Old Moon Yoga

There is a dull thud and I look around to see my wife collapsed on her front from a slight faint. The rest of the class maintained the side angle stretch but the concerned looks on the new students face tell me perhaps I had better take some action. Returning with a wet towel I put it on Dawn’s neck, ask her if she is alright, then carry on with the class. The new students, not realizing we know each other – or that this is not the first time – must think I am some kind of tyrant.

“We call her the canary” a regular student says helpfully.  It has become a standing joke. “Is the class hard enough?”  Well, we have not lost the canary yet, keep going; The litmus test for a level II class.  But how do I get the balance right for different classes. The beginner and intermediate classes have different expectations, getting it right surely means people come back for more. Getting it wrong – too hard, or too easy – means less people next week. Where is Goldilocks when you need her, or maybe a canary for each type of class is the answer?

“You will all be in headstand by the end of the year!” I announce confidently to my YMCA class. It’s a class I had been teaching for over 6 months at that point. The goal seems very obtainable to me and gives the class a “goal” beyond the individual classes. Before the end of the year the entire class is in headstand. Ok, I had to hold a couple of people upside down by their ankles, but we made it. Everyone said they liked being upside down too. Why then did class numbers go down?  Is there a sweet spot for the class that keeps it growing? How hard should I push the class, what is the level to make it hard enough but not so hard it drives people away?

Do class numbers even matter or is that just this instructor’s ego peeping through? What is important is that the Yogis enjoy the class and leave feeling great (or at least better than when they walked in). Recently, I have had a couple of classes with just 1 person in them. The Holiday season, I tell myself hopefully, has been the cause. These classes are great though. I know exactly how hard to push the class of one, because it becomes a one-on-one practice. We focus on exactly what the particular Yogi needs or wants. Everyone wins, except the Yoga studio who is presumably reconsidering my tenure right now.

During the year I have seen class numbers fluctuate wildly; so, are class numbers even a good indicator? Well, they have to be some kind of indicator or I don’t have a job.  There are clearly a lot of things that influence class numbers and I have heard some wonderful excuses through they year. “I am just not a morning person,”  “I have an early call that morning,” “we have been up all night and are just going to bed now,” “I have to work Thursday evening, and for the next 6 months,” and my personal favorite “I think there is a rattle snake in my back garden.” The wonderful thing though is that people even give me a reason. They don’t need to. It’s a complement and it never escapes me.

I could ask at the beginning of class, of course. “What would you like to focus on?” Silence, or sometimes a list of things they don’t want to do and when I do get suggestions things can backfire. “Peacock” a young fit man calls out.  I survey the room. He is the only guy and Peacock is not the kindest of poses for women. Well, I did ask.

The end of class is not a great time to ask for feedback either. As I gaze around the room; it has been a good session, as everyone is still in their “savasana high”. Maybe it was my liberal use of China gel but asking for feedback here would be like asking folk at Woodstock for comments on the music.

Maybe I should ask during the class? Mmm how does this work? I mostly get silence anyway. “Is everyone starting to get warm” I joke after 27 rounds of sun salutations, 4 floating orchids, 3 handstands and a rest pose of feathered peacock rather than down dog. Apart from the heavy breathing….. silence.

Sometimes there is feedback. “Do you know child’s pose,” someone calls out. You might think that was a useful clue. But after class they told me it was a great class and they liked being pushed harder.

My son teaches Yoga in LA. The Fit Yogi recently attended one of my classes and decided he was not pushing his class hard enough. After he made some adjustments, his classes have started to grow in numbers.

Miners used canaries for many years.  These little birds provided an early indication that the group had probably gone deep enough. Mmm running the class until the “canary” collapses though feels a little like Darwin meets Yoga.

Ultimately yogis vote with their feet. Recently I have been backing off from harder poses and seeing class numbers pick up a little. Mathematically there must be a balance point of class intensity that maximizes “customer satisfaction”.  Quick grab the computer and start plotting. Class numbers vs. groans. Ratio of collapsed birds to Yogis still smiling, don’t forget to add in a seasonality weighting factor.

Maybe I should stop over analyzing things.  After all, the best measure I have found so far is not very scientific at all and certainly not a concrete measure; just wait for the Yogis to glisten.

Of course, if my canary is in class, I can just wait for the thud.

