Old Moon Yoga

Air

“I loved that play list can you make a copy for me please?” a fellow teacher asks after one of my classes. I have been using the same play lists for a while now. There are about 7 of them that I use regularly. I started putting together specific play list when I was subbing the big Saturday morning class at Devi over a year ago. I get lots of comments on them and, more than once, a fellow teacher asked me for a copy because they found it hard to put play list together themselves. I guess they think it’s easy for me

This week I introduced a new play list to my collection. If you are a friend on Facebook you will know that I agonize for weeks over the play lists for Samaagama. The good news is that after all this effort class play lists are relatively easy to develop.

It is not a slam dunk of course because in Samaagama the music is for another purpose. It makes no attempt to slow down until the last 15 minutes. I have attended Yoga classes where the music just feels like random collection of pieces that bear no relation to the class or the current pose. At points even jarring completely, imagine closing your eyes and relaxing in savasana to the strains of Led Zeplin’s whole lotta love. If the music does not support or enhance the mood then why play it at all? In these situations I find myself distracted by the music rather than feel it deepening my experience.

The basic structure of my play list is always the same, because I like teaching my classes in three sections.

1. The warm up
2. The stretch and focus on specific poses
3. The cool down

Billy Idol

In section one the music gradually increases in volume and tempo. e.g. in the latest play list we go from Air to Billy Idol. If you want to burst into song or dance in one of my classes this is the time to do it Then one slower track to finish the warm up. This usually coincides with a deep forward fold and pause in Samasthiti – Equal standing pose to refocus the mind and breath.

The second section is slower and usually without much singing or at least discernible words. I deliberately try to make the transition abrupt and obvious from section 1 to section 2. The idea is for the music, as well as my constant blabbering, to guide the mood and feeling from fast warm up to slow intense stretching.

For the third section the transitions are slower and more subtle. The idea is that people are in the final twist or savasana before they even realize the music has changed to suit this new mood.

Kill Bill

There has to be a 75 minute and a 90 minute version of the play list of course. In my most recent play list I made the warm up a little longer for the 90 minute variation. All of my 90 minute classes are 2-3 level so this works out well.

Finally you have to plan for overrun and finishing early. Overrun is obvious, in fact I hardly ever finish a class on time There is some great music out there to maintain the savasana mood that little bit longer. Finishing early typically happens to me at my Saturday morning class. It is a large class so we start a few minutes late waiting for everyone to be ready. There is a class after mine, so I need to finished approximately on time. The net of all of this means making sure there is enough savansana like music towards the end of the play list.

So now nothing can go wrong:) Well almost. So many times I have started a 90 minute class with a 75 minute play list. When this happens I have to sneak back to the music system and try to switch it without anyone missing a beat. In December I am teaching a 60 minute slot at Lulu Lemon. I will have to create a specific play list for this.

The play list themselves have themes. I have one that is all voices. Another that has a classical theme. One that uses a lot of love themes. I put that one together for last Valentines day. In my latest play list I found many themes from movies that worked really well in the stretching section. So this ended up being my sound track play list.

It has been fun using this play list this week. Seeing if people can spot the films. Ok it does potentially contradict my early statement about the music detracting from the Yoga, but if the mood is maintained it passes my sniff tests. It is certainly interesting to see how many people are listening. Perhaps it is the familiar tune that awakens the awareness to the music. Someone noticed a theme from a TV series that I did not even realize was a sound track.

Brian Ferry

There is another track that is sung in Japanese (I think) I have no idea what the girl is singing but is sounds beautiful. Someone in my morning class knew a little Japanese. All of the words he could pick out suggests it was a love song. If his grasp of Japanese does not include swear words I could still find myself in trouble in a future class

Of course the biggest challenge when rolling out a new play list is the choreography. Do I have all of the right highs and lows occurring at the best times? The whole idea is to have the music supplement the mood not destroy it.

Ultimately it all adds up to some nice interaction with the class.

Can you make me a copy of that play list?” sure I can, but it might not work for your class, your style, your class mood. Sure you can have the play list if you just want some tunes.

Catch me if you can

“Ahhhh Clive, I think I have put my back out”. Not the sort of cry you want to hear in a Yoga studio. Imagine; the embarrassment as all the other yogis gathering around and look accusingly at the teacher; the debate over the decision to call 911 or not (I have had students explicitly tell me not to if they collapse in class); the incriminations, the fear of lawsuits.; the pressure of figuring out how to get the class synced back in time with the music , it all makes you wonder why anyone would even think about being a Yoga instructor.

