The great yoga adventure

Good morning everybody,

I had my first private yoga lesson this morning. It was superly duperly fun! We went through the sun salutation because apparently this incorporates all the basics of yoga. We did a LOT of downward dogs. @Adge My teacher gave me a very long-winded explanation of why downward dogs are so super important in yoga...but I can't remember all the tricky words she used so I'm afraid I can't repeat it for you.

After we did that, she had a look at how I stand on my head. She said there is nothing else I need to know about that, but she started teaching me how to just stand on my forearms without my head touching the ground at all.

It is pretty funny when you're apparently more flexible than your yoga teacher, such that she keeps saying "I can't do this but you will be able to..."

The only tiny glitch we had was when we were working on a hand stand. She told me to kick my leg up, so I did...and hit her in the face. I'm laughing again now thinking about it. She assured me it was entirely her fault and it was not the first time it had happened...then she went and got some ice to put on the injury. Oopsy.

I will definitely be having another private lesson when I can save up a bit. Why do I keep finding such expensive hobbies. Yoga lessons and violin lessons are expensive! Why the heck couldn't I develop an obsessive interest in jogging or something!

@soul I love all the pictures you find for our yoga adventure. I'm pretty sure that "shoulder-stood" only exists as a word here in our most special of yoga groups.

@TheVorticon I think a post-midnight shoulder stand counts for the previous day providing that you also do one later on the day that had just commenced when you did the midnight one. I'm pretty sure I read that in part 2, section 8, subclause 5.6, paragraph 4 of the constitution of our yoga group.

@Adge I love what soul's teacher says about how everything is optional in yoga except for breathing. My teacher is constantly saying in class that nobody is watching you and that there is no wrong way to do yoga. I super get the embarrassment factor though. I feel embarrassed by my quirky flexibility. I know that probably sounds strange, but I feel like people think I'm showing off or something when really, it's just the way my body is made. My body is bendy, your body isn't bendy, either way, it's totally ok. There's about a 99.9% chance that you have much greater cognitive flexibility than me - we're all just different.

Anyway, by popular demand, this week's pose of the week is chair pose. Here is how to do chair pose: https://www.doyogawithme.com/content/chair-pose

I wonder how many chairs we can make this week here in Forum Land. I think the most exciting thing about this pose is that when we say that we've "chaired", we will be using a word that actually exists in the English language.

I will be aiming to be a chair every day this week. I super hope you will join me.

Happy yoga-ing.

@soul @TheVorticon @Shaz51 @Maggie @Ant7 @Adge @Mazarita @CheerBear @Amour_Et_Psyché @Anony18 @Rockpool @River9 @Chamomile @Lauz @5-HT @frog @MummaMia @Lunar @Wildflowers @Nell23 @NikNik

I'm doing the iRest program (book) at the moment - which is Yoga Nidra meditations for working with (healing) PTSD.

A group environment (program) to learn & practice it in would be best, but I don't have that available.

So I'm going through the e-book, trying to learn as much of it as I can - to integrate it into daily practice (if possible).

It involves sensing your body sensations, breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, & awareness of feelings & thoughts - plus dialoguing with those feelings.

Every feeling comes with it's opposite, to accept (without pushing it away) - which was new to me.

I'm a new-comer to these e-books (a bit sceptical). I prefer a hard-copy (in print), but I don't have one (just the e-book).

The good thing is that on my phone (also maybe on a computer) - I can get the book to read itself out aloud (with an electronic voice).

That's working better for me - as I absorb & remember things far better when I hear them.

Reading the words in print would not have the same effect, & I wouldn't remember it anywhere near as well.

Adge

That's great about your private lesson @Phoenix_Rising! 😄 I'm glad it went so well... Other than the mistake your teacher made by putting her face in the way of your leg! 😛

Thank you for finding part 2, section 8, subclause 5.6, paragraph 4 for me 😉 I did satisfy that requirement, so it seems that my shoulderstand counted after all 🙂

I have now chaired for the evening.

That seems like an interesting book @Adge. How long have you been working through it?

Breathing is pretty important although I do sometimes forget @soul 😛

Wow @Phoenix_Rising - your own private yoga lesson. Maybe your teacher will be getting you to demonstrate the moves she can’t manage. I wish I could do a headstand. It’s been a zillion years since I was able to. Can you do a back flip? Bet you were a cheer leader in a previous life or a gymnast or perhaps an acrobat.

I enjoyed a lovely restorative Yin class this afternoon and there weren’t too many people in the studio. We didn’t chair - oh no😱. So when I got home, I did. I’m doing what I did last week with the shoulderstand and extend the time each day.

Not sure if the minuscule time you chair pose before you sit down counts. I think it has to be a concerted effort with the arms forward as well. Hopefully we get some more takers this week.

I shall try to source a copy of that book @Adge. It looks to be a really useful resource. I found this excerpt.

https://premayoga.com.au/irest-yoga-nidra/download/

I have now chaired @Phoenix_Rising

Wow @Phoenix_Rising - your own private yoga lesson, cool

Hi @TheVorticon & @soul

Notifications of any posts (replies) are not coming through or showing up - so I had no way of knowing that you had replied or asked me questions.

I don't know how or why that's happened, maybe it's something in the settings.

It's rather upsetting really, because without the notifications (Bell picture) - I cannot know that there is something to check or reply to.

I've been working through the iRest book for about 3 weeks, I'm now reading back through it for the 2nd time.

Thanks @soul Yes my yoga teacher told me about that site & download, I downloaded it last night.

Adge

Good evening everybody,

I have chaired today, have you? It's harder than it looks when you actually put the effort in to do it properly isn't it. I have a feeling that that's the case with yoga in general - you can take it easy or get a real workout from it.

@Adge The iRest program sounds really awesome. There is certainly a lot of research evidencing attesting to the value of yoga in healing trauma. I noticed you just posted about not receiving notifications. Yep, there is a glitch in the system. Apparently the awesome NikNik and her team of IT dudes couldn't fix it and so they have had to call in some extra super IT dudes.

@TheVorticon I am super glad that we could confirm that your shoulderstand counted. Yay for chairing yesterday evening. I am so glad you are yoga-ing at home, even if going to a class is absolutely definitely not on your to-do list. I find yoga-ing super calming and helpful. I hope you do too.

@soul Yep, the private lesson was super cool...but sadly too expensive to do very often. Nope, I can't do a backflip. I've never done gymnastics or anything. It really is only through going along to my yoga class that I discovered my quirky flexibility. I am so very glad that CheerBear helped me find my courage to go. I think we have only chaired once in my yoga class, so I'm not surprised that you didn't chair in your class. Extending the time that you chair for each day sounds like a very cool idea. You must be really developing your strength with all this yoga-ing that you are doing. I super love how you have got into it so much.

Hooray, @Shaz51 chaired today!!!!! {Runs around wildly waving flippers in the air like kermit the frog}.

I intend to chair again tomorrow. I hope you will too.

Happy yoga-ing.

@Phoenix_Rising the chair pose burns!!! Ouch!

You need more practice then @Former-Member

@Phoenix_RisingI did chair today and so did my kids. They told me they prefer last weeks shoulder stamd, but I like this one better. Probably becasue I did it better than them, but we are not competitive at all!!!!!