“That was a wonderful class, I loved the sequencing”. The sort of feedback any instructor would be happy to receive. “Can you let me have the sequence please?”  Oh dear, I have no idea what the sequence was. I never plan a class that closely and certainly never write it down. Luckily, I have a good memory for sequences but am I doing something wrong not having a plan?

“Hi, it’s me, I know this is short notice but can you sub for me at 5:30 tonight?” The phone call is unexpected but very welcome. I look at my watch, it is 5:00pm and I am about a 15 minute ride from the studio. “Sure,” I reply “no problem” and with about as much planning as it takes to find the bike keys and don the helmet I head off to the Yoga studio.

My own classes could be way more thought through of course. Tonight we will focus on the arm balance Astavakrasana (Eight-Angle Pose), I think to myself.  I love this pose, and judging by the number of yoga instructor promotional fliers one sees, so do most other Yoga instructors.  The class begins to filter in. Mostly it’s new people. “Everyone take down dog”.  Mmm… change of plan.  There is no way we are doing that pose tonight. The class is just not ready.  I can’t plan my classes; it all depends on who comes and, who doesn’t come.

“People like familiarity; they like to know what they are getting,” the studio owner explains to me. It’s a good point; you shell out your $20 for the second time because you liked the previous class and know what you are getting for your money.  I have friends who will only do Bikram Yoga because the 26 poses always in the same sequence means they know exactly what they are getting and what to expect.  “Over 2000 poses and you get to do just 26. You don’t know what you are missing” I evangelize to deaf ears.

An outline of a plan

I can’t plan the class; I can’t be in that tight a box, but I can have a framework within which to develop the class.

There is a general structure, into which a typical class will fall.

• Gentle stretch and meditation to focus the mind
• The warm up
• Standing poses mostly focused on the legs and hip
• A balance to refocus the mind and provide that mental and physical transition to the floor
• Floor poses for front, back and shoulders
• An inversion or two and finishing sequence
• Savasana

So within this framework a variety of sequences can be built. There are different collections of sequences for each section.  Everything can be adjusted to suit the class and even during the class to suit the changing moods. Each class can be mixed and matched by dipping into each sections “bag of tricks”. More tricks can be added to each bag over time, too. I learned a lovely vinyasa flow to Garudasana (Eagle Pose) recently. That one went straight into the bag.  Thank you Lauren

My morning class at the Devi studio can be a little chilly, so I get there early and get the heaters going. These heaters are huge and sound like small aircrafts trying to escape from earth’s gravity. It’s a morning class so everyone turns up at exactly 7:00am. It’s as if the bus just dropped them off at the back door. They get ready on their mats.  I cannot just turn the heaters off though; they decide when to shut down.  My “plan”, for today, is my usual warm up routine that has everyone doing some gentle stretching first before meditation. We patiently wait for the heaters.  At the moment the heaters stop everyone takes meditation.  The moment feels perfect, but completely unplanned. I cannot stick to my script now, I have to adjust. Even my starting pose has to be thrown out. The class has spoken, the class has decided. Between the class and heaters I am not sure who is in charge here. I could have stayed in bed longer.

Some time ago, Mozart was attributed to having invented “A Musical Dice Game for Composing a Minuet” (Mozart’s Musikalisches Würfelspiel).  The idea was simple enough.  Pre-written musical measures could be “pasted” together in various ways to create a unique Minuet at the roll of a dice. The combinations, though not infinite, were certainly astronomical.

What if a Yoga class could be constructed in the same way? No two classes would ever be the same, but as a student you would always know what you were going to get in a broad sense.  The framework remains the same, only the specific content changes. With this approach, 2000 poses, and familiarity, is possible. For students and instructors, a lifetime of different classes becomes available. Thank you Mozart J

Sometimes, I come to class with a theme.

“All the warriors…” during Super Bowl week.

“All the birds…” during Thanksgiving.  (This was a seriously hard class, there are no easy bird poses)

“Marichyasana (Marichi’s Pose) sitting or standing on either foot……..”

Other times, I have a particular pose as the goal. These can all be built on top of the framework.

In some future blog, I may dip into favorite sequences for each section. But for now here is the whole class sequence that my friend and fellow teacher asked me about.

