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Student Section |
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Student Section |
Questions About
Practice
This section is in progress
Beginning
Practice Questions
General Practice Questions
Aches, Pains and Pops
Female Questions
I can't remember anything. Should I worry?
No. Everybody has a slightly
different learning style, and everybody takes their own amount of time to begin to
remember what they're doing. I've seen someone not be able to remember even the
first 2 postures for 6 months, and then begin to remember everything. In general,
remembering the vinyasas and order of postures comes with repetition. But different
methods and approaches can help different people. Try some of the following:
* Visualizing practice without moving. Close your eyes and visualize each
movement with your breath, all the way through the entire practice as you know it.
* Breaking down the postures by numbers: e.g., the first six postures are
divided into pairs: 2 forward bends, 2 triangles, 2 side angles
* Breaking down the postures by logical progression: e.g., the first one of
the pair is always the easier one, the regular one comes before the more difficult twist
of the same thing, etc.
* Re-reading the handout sheets repeatedly
* Teaching or explaining the exact vinyasas to your kid, your spouse or housemate
Don't give up. For most people, remembering just comes with repetition.
Most important, remember that you don't have to judge yourself for the length of time it
takes you to remember. That's just an energy drain. All you have to do is
practice, and everything will come.
I'm really sore. Should I still practice?
Yes. Movement will lubricate your joints and warm your muscles and you'll feel much better afterwards, even if you have to gimp through your practice. Just practice slowly and gently, and don't pressure yourself. Also, maintaining a daily practice will condition your body so you stop getting sore from practice. Sporadic practice allows your body to get sore every time.
Help! I'm slipping on my mat and can't get up!
New mats come with a protective
film that is slippery but wears off gradually over time. You can hasten this process by
washing your mat in a machine WITHOUT AN AGITATOR (go to the Laundromat if you need to -
it's worth it), use a mild soap, sparingly, in cool water, and hang dry. It takes a mat
more than a day to dry, sometimes, so wait until you have a practice day off to do it.
After washing, you should see an improvement.
Lotions, creams, oils from the skin, etc., also cause the hands and feet to slip. Wash
your hands right before practice to alleviate any slipping from this source.
There is a very expensive but very effective non-slip mat, the Manduka Black Mat,
available from www.manduka.com.
Some people continue to slip on any rubber yoga mat no matter what. Those who sweat more sometimes like to practice on a "Mysore rug" on top of the yoga mat which absorbs sweat and makes a better practice surface for some people. These rugs are available all over the place, notably from www.prana.com, www.barefootyoga.com and www.huggermugger.com. We carry Prana and Hugger Mugger rugs at the shala.
Why aren't most classes led at the shala?
Ashtanga Yoga is meant to be learned individually by each student. While periodic led classes help in refreshing one's knowledge of the vinyasa system, the majority of one's practice time should be in the Mysore style.
Why don't we air condition the yoga shala, and when we turn the fans on, why don't we aim them at our bodies?
It's an important part of the Ashtanga practice to not interfere with the heat and sweat generated in the body during practice. To quote Pattabhi Jois in Yoga Mala: "The body will be sapped and its power exhausted if, in an effort to dry the sweat of practice, it is exposed to the outside air. When this occurs, the practitioner grows weaker and weaker over time. Thus, the sweat generated by yoga should be gradually dried by rubbing it into the body with the hands, and not by exposing it to the air or by drying it with a towel or cloth."
Is it better to practice in the morning or the evening?
First of all, practicing at any time is better than not practicing at all. Both morning and evening practice have their advantages. In the morning, your body is stiff, but your mind is fresh. In the evening, your body is warmed up, but your mind is tired. Having said that, it is better to practice in the morning than the evening. In the morning, you have the following added advantages: Your mind is fresh, the importance of which cannot be overstated. This makes for less likelihood of injury, and a more peaceful, meditative practice. Your metabolism is raised by morning practice and stays raised through the day. Practice in the evening raises metabolism, but it goes back down as soon as you go to sleep. Morning practice also energizes you and generates mental clarity for the rest of the day. Still, practicing at any time is better than not practicing at all.
