Posing by Numbers

I am a new addition to the Yoga District family, after recently realizing my week long streaks of cocktail lusting and late night McDonalds runs had finally taken a toll on my once toned physique.  I had taken some yoga classes in the past: Bikram, Hatha, and various classes at Washington Sports Clubs.  I had at least taken enough to where I thought I deserved my own Yoga mat, even though it would usually end up in the back of my closet after a couple weeks.

When I started taking classes at Yoga District, I noticed how all of the classes had numbers by them (1, 1.5, 2, 3), which I had to admit, threw me at first.  Since I had taken some classes in the past, I decided that I was at least a 1.5 or a 2. I signed up for my first class with Caroline D. for Yoga 1-1.5, thinking to myself “The numbers are low enough, maybe I can show off my skills a little bit”.  Let me tell you, there is nothing more humbling that being in a class that you think is a very basic yoga class and being almost the only one in the class that is not at in head stand.   The class ended up surprising me in all of the best possible ways.  After getting over the mild embarrassment, I listened to Caroline D.’s instructions closely and was able to hold poses that I had only pretended to do in the past.

It was at that point that I realized that the Yoga “practice” I had experienced before was obviously very cookie-cutter and lacking the authenticity that Yoga District seemed to offer.  After just a few classes, I have noticed my strength and flexibility have increased.  I have graduated myself to a 1.5 finally and treated myself to a Manduka yoga bag.  Next stop, level 2 and a new mat.  Of course, I’ll be donating my old one through the Yoga Activist Mat Donation Project!

A Smoking Meditation by Osho

A man came to me. He had been suffering from chain-smoking for thirty years; he was ill and the doctors said, “You will never be healthy if you don’t stop smoking. ” But he was a chronic smoker; he could not help it. He had tried — not that he had not tried — he had tried hard, and he had suffered much in trying, but one day or two days, and then again the urge would come so tremendously, it would simply take him away. Again he would fall into the same pattern.

Because of this smoking he had lost self-confidence: he knows he cannot do a small thing; he cannot stop smoking…

He said, “What can I do? How can I stop smoking?” I said, “Nobody can stop smoking. You have to understand. Smoking is not only a question of your decision now. It has entered into your world of habits, it has taken roots. Thirty years is a long time. It has taken roots in your body, in your chemistry, it has spread all over. It is not just a question of your head deciding; your head cannot do anything. The head is impotent; it can start things, but it cannot stop so easily. Once you have started and once you have practiced so long, you are a great yogi — thirty years’ practicing smoking. It has become autonomous; you will have to de-automatize it. ”

He said, “What do you mean by ‘de-automatization’?” And that’s what meditation is all about: de-automatization.

I said, “You do one thing: forget about stopping. There is no need either. For thirty years you have smoked and lived; of course it was a suffering, but you have become accustomed to that too. And what does it matter if you die a few hours earlier than you would have died without smoking? What are you going to do here? What have you done? So what is the point — whether you die Monday or Tuesday or Sunday, this year, that year — what does it matter?”

He said, “Yes, that is true, it doesn’t matter.” Then I said, “Forget about it; we are not going to stop it at all. Rather, we are going to understand it. So next time, you make it a meditation. ”

He said, “Meditation out of smoking?”

I said, “Yes. If Zen people can make meditation out of drinking tea, and can make it a ceremony, why not? Smoking can be as beautiful a meditation. ”

He looked thrilled. He said, “What are you saying?” He became alive! He said, “Meditation? Just tell me — I can’t wait! ”

I gave him the meditation. I said, “Do one thing. When you take the packet out of your pocket, for a moment go slowly. When you are taking the packet of cigarettes out of your pocket move slowly. Enjoy it, there is no hurry. Be conscious, alert, aware; take it out slowly, with full awareness. Then take the cigarette out of the packet with full awareness, slowly — not in the old hurried way, unconscious way, mechanical way. Then start tapping the cigarette on your packet — but very alertly. Listen to the sound, just as Zen people do when the samovar starts singing and the tea starts boiling, and the aroma. Then smell the cigarette and the beauty of it…. ”

He said, “What are you saying? The beauty?”

“Yes, it is beautiful. Tobacco is as divine as anything. Smell it; it is God’s smell.”

He looked a little surprised. He said, “What, are you joking?”

“No, I am not joking.” Even when I joke, I don’t joke. I am very serious. “Then put it in your mouth, with full awareness, light it with full awareness. Enjoy every act, small act, and divide it into as many small acts as possible, so you can become more and more aware.

“Then have the first puff: God in the form of smoke. Hindus say, ‘annam brahm’ — ‘ Food is God.’ Why not smoke? All is God. Fill your lungs deeply — this is a pranayam. I am giving you the new yoga for the new age! Then release the smoke, relax, another puff… and go very slowly.