The warm up

Warm up with breathing and neck stretches followed by side stretches
Eyes closed meditation.
Arms over head, arms out wide, arms over head, forward fold over crossed legs

Up to all fours and step back to plank pose, hold
lower to baby cobra
push back down dog

Standing sequences
Step forward, forward fold, half forward fold, forward fold
come all the way up hands over head

3 sun salutation A
3 sun salutation B  (with pause on chataranga and up dog)

1 leg in the air vinyasa sequence (both sides)

Side plank both sides

Down dog
jump forward, longer hold chair pose
half chair
forward folds
curl up to equal standing pose (pause)

Chair again, chair twist
step back to lunging twist
crescent lunge with side stretch
humble warrior
toppling tree
standing splits
twisted half moon
Step back and retake the twist (optional bind or arm balance)
Twisted chair
chair
all the way up on to toes
bird that flies through open spaces
back up and repeat on the other side

forward fold again curl up
equal standing pose (pause)

Warrior I
Warrior II (bound)
Triangle (bound)
half moon (bound)
Triangle
side stretch (bind)
Bird of Paradise
bound lunge again
Lizard
Optional arm balance (Eka Pada Koundiyanasana I )
Crazy stretch twist, quad stretch thing
Repeat on other side

The balance
Marichyasana (Marichi’s Pose) (standing on one foot, there is another name for this)

Floor poses
Vinyasa
down dog splits
pigeon
repeat on other side

Half dragon fly (both sides)
half bow (both sides)
full bow

Marichyasana  (Marichi’s Pose)
half lord of the fishes
repeat

One legged Marichyasana  (Marichi’s Pose) balance (both sides)

Inversions and finishing
on to back
plough
shoulder stand
twisted ear pinching pose
ear pinching pose
Fish

Eagle legs twist

Savasana
final resting pose

“What is that stuff?”  the yogi asks me at the end of class. Clearly they did not understand what they were agreeing too during Savasana.  They were smiling though so all is good, I think.

When I first started yoga I would occasionally attend classes where, at the start, we would be asked if we would like some China gel.  I had no idea. No idea what is was or what I should do with it. “um I am ok” I would say dumbly or more often than not just say anything.  At the end of these classes the instructor would treat us to a light forehead massage with special lotion, a different kind of savasana.  Had these been my only Yoga classes I might have thought it the only way the right way to end Savasana.

Some Yoga studios promote the use of gel and lotions others are not so keen.  So is it a good idea?  Do Yogis, new and experienced, like it or merely tolerate it?  Recently I have been trying to end most of my classes with a little China gel neck massage. The feedback has been largely positive, if fact some tell me it’s the best bit of the whole class. (I guess that says something about my teaching   ).  So Gels and lotions good or bad and what are the downsides?

Asking first makes sense of course. It would be an odd class indeed if the instructor just wandered around liberally spreading lotions and gels on every visible piece of skin the class at any opportunity. Aside from the dangers of allergic reactions, the mixture of sweat and China gel would eventually build in aroma and turn the class, perhaps, into something closer to a group glue sniffing session. One way to reach Samadhi!

So we ask first but how and when?  I like to finish with a little massage using China gel.  The idea is that the warming affect helps to relax the shoulders neck and head, while the aroma clears the nose for clear breathing. Hopefully this all adds up to a deeper Savasana.

Asking the class if they want the neck massage is a little easier than asking if anyone has any medical issue. At least you get an answer to the former question. Well mostly, sometimes it’s just a confused look, must be this British accent again.  Still some may feel embarrassed to commit. So I like to ask during the final twists just before Savasana. “Wiggle a foot at me if you would rather not have the China Gel neck massage”. Simple enough instruction you might think. People rarely wiggle their foot.  They look up, smile, wave, but rarely wiggle their foot. Sometimes the wave means “no, leave me out”. Sometimes it means “Pick me pick me”. Darn the accent once more.

The feedback as I move from person to person encourages me that this is nice way to end class. Some smile; some even whisper thank you. “No words needed, relax” I think to myself. Occasionally someone will open their eyes to thank me too. “Relax”. Other regulars even give me specific instructions. “A little lower on the shoulders please, not too much on the neck”

The final neck massage is gentle moment between instructor and yogi in the final stages of relaxation. Meant to enhance the Savasana it can back fire.  Creaking floor boards probably mean the group is listen to me wander around the room rather than drifting into Savasana. Thankfully no one sees my “grasshopper walking on the rice paper” impressions as I circumnavigate the room.  Dropping the jar on the floor, or the student’s head sort of breaks the moment too.  But my favorite was a new student, who may have been a little deaf. The class has been in silent meditation now for nearly 10 minutes (there are a lot of necks to massage). As I get to the final person, they look at me and shout “WHAT  IS IT? I DIDN’T KNOW WHAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT”.  Well it seemed liked a shout.

