Evolution of a Backbend (After Much Rambling)

The new shala is great. It's got a light feel to it, we're facing a balcony that has gorgeous plants and a water feature... the whole space feels like it's a lot bigger than the previous shala (coz it is!) It can now comfortably fit slightly more than 30 people, with loads of room to move around in (I'm sure if we squeezed we could get 40 - 50 mats in. But why would you wanna do that?)

BUT... I guess this is also part of the teething problems/ working out a new space issues. Today I felt like I needed to put on my sunglasses and sunscreen during practice. That would've been funny. Get my bling on.

I've been moving around, practicing in different spots of the shala, just to get a feel for the different areas. I don't like being in the center-front of the room. When the sun rises, it hits directly onto that spot where I was at today and I kept having to move my mat around, running away from the sun. (I build up a lot of internal heat already, no need to also feel my skin sizzling on top of that!) I hope they're planning on getting window blinds! (maybe the dark corners will become "my spot".) (Yes yes, I have to conquer non-attachment.)

What I like about it is there's no more separate room for the closing sequence, we just move to the back of the room after backbends. Which means that after practice, I now have the chance to look around the room and people-watch. Yes, totally illegal, but hey, I don't stay and gawk either... so it allows me to take a quick glance around the room without having to feel like I need to leave asap for the next person to take my spot.

There are a lot of "new" faces. "New" only because maybe I never noticed them before (since the shala got super packed and as explained before I had to leave immediately for the next person to take my spot)... so maybe they've always been there I just never noticed. But... I recognize a few faces from Sharath's workshop. Maybe they ARE new and came to our shala because of it.

It's kind of cool that our teacher is not charging for these first couple of weeks while they work out how the new space works. There are workmen still fixing up the showers and retail space downstairs (they start drilling whenever I get to Savasana. Ugh). There'll be an opening party next weekend which I've volunteered to help out at, so maybe I'll get a chance to show you pictures of the lovely new space!

At yesterday's practice, teacher's assistant (let's call her TA) wouldn't let me do handstands. "Not until you dropback on your own." (She's HARDCORE! Teacher had been helping me with handstands!) But yes, TA is also right. ...so today, when it came to dropbacks, TA said "OK, let's see how you're going today"... she didn't hold onto me at all while I dropped back, and at that last part as I dropped into the abyss, I felt her hands on the sides of my legs, a cue to bring more awareness to them.

And I didn't fall onto my head. Yay!

She said "You did it!" She was being kind. I know I didn't. If she hadn't been there, I would've dropped onto my head.

It's weird dropping back with less assistance - I think I'm locking my elbows coz my landing suddenly felt like rock solid concrete. Not at all soft & gentle (if I bend my elbows, I'll drop on my head!)

I dunno how many times we did this now - 3 times? 5 times? My head was spinning by the end of it. I needed her help to stand up from backbends coz she was making me turn my feet in and that's so much #%^$%!@ harder. (Dammit Feet! Stop splaying out!) So... less glutes, more quads & core! DAMMIT! ...yeah, my solo standing up from backbends have been a case of CHEATING since my feet splay out.

I will nail this. Today is just another day... by the way, this is also the 10th day in a row I've practised full Primary. While Sharath was here, we practised on the Saturdays so my last break was that last moon day. No rest for da wickid... looking forward to this Saturday!!
P.S. Check out the Kapotasana of the guy (?) in the electric-blue... um... hotpants. Yow-zer! (both the asana and the outfit)

(Photo credit here)

New Look!

I was getting bored of pink on black. Plus, it's really hard to read pink on black. Didn't realize this since my Google Reader feed is black on white. Which is so much easier on the eye.

So... what do you think? I'm still playing around with this new look, but I quite like what this is like now. (I've saved the old template just in case I fall out of love with this one).

:) :) :)

*UPDATE* (because it's clearly a slow-ish day in the office)
Through Twitter and blog comments, people seem to think the black text on white is too "stark". Hmm. I can't decide. I've now made the background a light grey. I'm not sure though.

Here's what the white background looked like:

What The Eff?!

I need to stop eating choy sum for dinner. I can't digest it properly and then it totally affects my practice the next day. The same thing happened during the first week with Sharath after a choy sum dinner. And today, all those twists were torture. I'd like to think that's why I couldn't find my fingers again in Supta Kurmasana today. Boo.

(Photo credit here)

"What the EFF?"

I say that a lot only because it's a phrase I picked up from these guys and it makes me laugh every time. I love these spoofs to death. They're really old but they're classic. Enjoy!