“If you can do it, you will be surprised, soon you will see the whole stupidity of it. Not because others have said that it is stupid, not because others have said that it is bad: you will see it. And the seeing will not be just intellectual. It will be from your total being, it will be a vision of your totality. And then, one day, if it drops, it drops; if it continues, it continues. You need not worry about it. ”

After three months he came, and he said, “But it dropped.”

“Now, ” I said, “try it on other things too. ” This is the secret, the secret: de-automatize.

Walking, walk slowly, watchfully. Looking, look watchfully, and you will see trees are greener than they have ever been and roses are rosier than they have ever been. Listen. Somebody is talking, gossiping: listen, listen attentively. When you are talking, talk attentively. Let your whole waking activity become de-automatized.

The Yoga Body Type

So, there is definitely a yoga body type. It's displayed in yoga magazines and in ads for yoga clothing and gear (which is now sold just about everywhere, including the grocery store!) You know the type, a long lithe body, flat stomach, long legs, shiny hair in a pony tail. I've seen it so much I kind of assumed that's how yoga originated, skinny, fit girls in tight pants and cute tank tops.

But recently I started reading Iyengar's guidebook to yoga. B.K.S. Iyengar is a 92-year-old Indian yoga guru who founded the practice known as Iyengar yoga. It encompasses most of the basic poses used in Yoga District classes.

What really blew me away is the photos of Iyengar's Indian students in his book. They're girls of medium height and weight, wearing big shorts and t-shirts. Their outfits are not form-fitting in the slightest. The shorts look more like men's swim trunks.

It just made me think of how much we have Americanized this ancient practice. And it's not a bad thing, we've made this holistic and powerful practice available to masses of people who would not otherwise encounter it. I only wish to question the yoga body type we idealize.

I mentioned in my last post a Tweeter called @curvyyoga. Also known as Anna, she founded a studio specifically targeted toward larger people who are interested in practicing yoga.

“For over ten years, Anna practiced yoga and was, more often than not, by far the largest person in her class.  Despite being determined to continue practicing yoga, she often faced ignorance and feelings of marginalization.  As she sought connection with others who were teaching and practicing with curvy bodies, she found few allies.” (Curvyyoga.com)

I think Anna would have felt at more home at Yoga District. The classes are full of all types of people, and all types of yoga clothing. It's not pretentious or exclusive – it's core mission is to bring yoga to everyone. It saddens me to hear of people who would like to practice yoga, but don't think they're skinny enough, or flexible enough – it's not about that! It's about taking an hour, a class to get in touch with you body and still your mind.

Always breathe

This is the best advice I’ve ever received and probably the best advice I’ll ever give: breathe.

Breathing, it seems to me, is the most basic, most fundamental function of life. The breath bookends our lives: the inhalation is the first and most important task at birth and the exhalation is our final farewell at death. We even communicate through the breath with a wistful sign, a frustrated harrumph, a surprised gasp, a bored yawn, a cheerful whistle, or a longing blown kiss.

It’s a wonder that something so central to life is so easily forgotten.

So breathe. When you can’t keep up with a sun salute, breathe. When you keep falling out of a balancing post, breath. When you can’t hold the pose for one second longer, breathe. And then, we can bring that breath control practice, that pranayama, into our lives off the mat. When our bosses are demanding too much, when our families drive us up the wall, when the to do list keeps growing, when the bill pile up, we breathe.

It’s amazing how much our perspective can change in the time it takes to complete one full breath cycle.

So breathe. Always breathe.

Yoga Outreach

There’s a lot to love about Yoga District, but the main attraction that drew me in and kept me coming back is their awesome mission to bring yoga to the people—all people.  Not only are the donation-based classes super affordable, the donations directly support yoga outreach programs for trauma survivors and other communities in need, including the homeless, incarcerated persons, asylees, etc.  This mission is so ingrained into operation of the organization that the teacher training program at Yoga District requires its students to provide 5 free classes to a community that would benefit from yoga and would otherwise have very limited access.

To complete this assignment, I set off for a two week trip to teach yoga to a community of menopausal women in a small western Maryland town, about 75 miles outside of the city.  I chose this community because they live in a place where no yoga studios exist, and their only experience with yoga has been from video recordings.  If yoga helps restore balance, then there are probably very few times in a woman’s life when she could use it more than during menopause, as her entire being is shifting in every way imaginable—physically, emotionally, mentally, hormonally, energetically, and spiritually.  Integrating my two passions – yoga and natural health – I was excited to design a therapeutic yoga program, specifically tailored for women who are experiencing menopause.