I get dizzy when I stand up. Should I be worried? What should I do?
Getting dizzy when standing up usually comes from one or more of these three basic things: (1) not enough food, (2) not enough water, (3) not enough sleep. Be sure to eat nutritiously, even though you should practice on an empty stomach, drink at least 8 glasses of water a day, and sleep a full night. If these basic needs are met, and you are still getting dizzy, let me know and we will look for other causes. Alcohol, caffeine and nicotine intake can also affect balance and dizziness upon standing. If you are pregnant, you should NOT practice through dizziness. See here if you are pregnant.
I am sick. Should I still practice?
Yes. It is recommended to do as much practice as you are able as long as you don't have a fever. Don't pressure yourself. Just do what you can. If you have a fever, no practice. If you are contagious, practice at home, not at the shala. NOTE: This does not mean you should force yourself to do full primary at your utmost intensity. The objective is just to raise your circulation a little bit, keep your body alive. You might find 2 SSA, 2 SSB, and padmasana are an appropriate practice before getting back into bed.
Can I practice with my eyes closed?
No. Practicing with your eyes closed allows you to get lost in your practice. Drishti is one of the three most important elements of practice. Drishti, breathing, and bandhas are more important than the asanas themselves. Drishti keeps you alert, focuses your attention, and aligns your head and energy correctly.
How long should my practice take? I seem to be taking a long time, even though I don't do as many postures as the person next to me.
In the beginning, we do tend to go
a little slower than optimum because we are still taking extra breaths and fidgeting as we
get into postures and have not yet discovered correct pacing. You should be working
towards not taking any extra breaths, and going into each posture in the most flowing and
efficient manner. There is a forward momentum that comes into your practice as you
become confident and understand more how the practice works. When you are able to
achieve this forward momentum, practicing without extra breaths, these are general
observations of how long practice takes:
* sun salutations and basic closing - 15-20 minutes
* to end of standing postures and basic closing - 30 minutes
* to marichyasana D or navasana and basic closing 40-45 minutes
* full closing - 15 minutes to ½ hour
* to marichyasana D or navasana and full closing - 1-1¼
hour
* full primary series plus full closing 1¼
- 1½ hours
Why is what is taught at AYNO different from what I see in xyz book/video?
The objective at AYNO in terms of method is to teach what is currently taught by Guruji in Mysore. Teachers who learned from Guruji at an earlier date teach what was taught to them at that time. David Swenson's book contains lots of variations and uses props which Guruji would not use now except for therapeutic use for a particular practitioner's injury, etc. John Scott's book demonstrates "full vinyasa" (coming up to samastitih between every posture), which Guruji now says is "bad for the heart." Both are good teachers and have Guruji's blessing, and teach an earlier version of today's practice. In terms of video, each long-time student develops their own particular habits and ticks, which can be seen on video demonstrations and which represent various interpretations and evolutions of Guruji's vinyasa system. At AYNO, we practice what is currently taught in Mysore, with some influence from Nancy Gilgoff 's perspectives.
It's worth noting that the three books which represent accurately Pattabhi Jois' Ashtanga Yoga (John Scott's Ashtanga Yoga, Lino Miele's Astanga Yoga, and Guruji's Yoga Mala) all present full vinyasa, which is never practiced daily. Even when Guruji leads class with Sanskrit counting, he counts each posture as if full vinyasa were being practiced. For example, when entering into a sitting position, he counts "sapta" (seven), as if we have done the first six vinyasas of the sun salutation to reach it. So the full vinyasa skeleton underlies our practice every day, even though we now practice the "half vinyasa" version daily.
ACHES, PAINS AND POPS Please also see the Aches, Pains, Tweaks and Pops page
I heard a popping/moving sound in my knee/hip/shoulder, etc. Should I be worried?