Post-Sharath Thoughts & First Practice

Since my body's been kinda sorta used to waking up at 4.45am from the past couple of weeks for Sharath's workshop, I figure I might as well keep this up while I've got the momentum going. I've averaged about 4 - 5 times mysore practice a week at a shala, but interested to see how I can keep this up for 6 days a week. (EEEEEEEK!)

The only thing I've got going is that my body feels both stronger and more open now, and that's enough to keep me going (now I understand why you people keep saying 6 days a week is actually easier on the body)... I've just always thought it'd be too taxing on the body, that I'd have to give it a rest, since I'd ache every couple of days. Surprise surprise... I only ached on day 2 & 3 of the first week of his workshop, but since then it's been all good. Ohhhhhh. I think I get it now.

Since taking a month off for a teacher training intensive last year, I decided that every year afterwards, I'd dedicate a few weeks to some sort of Svadhyaya, self-study. Last year's intensive was great in that all I did for a month was eat, sleep, breathe yoga and nothing else. I had that time to reflect.

This year, my Svadhyaya was Sharath's 2-week workshop. It was interesting having to weave this into the rest of "real life". In a way, that's what "real yoga" is about, innit? Living it. Putting it into practice in real life. Carrying on, off the mat. (maybe next year's intensive will be finally going to Mysore?) :)

Writing about it has definitely helped in this self-reflection, and strangely enough it's brought more awareness to my practice as well. I have enjoyed reading everyone's comments - advice, feedback, shared experiences... you have also been a part of my "Sharath experience". I don't think I would've gotten as much out of it if I hadn't blogged about it and read all the different opinions you have shared. So... Thank YOU!

The first practice I've had post-Sharath was at our new shala. It was a breath of fresh air on every level. It's nice to be in a new space with old, familiar faces. It's also nice to finally have a bit more room between mats! (way less distracting when you don't need to think about how not to hit the person next to you!) It was also nice to be back to a Mysore-style self-practice, after going through 2 weeks of a led class.

Today's practice had a rhythmic groove to it. I started out reciting his Sanskrit counts in my head, but this slowly dropped off to just the sound of my Ujjayi breathing. Long inhales and exhales. Something felt in sync on an internal level. I was truly flowing through a moving meditation today.

I almost squealed with joy when it came to Supta Kurmasana. Teacher helped to bring left leg over my head, and I got more of my left arm through, way more than I ever have... when she brought my right leg over and I scooped my right arm under, my fingers miraculously found each other. For the past 2 weeks I'd been struggling to make this finger-connection on my own, and even though I still needed an assist to fully bind both hands together (I only managed a mini 3-finger lock on my own), I recognize this as the first step in coming close to a bind on my own. My body actually felt a sense of openness even within this tightly-bound cocoon. YAY!


So... it was a good one. Surprisingly, not tired. And definitely more strength. If anything this practice is teaching me, it's... PATIENCE (something I struggle with). Yes, I'm of the instant gratification generation - I want it... NOW!

I know I can't expect to go from zero to hero immediately. But I can feel a difference already after only 2 weeks of methodically grinding away. So... OK Sharath & Guruji... I'm sold!

Practice, practice, practice.

Sharath in Sydney: Week 2, Day 6 (Last Day!)

A few people have emailed, telling me they've tried to comment here but don't seem to be able to get anything posted. I can't figure out why yet, but a friend suggested maybe it's coz if you want to leave your name, Blogger might require you to also leave your website in the comment form. You can just put in your Twitter or Facebook profile page web link if you haven't got a Blogger profile (if you've turned on your privacy settings in Facebook, no one else can see your profile page unless you're friends with each other. So it'll just bring people to a log in page, not your actual profile page.)

It was both sad and exciting waking up for practice today... Sad coz well, DUH! It's the last day of the workshop. Exciting coz our teacher had organized a breakfast spread for us after practice by the terrace today. I like the social element of going for yoga class as well, but all too often especially on a weekday, everyone has to rush off to start their work day. So it's only on weekends that people have time to catch up. Finally, I could also legitimately whip out my camera again. :p

Today's practice... I got one final assist from Sharath today! Yippee! It was in Urdvha Mukha Paschimottasana. He gave an approving "Mmm" the deeper I got my face squished between my legs. I suppose that's the closest I've got to any kind of Paschimo squash that I've so missed in the last 2 weeks. :)

Then it kind of went downhill in the finishing postures.

Sirsasana today was shockingly shit. (Oops. I can swear here right?) Serves me right for quoting Yoda in yesterday's post. ("Do or don't do there is no try"?! WTF?) Even by my standards, only holding for TWO counts is abysmal. I couldn't focus at all - kept fussing with trying to find the right spot on the crown of my head, then my hairclips kept digging into my scalp, then I couldn't quite feel how far back my legs were and if I was lined up "straight". Horrible. I went back up a few more times but couldn't hold past more than 1 or 2 counts each time. I was doing so well until today. What The Eff?!?