I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into.  All the times I had previously taught and/or practiced yoga with a group had been among experienced yogis.  Even beginner classes almost always include a few somewhat advanced students, who generally know the ropes and understand the protocols, and new students tend to look to them for guidance.  Most of the women in my outreach classes, on the other hand, had never been to a yoga studio, chanted OM, meditated, or met Downward Facing Dog.

All of my preconceptions of what a yoga class is supposed to be were totally knocked down during this first yoga outreach experience.  For example, I always thought the number one “rule” was to show up on time, and if you are late, by all means do not disrupt the centering meditation at the beginning of class.  Ha!  Not so in this situation.  In fact, this was when the majority of the class trickled in, and all the other students stopped to greet each other and catch up with the latest gossip around town.  That broke the second “rule” — no talking during class.  There was plenty of giggling and chatting, but it actually turned out to be really fun! Toward the end of one of the classes, I was excited to teach “legs up the wall” pose, Viparita Karani, because during my training I had learned all about the therapeutic benefits from the pose.  I looked around and miraculously everyone finally had their legs stretched up a wall and appeared to be experiencing total bliss… so much that when I gave them the option to move into the final resting pose, Savasana, a few minutes later, no one even budged.  They loved it!

Teaching this group of fabulous women, I would not be surprised if I learned more from them than they learned from me.  They taught me how to let go of all expectations, have fun with yoga, and truly live in the moment.   It is true that our students are some of our best teachers.

Improv & Yoga

“The great thing about improv is that you do a scene – then it's over.”

I recently started taking a beginnier's improv class at The Washington Improv Theatre this week my improv teacher said something that I think parallels a lot of what goes on in yoga. In improv, you improvise a scene and characters to be in the scene. If the scene or a character doesn't work out – don't cling to it and try to make it work – just move on and create a new one.

Nothing is permanent – if you try a pose and it doesn't work out – it's over. Vinyasa yoga is the best example of this as one flows from one pose to the next through the sun salutations. Last week Iin Flow yoga Jasmine encouraged me to try side crow pose. It seemed totally impossible! I tried it, and basically failed – but I had to try. It was over and now I had one more attempt under my belt.

In life – if you're at a job you don't like, it's not forever. If you're experiencing pain or sadness, know that it will pass soon. I just discovered in googling “nothing is permanent” that Buddha said it. And then Charlie Chaplin said, “Nothing is permanent in this wicked world – not even our troubles.” Wise men.

Author: Margaret is a yoga enthusiast who just began practicing at Yoga District.

Naming Body Parts Is Hard

I know my body parts and I know my right from my left, so I assumed that cuing yoga poses would be a cinch. But somehow, when I get in front of a group of eager students, I’m suddenly at a complete loss. What’s that bendy thing that connects the lower arm to the upper arm? What are those wiggly things at the ends of my hands? And which leg is crossed over the other when I’m looking at a twisted mirror image? I don’t know what comes over me, but suddenly, English is a foreign language!

Of course, teaching yoga is more about love and compassion than it is about calling out the poses. But at the end of the day, you can’t have one without the other. So in teacher training, there’s equal emphasis on both the philosophy and mechanics of yoga. Communicating it all clearly, elegantly, and accurately is the challenging part.

Like everything else, it all comes down to practice. Only with practice do the jitters fade away, leaving space for the words to flow more freely and effortlessly; only with practice does the mind begin to calm long enough for the sequences to pour out with grace and eloquence. It takes time, patience, and dedication.

So next time your yoga teacher asks you to place your left head behind your right set of knees and clasp the back of your shoulder with your interlaced forearms, just smile, breathe, and take your best guess. That’s yoga!

Best Yoga Tweeters

So, I joined Twitter. The real reason I joined was to follow the Kardashians, if I'm being honest. I became addicted to the show via Netflix a couple months ago and have since devoured every season. The logical next step was to catch up with their every moves in real time via Twitter. Their appeal to me will never be understood. Anyhow, after following them for a couple weeks, I realized all they do is hawk the latest product they're promoting (Sketchers Shape Ups, Quick Trim weight loss pills, their specialty fragrances) and thus I quit them.

How does this tie into yoga? Well after quitting the K's I discovered that Twitter is good for other things, one of which is following yoga tweeters. I'll tell you about some of my favorites:

1. @tinybuddha is a frequent tweeter, sharing inspirational quotes and great articles from the tinybuddha site. One of my favorites: “How to stop obsessing over things you want.”

2. @YogaChrissy is a yoga teacher who posts some great, practical yoga tips. Here's a recent one: comfortable cross-legged seat should be, well, comfortable. Lifting pelvis up on blankets will help the thighs descend, relaxing groins.

3. @eclecticyogi is a yoga teacher in NY, she shares excellent news articles about new yoga trends and research.

