Yoga Profanity: The "S" Word

Stretching and flexibility often get questioned, or maybe the correct term is "poo-poo-ed" in the world of fitness and athletics. Articles and books questioning the importance of stretching and are released quite often. The funny thing is yoga often gets lumped in with stretching and seen as a one-dimensional activity. When I began my certification course to become a yoga instructor, the practicum instructor would not use the term "stretch". He was adamant that the word "stretch" should not enter our vocabulary as we instructed a class. Yes, stretch is the yoga world's "S" word.

Instead I like to use the word "lengthening".  In yoga we seek to lengthen the muscle fibers so that they can lie completely relaxed over the bones. When people work out with weights or even simply "stretch" without awareness they are breaking the muscle fibers, shortening them. When working with weights, you begin to "bundle" short fibers together to create a larger muscle. When you overextend the muscle fiber in a stretch, you break the fibers and shorten them permanently (the exact opposite of what we want!). No wonder stretching gets a bad rap! If you attempt to lengthen the muscle fibers without correct bone alignment, self-awareness, and breath work you are doing yourself a great disservice -- causing permanent tight muscles that, in their constant contracted state, begin to pull your bones out of alignment, which begins to pull your joints closed, which begins to seriously inhibit your range of motion and increase your risk of injury and/or disease.  A yogi's muscles are long and relaxed when not in use.  No tension builds in the body.  No joints begin to close as bones are pulled away from their homes.  And yet, still a yogi's muscles are strong.  They remain long and yet hold the body's weight in poses like plank and chaturanga dandansana.

Yoga is not a one-dimensional activity designed to only to target flexibility. I think this huge misconception stems from the fact that a large population of us have very tight body types that are always tense from our other workouts, sedentary work, or other lifestyle choices; and, thus, our "big reveal" (see previous post) equals: I'm not flexible. This is unfortunate because a complete yoga practice is about finding balance between our strength and flexibility. My personal big reveal was actually, "I'm not strong." 


The point is, a complete yoga practice helps us to discover and pay attention to not just our muscles (unlike a majority of workouts), but our spinal alignment, joint openings, bones, breath, thoughts, and our inner visceral body. That is what makes it so amazing! It is the complete package.  But it must be practiced with care and attention to detail under the guidance of a certified yoga instructor in order to be truly beneficial. This guidance may come from a class you attend, a book you are reading, or video you are watching (or better yet, all three) -- just make sure you have some reputable source to reference when you have questions.  Practice safe!

Namaste~

Tammie

Yoga 101: The Big Reveal

I've noticed a trend in all these popular makeover and reality show on television these days.  After an hour of meandering filler and fluff, there is a "big reveal" to close the show and that's it.  End of story.  End of journey.  I find this weird because its just the opposite in a hatha yoga practice.  The poses tend to produce a big reveal pretty early on when you are still a beginner.  The big reveal is a pivotal point in a yoga practice.  Its the moment that the framework of the poses allows you to see yourself with clarity.  It determines the direction of your yoga journey.  

Every big reveal is different.  Each yoga journey is unique.  Some people find a class, go once a week, enjoy it, but don't crave it.  Some people, like me, find it permeates their life.

I'm discreetly doing yoga poses while I'm grocery shopping.  I'm discovering yoga metaphors in my gardening, my art, and my parenting.  I'm quietly watching my breath and posture moment to moment; making subtle shifts that change how I'm perceiving, experiencing, and interacting with life.  

I think its important to remember that a big reveal is only the beginning and each and every journey is valid, no matter what direction it takes.  Don't mistakenly believe that your big reveal is the climatic moment, like a TV show; instead savor that moment of clarity and prepare yourself for the upcoming plots twists as you discover what your yoga practice will mean to you.   

How playful is your down dog???

Until I started sharing yoga with children on a daily basis, I didn't truly understand how a yoga practice could be playful and meaningful.  Oh, I knew it didn't have to be serious all of the time.  My yoga teacher is one of the funniest people I know.  One of the first things he told me was that yoga does not have to be serious, but, rather, sincere.  His ability to joke and be light hearted made me instantly comfortable and I knew I had found the right teacher for me.  So, from the start of my career as a yoga instructor, I knew how to incorporate humor into a class of adults, but I was still subconsciously placing a lot of undue pressure on myself and my own practice.  My mind just wouldn't accept that my yoga session was "enough" for the day if it wasn't uninterrupted, silent, and for a certain length of time.  My mind didn't accept that sincere effort could come in many forms and expressions.