But probably because I wasn't tired out from Sirsasana, I was able to hold legs at 90 degrees for all 10 counts today.

Uthpluthi wasn't so great either. Really couldn't focus properly. Then Sharath walked up to me and said "Why you cheating?" OH GAWWWD. I promise I swear I wasn't CONSCIOUSLY cheating! I had actually hooked my left foot behind my right arm! So much for bandha awareness, I was trying to get more of a boost through hooking my foot round the arm rather than using good old bandhas! So of course after this I was having more of a laugh at myself than concentrating on Uthpluthi itself.

Sharath was in a good mood today, making lots of jokes. At one point, he said "Don't hurry! Why you hurry? Are you hungry?" (referring to the breakfast that was being prepared outside). After class today, my teacher was thanking a list of people who had helped make the past 3 weeks (including Bali) possible, and she thanked the person who had delivered food from an Indian restaurant to Sharath everyday. Sharath chirped "He saved the guru. My wife will be happy!"

Call me crazy, but I'm waking up again at the crack of dawn tomorrow to practice at the new shala. It's moved closer to the beach, and tomorrow will be the first day of practice there and I want to be a part of it. I'd heard rumours that it's actually going to be an official KPJ Yoga School. And fer shizzle it's official... Sharath & my teacher are in charge, with her being responsible for running the place. Damn! I feel so close to the source. (But of course I still want to go to Mysore.)


I am very interested to see how the last 2 weeks will change my Mysore practice. I definitely feel much stronger (physically and mentally) and amped to keep up the momentum I've gained in the past 2 weeks. Observing the Intermediate class has definitely given me inspiration as well.

But enough with the sappiness, it's time to share (legitimate) pictures!
WARNING: This is me post-yoga, no make-up and keeping it real (the bare, naked truth still shocks me). But you've been given fair warning.

Sharath is my Homeboy. (they should make that into a teeshirt)

(What you can't see is I'm holding a squashed paper cup of chai tea in my left hand, and it was dripping down my left foot!)

What I found kinda awkward was: do I just stand next to him? Do I put my arm around him? It seemed very 1930s to just stand side-by-side to pose for a photo, but too forward to sling my arm around his shoulders... so I put my arm lightly on his back. What's the protocol for taking pictures with your guru again? HAHAHA! (Am I the only one who over-thinks these things?)

Speaking of tee-shirts, these were the last of them being sold.


I thought this was really funny. To Vinko, Sharath is his Rockstar.


We had coconuts! (next to croissants) A few volunteers woke at 2.30am to start baking muffins... the spread included muesli with fresh fruit, chai tea, muffins and croissants.





A few of the regulars at my shala.



Thank goodness this was the only time cam-whoring that I haven't pulled a Zoolander (about 90% of the pictures tagged of me on Facebook are of me in a "Blue Steel" moment).

That pretty much wraps up the 2 weeks practicing with Sharath, folks! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Thanks for all of your comments, it has certainly helped me process the past couple of weeks too. In fact, I've got a good mind to turn this into more of a yoga blog than it has been in the past coz I'm loving the sense of community I've been getting from these posts... still thinking about it. Feel free to comment! :)

Sharath in Sydney: Week 2, Day 5

I found it hard to concentrate today. Had to extremely consciously focus on the drishti, or I'd find my mind wandering off to random places.

Following yesterday's conference and Sharath's awesome display of bandha control, bandhas were also of particular interest in today's practice for me. And the importance of bandhas was again hammered home to me after sitting in on today's intermediate class.

So before I get into the intermediate class, these were internal observations of my practice today:

1. Jumpbacks
With bandha control on my mind, I was wondering how I'd apply this to my jumpbacks today. I usually lift bum up off the floor (similar action to Uthpluthi), but it's that curving/ rounding your body to tilt it forward before shooting your legs back that I'm still working on. Feels like I'm lifting bandhas up on the lift, but when it comes to tilting forward I can't find how that works yet, then I cheat by dropping one foot on the floor to give me a boost to tilt me forward before shooting legs back. Kinda like KMB's Shuffleback. Feels more like I'm hauling myself through, through sheer brute arm strength than with the ease of bandha control. It's that bloody tilt forward.
(Side note for Liz: I tried looking back through folded legs before, which kinda helped, but got scolded by a previous teacher who insisted drishti should be ahead of you instead. I think I'll go back to trying it your way again!)