4.  @Curvyyoga a self-described curvy yoga practitioner and teacher. @Curvyyoga is a great resource for the curvier yogis among us – myself being one! She’s big into loving your body and refuting stereotypes about what a perfect yoga body should look like.

and of course…

5. @YogaDistrict always keeping us up to date on all the hoppin’ happenings at Yoga District!

Yoga… the Secret to Balancing Stress

I recently heard my teacher say, “there is no such thing as stress.”  What!?  No such thing as stress?  How can she deny the wealth of scientific evidence that links stress to a person’s health?  Stress is strongly associated with a baziillion devastating conditions – depression, anxiety, headaches, insomnia, obesity, hair loss, skin disorders, weakened immune system, thyroid dysfunction, hormonal imbalances, gastrointestinal disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer! – just to name a few.  I started to think my teacher was seriously losing it until she explained what she meant.   Stress is not something that happens to us, but rather it is something we do to ourselves.  The way we choose to perceive the situation determines the affect that it will have on us.  Hmmm… that actually makes sense.  Stress doesn’t creep up on you like a poisonous spider while you’re sleeping.  It’s something we create!

In yoga we often talk about letting go and surrendering.  Unless you have some sort of magical powers, the events that happen around you are totally out of your control.  However, you gain an incredible amount of power by just accepting this lack of control. Stress happens when we resist what has already happened or when we allow ourselves to worry about what may or may not happen in the future.  We become totally liberated when we simple let go.  Let go of resistance to how things are.  Let go of all expectations.  Relax your shoulders and the muscles in your face.  Ahhh… much better.

A stress-free life– sounds too good to be true?  We also learn by practicing yoga that balance is key.  Some stress is necessary and beneficial for our wellbeing.  Without any stress, we would be totally apathetic, have no motivation or determination, and never feel a sense of accomplishment.  The goal is to cultivate a balance between effort and ease – an extremely common phrase repeated by yoga teachers, but it is indispensable advice.

Think about waiting for the train at the Metro, especially during the times of dreaded “Scheduled Track Maintenance.”  If you, like me, have a tendency to start panicking, anxiously pacing, and worrying that you will be late for your appointment, you are causing undue havoc for your mind and body.  You might notice that your body temperature is rising; your heart is beating so fast it might pop out of your chest; you are sweating, breathing shallowly in your upper chest, or maybe not breathing at all…  It’s amazing how subtle changes in our thoughts and breath can have such dramatic effects on our emotional and physical states.  A healthier approach in this situation is just to breath (deep inhales and slow and complete exhales), relax your mind, and maybe even meditate.  Because lets face it – by stressing out, will we make the train arrive any sooner?  Absolutely not.  Rather, conserve your energy for when the train drops you off at your destination, and run like crazy up that escalator!  You can thank your yoga teacher later for holding you in Utkatasana for so long last week, building up those amazingly strong leg muscles.

Books Are Also Good Teachers

I was skeptical when I saw the teacher training reading list: The Bhagavad Gita, The Yoga Sutras, Autobiography of a Yogi, Chakra Yoga: Balancing Energy for Physical, Spiritual, and Mental Well-Being, and a few other New Age-y sounding titles. I had to consciously stop myself from running in the opposite direction. My Western brain had a panic attack at the first mention of “subtle anatomy” and “body energetics.” When I went on Amazon to buy my books, I almost added a Physician’s Desk Reference to the basket just for good measure.

Then I did some off-the-mat yoga and told my mind what I’ve told it before: “I love you. Be quiet.”

I wanted to enter into my teacher training with total openness and non-judgment, so I decided that I’d give it a whirl. I wanted to be a sponge and just soak it all up, knowing that, at the end, I could wring it all out if I wanted.

As it happened, I didn’t want to wring any of it out, even if that meant being a little soggy! Warning: this is about to get a little mushy.

Ultimately, it was the Gita which spoke to me. Despite being written thousands of years ago, I found it to be entirely relevant. The Gita contains so many beautiful descriptions of God: absolute Truth, infinite Joy, all Creation, total Love. And, we can experience all of this through a constant yoga practice that brings us closer toward Union. Of course, yoga is more than just the physical asana practice. We must have a practice of offering, of devotion, of meditation, of non-attachment. To live rightly with a sense of non-attachment and devotion will bring us ever-closer to full union with a God who is full of love, peace and joy.

My training at Yoga District has made me a good teacher, but it’s made me an even better student. And I’ve learned that some of my best teachers lived 5000 years ago.

Naming body parts is hard.
Always breathe.
Practice makes practice.
Everything I ever needed to know, I learned on my yoga mat.
The last one into a handstand isn’t a rotten egg.
Picasso wasn’t a cubist at first.
The three musketeers were right.
Keep your shoulders at elbow-height.