Luckily we were not in a Yoga studio, we were at home and Dawn threw her back out doing a simple “thread the needle” twist trying to reach for an escaping kitten. This is a twist we do in almost all of my classes, usually right at the beginning too. After a trip to urgent care, an hour on a morphine drip, Dawn not me, and enough Vicodin to challenge the drug lords for power, I start to contemplate the value of the warm up in class.

Morphine on tap

One of my regular yogis had an operation this week too and I know she is keen to get back to classes. The doctors said 3 weeks. That must seem like a lifetime, it would for me. Dawn’s simple twist could keep her out that long too, easily. So after an operation maybe 3 weeks does not sound that bad.

I hated slow warm ups when I started Yoga. That was because I came to Yoga from other sports. Other sports have their warm ups too they are just not quite so obvious.

Warm up before you try this!

The warm up for Judo actually lasted for at least half of the class. Somehow running around the mat for 10 minutes, doing endless press ups, ab strengtheners, stretches and twist, and finally practice moves on a stationary opponent, just did not seem like “warming up”. Was I really that stupid not to notice?

In Squash we “warm the ball up”. Clever, we hit the ball back and forth for 10 minutes getting it warm because you cannot play with a cold squash ball. Just happens that the players get warm too. “Why can’t we get on with the action?” I used to think as we sat stretching very gently at first.

Nandi Yoga is running a teacher training program at the moment. Part of the course involves the students attending a teacher’s class to “observe”. One of these students picked my 2-3 class this week to observe. Armed with large folder, pad, pen, emergency pen, dictaphone, camera, video camera and long list of questions on a form to be completed. She nestled at the front of class, looking about as inconspicuous as a fire truck on it’s way to an emergency in rush hour.

"You will hardly know I am here."

Isn’t there some law of physics that states the very act of observing something changes the behavior? Trying my best to remove Schrödinger’s cat, and every other cat affecting my life right now, from my mind I teach a pretty tough 2-3 class. I start with a little more warm up that I have used in previously for this class.

The budding Yoga teacher and I talked after the class. She had copious notes on my class, all the sequences documented, my comments before and after class (scary that is more than I ever had) and a whole host of subtler observations that I did not expect she would pick up, impressive.

“What was your focus for the class? Twists and back bends right?” she asks expectantly. “Err um……” I reply, confidently, thinking to myself that the plan had not been that much more subtle “than make em sweat and feeling good when they leave, oh and hope no one leaves on a stretcher.”  “….Yes” I replied, she looked relieved

If you have read previous entries in the blog you will know my plan is usually based more around the “uncertainty principle”. Starting with uncertainty of who will turn up.

The basic structure of my class though is 30 minutes to warm up, 30 minutes to stretch out and the rest to cool down. Pretty standard stuff, though recently I have been getting the 2-3 class into fast moving poses a lot sooner in order to get more challenging sequences into the warm up. With only 30 minutes as the “warm up and get sweaty” part I need to get going quick.

As part of being discharged from hospital we were given a “care for the back” pamphlet with instructions on how to take care of, and build strength in the back muscles. Not surprisingly some very basic beginner yoga poses such as locust pose (one leg at a time) were suggested. These, though, were in the advanced section.

Reach quickly though, like a kitten is escaping from you!

It is no small thing we do, this thing called Yoga. It is easy to forget, as we get more practiced, just how much of a work out Yoga is for the body. The warm up is important. I am going to adjust my 2-3 class so that there is more time to warm up properly.

No that does not mean less time doing crazy poses, I will just make the first third of the class bigger than the other two thirds thereby finishing at the same time. I am sure there is a physics theory out there that supports this notion.

Is that spinach?

• Hair trimmed – check
• Head shaved and polished – check
• Special tee shirt – check
• Spinach free teeth — check
• Music — check
• Camera – check
• Plan for the class – Doh!

This was it, the day had finally arrived. I am not sure why this class was so important or me. I had been teaching my YMCA class for longer and the final class there was also this week. This Saturday morning class was not even mine, I was just a sub. But we had been attending this class for a little over two years now and during that time missed only a handful of classes. Made a lot of friends and had a lot of fun. Today was to be my last class at Devi on a Saturday morning. I have been given the opportunity of my own Saturday morning class at Nandi. This is a pretty rare and special opportunity in the Bay Area where there are almost as many Yoga instructors out there as there are software engineers.

My preparation started at the beginning of the previous week. I had decided on my playlist early on, though that did not stop me tweaking and tuning it right up until the last minute. Those final few tracks are critically important to bring the class to a comfortable spot for Savasana. Or so I lead myself to believe. Talking with someone afterwards they had no idea what tracks were playing.