So the jury is out for me, to gel or not to gel?  I would love to hear from you, what do you thing?

One final thought, if you are a teacher and want to experiment, practice at home on a willing partner before working with your students. Just remember one thing. When you are finished, don’t stick your finger in your eye.

As I led in Savansana I realized it had been a good one, and therefore a great yoga class, when the familiar words “wiggle your fingers, wiggle your toes” cut through my reverie and triggered my journey back to the real world.  Familiar words, but I had forgotten them until that moment. When was the last time I had heard or used those words at the end of a class? What is the best way to end a class?

The measure of the success of a class is surely the time the class spends on the mat after the final Namaste. We take our brief journey towards Samyama, the final three limbs of Yoga, in the last 5 to 10 minutes of the class.

There are so many ways to get in and so many ways to exit Savasana, different things clearly work for different students and different teachers.

“.. and stretch your feet out for final Savasana” I suggest. “legs a little wider than hip width, hands close to your sides, palms up. Try not to touch anything with your hands or feet.” The class is large (ok this is an imaginary class for the sake of this explanation) and the group is already taking different options. Some take a blanket for their head. “Good choice, keeping the nose higher than the chin.” I think to myself. Others bend their legs, candidates for a bolster. Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose) legs is an option someone takes. A couple of people choose to sit upright. “mmm I don’t remember giving that option, I see I have my usual level of command over the class tonight”.  Others are wrapped in blankets, as some people feel the cold much more than others. Some students even bring their own eye pillows and other props. Savasana is a serious part of the practice, it is important to be comfy.

For my smaller classes I like to go all out with sandbags, eye pillows (in the palms not on the eyes) and of course the optional neck massage. A lot of preparation for this brief journey perhaps, but the goal is to go deep so the preparation so worth it.

During Yoga Nidra sessions there is a magical moment when the room clearly drops deeper with the guided meditation. As the instructor you can actually feel the group mood change, it is quite an amazing feeling.

The journey may be guided with words, with music or in silence. The result is perfect calm for mind and body and a different journey for each person in the room.

So what is the best way to come back to reality?  There are so many options:-

The OM.

The teacher chants an om. They have to have a good voice of course.

The chant

See the OM only the voice better be really good this time.

The silent OM

The instructor talks through this one. No need for expensive singing lessons here.

Wiggle your fingers, wiggle your toes.

The classic that, for the longest time, I thought was the only way to exit Savasana.

Chimes or bells

All of the above jar with me when I am teaching. I don’t like the idea of my voice being the first things to break the silence. (see the Err Um Om blog entry) I like to use chimes. Usually three rings on the chimes does the job. I like this return to reality personally, the gentle initial chime nudging me in the right direction.

The Mistakes
Mistakes are a good way to learn what not to do of course. Battling with the CD player to load the latest “Karma Moffet’s Golden Bowls”. Only to discover the previous session had left the volume wound up past loud all the way to “disco inferno” does not work. Forgetting the lights, fans, or that the back door is open also taxes the student’s concentration somewhat. Simple things like the teacher walking around the room to lower the music or adjust the lighting just are not worth it. Leave the music, leave the lights, its too late.

But my absolute favorite, from a class in which I was a student…… Lying in Savanasa we hear the clump, clump, clump of someone moving around the room. “sleep walking” is my charitable thought.  Imagine the concentration challenge as I, and presumable the rest of the class, follow the foot steps as they head towards the rear. The door creaks open as our poor sufferer finds their way to the restrooms. Ever noticed how close the restrooms are to the Yoga studio, and how thin the walls are?  My focus is now completely shot as I contemplate the amount of water I drank during class. Our mystery automaton makes their way back to their starting point just in time to exit savasana. I console myself “At least they remembered to wash their hands”.

Does this seem far fetched? Surely they can wait 5 minutes? Well it has happened more than once while I have been attempting savasana.

“Wiggle your fingers, wiggle your toes”  time to come back to reality