do I begin to straighten my legs. And that sometimes doesn't happen until several Surya Namanskaras!

But I think the best thing to do is to read Ray Long's posting for yourself. He really gets into the WHY and HOW this works. It starts to make sense when you read it and try it on yourself.

So, try it out: right here, right NOW...

What I'm Reading Now: The Daily Bandha: A Cool Tip for Deeper Breathing in Yoga

More important reading for Pranyama Month! I absolutely LOVE this blog and I learn something new every time I read it. And especially in light of my focus this month, I am learning more.

I have Ray Long's books and use them constantly to inform and reaffirm my teaching. The illustrations by Chris McIvor make it all come together so well. (Image courtesy of DailyBandha.com)

This is what Ray has to say:

So, here’s a cue for activating one of my fave accessory muscles—the serratus anterior (SA) and his buddies, the rhomboids. Pause for a second. Rest your hands on your thighs. Now, exhale naturally and then gently draw the shoulders back to bring the scapulae (shoulder blades) towards the spine. As you inhale, imagine pressing the sides of your shoulders and upper arms against an imaginary wall, like a doorframe. Feel how this expands your chest. Repeat this cue two more times before reading on . . .

Click on the link to read on....

The Daily Bandha: A Cool Tip for Deeper Breathing in Yoga

And, as always, IF YOU FEEL like commenting... please do so. Really, I know people read my blog but sometimes I feel like I am talking into a VOID!

Just saying, is all.... ;)