So today, I consciously thought of engaging bandhas the whole jumpback (instead of giving up and cheating with the foot) and it kind of made that initial tilt forward a little bit easier. Just a little.

2. Sirsasana
Held till his NINTH count today! Longest yet. So... I don't think I'll be able to hold all 15 counts by the time he leaves (last workshop is tomorrow), but at least it's baby steps to increasing confidence and strength in the pose. Do or don't do, there is no try (why am I quoting Yoda?!) ...so tomorrow, I WILL hang out in Sirsasana for all of his 15 counts.

OK, INTERMEDIATE WORKSHOP UPDATE!!!

First off, while the lights were still off and the intermediate cool kids were setting up their mats and getting ready, it was beautiful with the sunlight streaming in through the windows, so I whipped out my camera and took a shot (I was far away in the back of the hall, so all you could see were silhouetted bodies). And I immediately got blasted by Sharath. He yelled out from the front "NO PICTURES!!"

Eeks! I was so embarrassed. I won't even post the picture here since it's illegal. I feel so guilty I feel like deleting it completely from my camera. Remove all evidence.

There were about 30 people practising intermediate, including my teacher and her 3 assistants (one of them has just recently been authorized to teach! YAY!) It's rather awe-inspiring watching your teachers go through their practice. I have so much respect for them as it is already, and even more so after today.

I realized today that I've never just sat and observed a class. Ever. Even during my teacher training when we took turns teaching, the rest of us would be assisting with adjustments and watching out for the students; there was always something "to do". So it was an extremely interesting experience today just sitting and watching people in their practice.

First off, you can so tell when someone is "in the moment", completely internalizing the practice. Their eyes almost have this glazed over look. Coz when someone is struggling or isn't quite present, you can totally see it in the eyes. It is amazing to watch that moment when someone fixes his/ her drishti, everything looks sharp and in focus, and then the glaze comes over the eyes at that point when they go within. Pretty damn cool.

It was great seeing everyone lined up in Trikonasana and it would've made for a great picture. The alignment even in this basic pose was sometimes a little bit off, but it was interesting to see how different body types end up having different kinds of alignment issues (how someone needs to rotate the torso more, or how someone needs to tilt the pelvis more...) I have a fixation on alignment, especially with my rotated pelvis issues. Sorry for going off-topic here.

Everyone got up to Eka Pada Sirsasana, and then the last row of people dropped off and didn't practice Dwi Pada.

A few people were told to stop at Tittibhasana. While everyone was in the A version, someone was already wrapped up in the B version. Sharath looked up, pretty annoyed and said "What are you doing?" He kept repeating "What are you doing" several times coz the person didn't realize this was directed at them. Everyone else had to hold A version the entire time. He told this person "you stop after this".

B version walk forward & back: Everyone had to synchronize each step to his slow count. I felt their pain!

A couple other people dropped off at Pinchamayurasana. By the time they got to Karandavasana, there were about 18 out of the original 30 left. Out of this group, only 3 were able to do the full Padmasana lift back up. Of course all 3 were boys. How annoying! (Sorry, I struggle with arm balances and like to think it's the guys who have it much easier in these!)

Sharath went round the room and gave everyone else an individual assist to boost them back up again, and this same group continued all the way till the 7 headstands. (I'm struggling to hold my ONE headstand for longer, and now there are 7 more to look forward to. Oh Yippee.) (Of course, that is if and when I get there)

During the 7th headstand, Sharath motioned for the others who dropped off to join the group again, and everyone then went into 3 regular backbends, followed by 3 unassisted dropbacks/ standups.

EVERYBODY could dropback (I'm just thinking of Grimmly's earlier question here). Some people struggled with coming back up again on their own, some people struggled with doing it a 2nd time, but most were dropping back and standing up like they were doing it all their lives. Interestingly, I looked over at Sharath at this point, and he was watching the people who were struggling. I can't tell if he seemed a little distressed or worked up, but the expression on his face was definitely tense. And he was definitely watching the students who were struggling. I don't remember seeing him assisting anybody here - he might have but I might not have seen this.

The energy in the room during the Intermediate class is definitely a lot more serious than in Primary. No jokes from Sharath, it feels like your asana needs to be completely buttoned down before he'll let you move on to the next one.

So, in wrapping up... it was completely inspirational to watch the Intermediate series in action. The amount of strength and CONTROL it takes to do things so seamlessly, so effortlessly. And this also goes beyond just physical strength - you can see how much mental strength it takes as well to master the series. Respect to the discipline and dedication it takes to get there.

Listen to me, I am head over heels in love with Ashtanga again.