Practice Yoga regularly, with the wonderful, worldwide alumni of 30-in-30

It was just over a year ago that I started the 30 in 30 goal, and now I’m doing it every day, in some form or other. I love it, it centres me like nothing else and I miss it when I don’t do it.

I’ve been taking advantage of some free time over the holidays to go to a lot of classes, and every teacher tells me something new, like a gift.

I’m continually humbled and overwhelmed by how much of a novice I am, how there is so much potential in yoga that I am just on the surface of. I don’t think I’ll ever stop learning.

Thank you to Elderbear for first inviting me to the 30/30 goal, and also to Aaty and the rest of the team for continual inspiration.

It may sound over the top but this practice has really changed my life in profound ways and I am constantly grateful and overawed that I have discovered this thing.

I hope 2008 is a great year for you all .♥•.¸¸.•♥´¯`•♥.¸¸.○o

Recently when I’ve been doing down dog I’ve had a kind of lower back pain or discomfort

I rarely suffer from lower back pain at all (touch wood thank you god etc.), my back pain history is upper back, so it’s not the same.

Have you ever had lower back pain in down dog? Any ideas of what I’m doing wrong?

Normally my teachers tell me I have a good down dog, I’m not trying to straighten my legs at the expense of all else, they’re a little bent, tailbone up and back and high as posible, pushing down through the hands especially thumb and forefinger part of the hand, shoulders rotating around towards the front of chest so shoulder blades are open,

..what I’m trying to say is I usually have an ok down dog posture, and I can’t think of what I’m doing differently all of a sudden

Yeah I know I should ask my teacher, but I’m living out of the country at the moment and haven’t found a teacher yet.

I went to try a new yoga class today.

We had to wear socks, white socks, and do it on a carpeted floor or a soft towel.

Everyone was slipping and sliding all over the place.

The teacher said it was to protect the carpet (the socks), but also that it “trained” you to do the poses correctly, because if your weight was in the right place in e.g. down dog or trikanasana or warrior, you wouldn’t slip.

I didn’t like it at all.

Is this normal or am I just being wierd?

What is Anusara? Is it a flow style?

I generally prefer classes where it’s slow and the teacher walks around and tells you precisely where to pull, where not to pull, the angle of your underarm, knees, rotate the thighs this way or that way, etc.

That’s what I like about classes over a DVD.

But I have found with flow classes I might as well be doing it at home.

I’ve just moved cities and it’s all Vinyasa or Ashtanga or Kundalini. I can’t find any Iyengar, there are some classes I’ve found described as Hatha, some described as Anusara – what is Anusara?

thanks if you know!

ditto Sivananda

Sometimes I get these crazy images in savasana.

Am I the only one?

It often takes the form of animals in my body (I know that sounds wierd)

Today it was these thick bodied snakes, kind of writhing in my upper back, in between the shoulder blades.

The images really take me by suprise, it makes me feel so startled and shocked, like a blast of something. Like when you switch TV channels by mistake and get this scary picture from the police show. Not prepared for it.

yes, friends, an hour, earlier than normal! For about a month now. It lets me do about 35-40 minutes of yoga every morning before breakfast

(the rest of that hour goes into an early-morning time-vortex, don’t ask me why)

and to my surprise, this has been making me feel more awake, less tired, more energetic, more joyful, more grounded, all day

lightfooted, instead of heavy

this suits me much better than evening practice (please remember that Janey)

I’m using Alan Finger’s Conditioning and Stress Release, Beginners, which is just about my level.

Sometimes I feel like I’m literally in love with yoga (have I said that before?!)

I ♥ yoga

I was in Alan Finger’s Shavasana in the early evening (... I love that savasana … “a place without thought”... ) and had an image of a thin black-clothed figure curled up asleep inside my heart, which shocked me.

and one second later, the other side of the empty house and a closed door, the dogs started barking in the kitchen

I’ve been told by two different practitioners recently that my heart chakra is completely closed and holding a lot of tension

I keep being surprised by yoga

I got an Alan Finger DVD on Aatmiya’s recommendation, conditioning and stress release, and man, I felt like I was floating afterwards. Couldn’t stop giggling, it was really wierd.

If I did this one every day before going to sleep for a week…

Thanks for recommending his DVDs, AY!!

nice to be on the team – thanks for the invite AY : )

I love reading all your posts – please excuse me if I don’t post as much as you all on the yoga, I’m still here, just a little quieter

sending support to the team, with you in spirit