This became a real conflict when I started teaching PE & Movement at my children's school in addition to my adult classes.  I desperately wanted to incorporate yoga into the student's day, but I struggled to find a way to do it that appealed to them and me.  My mind had the idea that I was "watering it down" too much and really disliked that notion.  To put it at ease, I tried some ideas from books and videos, but nothing really sprung organically from me until one day, several weeks in, during cow, cat, and down dog stretches that I started explaining (from my own experience as a child) how cows are friendly and love to greet everyone with a "moooo" and cats are often moody and don't feel like talking with a "meeooww" and back and forth.  Then something about the kid's enthusiasm in making the noises must have inspired the child in me because I was suddenly saying "and now I will say the magic words and we will all turn into dogs!"

As I recited the magic words, "wiggle, waggle.... wiggle, waggle,  wiggle, waggle............." very slowly, the children followed my lead as I wiggled my hips back over my heels, but kept my "paws" firmly in place.  After a dramatic pause, I cried, "WOOF!" and we all went tails up together.  It was fun!  It was play!  And it was pretty darn good alignment for downward facing dog.

I found that I was enJOYing wagging my tail even if it wasn't my traditional dog done on my mat....at home...in a silent, meditative atmosphere.  In fact, it dawned on me that JOY should be a a main ingredient in all of my down dogs.  And, thankfully, that idea has stuck, because today this old dog had many, many chores and not much free time, so she decided to go "tails up" while gardening in her new backyard.  With the sun warming her skin, the grass caressing her hands, and the lumps and bumps of the soil challenging her footing, downward facing dog was a brand new experience and a feast for the senses!  All hail the down dog that can be playful and meaningful!

Its not always pretty.

The view from my yoga mat this morning was not all lotus flowers and om symbols.  Like anything else, some days are more of a struggle than others.  When I come to my mat and find my mind distracted and my body stiff I remind myself that having the mat rolled out and my body firmly planted on it is the real accomplishment.  The commitment I have made to being on the mat is what makes my yoga practice powerful, regardless of what happens during the poses.  Today my body told me it was getting older, that it could and would still do what I asked, but it really needed to "build up" to what I was asking.  So I laid on my back and hugged my legs to my chest and very slowly rocked back and forth, breathing deep, allowing the inadvertent groans to release the built up negativity.  Slowly that gentle rolling, deep breathing, and ACCEPTANCE became a more substantial yoga practice as my body agreed to it.  There is no more important message you should receive from a yoga instructor than this:  HONOR YOUR BODY.  Never do what your body is not ready to do.  Yoga is not a flexibility contest.  It is not a sun salutation marathon. Please don't overdo it and, for the love of Shiva, don't ever feel guilty or bad about what happened (or didn't happen) during your yoga practice! 

Namaste~

Tammie   

Your body has something to tell you.

As a mom and educator, I spend a LOT of time with children.  As a yoga instructor, I have been trained to see how energy is moving (or restricted) in people's bodies while they are in a pose.  The combination of these two backgrounds makes every day an interesting adventure in being human.  

During college I studied many theories of child development and educational philosophy.  Is there really a pattern of development that all humans follow?  I'm sure many professors and professionals in the educational and therapeutic fields could argue the pros and cons of these theories until they are blue in the face and never come to an agreement.  I am not convinced that there is one perfect theory of child development, but I am sure of this:  we all begin life with our bodies as a our tour guides.  

In our bodies we travel through the world and begin to understand it and how we fit into it.  As infants, we explore our worlds through movement experimentation, by hearing the tone of our mother's voice, placing our toes in our mouth, sucking on a sour lemon slice, holding tight to a strand of hair we find!  We take in sensory input with our bodies and process it into motor output.  This is our first learning and its true learning!  We integrate information and then apply it to new situations -- it doesn't get much better than that on the learning continuum.   

Our bodies are our first guides on our lifelong learning journey.  They are wise.  They are infallibly honest.  They are our most loyal companions.  I'm not sure why we ever stop trusting and connecting with these wise teachers, but many of us do.  I know I did as a young adult.  Experimenting and exploring my world through my body in yoga poses has been my path back to real growth, learning, and evolution as an adult. Maybe it could be yours, too.