If there is no pain associated with the popping, you do not need to be worried. Sometimes things shift in the body suddenly, without negative effect. This is fairly common during Ashtanga practice and is generally called an "opening." This is the body realigning itself to a more balanced, neutral and free position.
However, if you felt pain during or after the popping, then you should take care with the area until you know how it is affected. If it is negatively affected, follow guidelines for that part of the body. Unfortunately, actual injuries are also sometimes referred to as "openings" in Ashtanga, and perhaps they are, but in the sense that they present to you a new opportunity to learn how to care for your body in a deeper way. We never want an injury to occur during practice, but if it does happen, the least we can do is to look upon even an injury as an opportunity for growth.
I hurt my [insert body part here] - should I still practice?
Yes. Most injuries require practice in order to heal properly without excess scar tissue formation and permanent muscle shortening or atrophy. Practice slowly and gently, working around the area in question. Do not work through the pain, work around it. Do not go into the area of pain, which is there to give you information about what you should and should not do. The point is merely to maintain mobility and range of motion, not to "improve" your practice, deepen your stretch, or accomplish something new. Really, not even to maintain your practice as it was. In the injured area, do not go so far into the stretch that you feel pain. Although you may have to back way off, in most cases, you should practice. However, every injury is different. Sometimes there are particular things you should do or not do for particular areas/injuries. Sometimes shortened practice is appropriate. And sometimes it really is appropriate to stop. Talk to the teacher about it to get details for the particular part of the body in question.
If you are seriously debilitated (major car accident, some surgeries), then you must rest and heal, incorporating movement as soon as possible once it is appropriate.
For more information on specific tweaks and injuries, click here.
What's the deal about menstruation?
In Ashtanga yoga, our primary physical objective is to harness and augment the life force. Prana is the vibrant and upward moving energy in the body, and includes inhaling and the drawing in of the life force; apana refers to the downward moving and waste energy and functions of the body and includes the elimination functions (menses, bowel movement, urinary movement), exhalation, and the slow drain of the life force out of the body. With every breath and through our work with the bandhas, we are emphasizing the prana and drawing upward against the apana.
Menstruation is governed by downward energy, and subverting the required and natural functions of menstruation during that time via the upward work done in Ashtanga practice is counterproductive and can cause physical problems and other damage. During menstruation, the area around the uddiyana bandha is in expansion - on purpose, by design of the body - and uddiyana bandha is contractive - again counter-productive to the needs of the body at that time. We should not squish something that needs to expand - we don't squish the baby when we're pregnant, so we also don’t squish the abdomen when menstruating. In correct application of uddiyana bandha, the organs are actually moving upward towards the ribcage. This is extreme when the uterus is busy menstruating. This is why we don't practice during that time. (Summary: Menstruation: downward and expansive below the navel; Ashtanga practice: upward and contractive below the navel.)
A lot of people wanted to talk about this with Nancy when I was in her teacher training. She said that over her 30 years of experience lots of women have wanted to or have insisted on practicing through their periods, and that she has seen numerous and varied chronic physical and other problems that each woman thought were totally unrelated resolve when the woman finally stopped practicing during her period.
Nancy clarified that the time not to practice is not specifically when there is blood, but when you can't do uddiyana bandha properly or can't connect the mula and uddiyana bandha. She noted that that can start a couple of days before your period begins and ends a couple of days before your period finishes. Once you are adept at uddiayana bandha, you can more accurately isolate the appropriate time to refrain from practice. If you can't use uddiyana bandha as your guide, Guruji says don't practice when there's blood visible, and most western teachers say take the first 3 days or 3 heaviest days off.
I am or want to get pregnant. How will this affect my practice?
You may practice while pregnant, but only if you establish your practice solidly first. After delivery, wait 3 months to resume practice. Detailed guidelines for practicing while pregnant can be found here.