These were questions I asked myself back in the days when going to yoga class was an option. One I didnt take all that regularly. At one point, it stopped being an option. It became just something I did.
If you let yourself say that you dont feel like going to class, well then, you might not. But you might realize after a while that you always feel like it! So isnt attending an ass-kicking asana class three days a week enough yoga?! I dare say no.
I currently teach ten yoga classes a week and that is not enough. Even though I sound like it right now, Im not a crazy yoga fanatic. When I am teaching I am there to share the experience with other students. I watch them to see what needs to be strengthened or stretch more. I feed off of their energy and I show up because they want me there. We do it together. But that is not my practice and I dont hold poses as long as I'd like or try new poses out that I dont want everyone to see. It is their practice as I have given it to them. So if they practice at home they might discover new strengths and weaknesses. New ways to breath when someone isnt saying inhale-exhale-inhale-exhale.
My yoga class is my family, friends, and my exercise. But I have other family, friends, and ways that I exercise. My students should too. They should want to explore yoga on their own and walk through that door refreshed and with an understanding of what happens in their own bodies.
This is what my personal practice focused on today.
The lower abdominal and the pelvic floor. I put the iPod on shuffle and started with sun salutes. Emphasizing the lift in stepping/jumping to the top of the mat. Followed by one minute of boat pose. Then, warrior poses focusing on engaging the pelvic floor. Next, I worked on one of my goals: crow to tripod headstand. This led me to discover that I needed my arms to be a tiny bit wider. I came very close to lifting tripod into crow and twice I lowered crow into tripod (on a pillow). Yay! I am also working on Firefly pose. I moved onto stretches like frog and bow, shoulder openers, then forearm stand (Pincha Mayurasana). At times my breathing was very strong and I timed my resting inhale to be 17 seconds long. That has about doubled from my yoga practice.
These are the things I explored in myself today. What is inside you?
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