Shark pose, we don't do it that often

The sequencing was going to be interesting. I like to choreograph the class to the music as much as possible. So a little practice during the week should lead to the perfect class on Saturday, right? The chosen theme at the start of the week was Africa. Well more specifically it was Jacques Cousteau visits Africa. I have talked about the themes idea before. It’s really just an excuse for me to pull out some less familiar poses like “Crocodile”, “Shark”, “Compass”, “Lion”, “Tiger” and “Turtle in shell”. Most of which get a laugh even if a few lack the full class participation

With the temperature at 100 degrees in the shade, only the very dedicated turned up to practice Yoga in traditional Indian style, hot, on Tuesday. The four of us had a little “side crow” focus. Thinking about it now I should have blasted on with Africa theme, I had the weather element on my side too.

So Wednesday was my first big outing for the sequence. There are only a couple of problems with Wednesday, the class is 15 minutes shorter and, it’s a 1-2 class not a 2-3. Now if you are teaching a whole new set of poses in the same amount of time, something has to give. As we near the end of the class I have to avoid a near mass revolt as the class realizes pigeon is not part of the sequence. Note to self “All classes, always have pigeon. No exceptions, ever.”

Thursday was my last class at the YMCA. Just to add to interest, someone on Wednesday night suggested I should add some of my favorite things for this final class. A sort of Mary Poppins (or is that “The Sound of Music”?) twist.  This is also a 75 minute level 1-2 class. The same was true for the rest of my classes this week. Learning my lesson from Wednesday and chanting my new mantra “…pigeon….. pigeon…..pigeon” I say my final goodbye to my friends at the YMCA with a  diluted version of “Mary Poppins meets Jacques Cousteau in Africa”. Oh wait pigeons, that is classic Mary Poppins. It’s like I planned.

A class for of Yogis Oldmooning

On Friday someone suggested they would like more arm balances. I immediately thought of a new theme of course “Would you like an arm balance with that?” Through my facebook announcement a friend also suggest we do a little Michael Jackson. I did a tribute class to him a while back. I am sure you can guess when.

So as I walk into the class on Saturday morning everything is planned and prepped, with the exception of the sequence. Unable to keep my big mouth shut I ask a regular  ”what do you want to do today?”  ”Party poses” is the reply.

So there we have it. The theme is “Mary poppins visits Jacques Cousteau in Africa, while listening to Julie Andrews and Michael Jackson. All poses to be done balancing on the arms of course”. Oh look there’s my favorite pregnant Yogi just setting up her mat too. This is going to be interesting, here we go, deep breath.

The class was amazing, just how I like it. Enough people showed up to make the room welcoming without being too full. A lively crowd  ensuring a little banter and feedback. It was a great way to end a two years of Saturday morning yoga at Devi.

My colleagues created this shirt for me

No plan would have worked better, I think it’s time I gave up the themes

"Spidey senses" are a must when teaching

“There is no groaning in Yoga” I demand playfully as we push on with the particularly long sequence. The truth is, I love to get the feedback, feedback of any sort. Yogis are so hard to read most of the time. Of course, the yogi led flat on her back staring at the ceiling while we attempt an arm balance is a good clue, at least to her particular view of proceedings. Rolling up the mat and making a swift exit is also another indicator my “spidey senses” have learned to pounce on. This one is a big deal because it takes a lot of guts to walk out of a class. I know, having personally endured hours of excruciating workshops taught by a so called, or was that self professed, expert. I have even allowed myself to get injured at the hands of someone whose class, I knew after 5 minutes, I should have left.

Voting with their feet is, of course, what all Yogis do over time. They just don’t come back to the classes they don’t like and the teachers they don’t resonate with. Does one bad class loose them forever? If it’s their first time in your class then absolutely they are lost. We can’t make people like us but how do we spot the tale-tale signs? The body language, no pun intended, that says things are going well.

Eye contact

I took a class one from a teacher that did not make eye contact with me, or anyone else as far as I could tell, for the whole class. It was a weird, impersonal, experience like yoga in the 3^rd person or a live version of one of those Yoga videos, only without the Hawaii beach location, sun, cheesy smiles and snail’s pace progression. I wanted to say something to her “I am here, look at me, and acknowledge I am in your class.” But I didn’t, I let my feet do the talking, after class.

I try hard to make eye contact with my students. They don’t always return the favor.

The quick glance that seems to say “don’t look, leave me alone, I know I am not doing it right.” Or perhaps it’s like that look after a big argument “Don’t make me smile. I am still mad at you.” Or “can’t look for long or I will fall over” Or does it mean “help, notice me, and acknowledge I am in your class.” The quick glance means “leave me alone” …. I think.

Then there is the serious stare, little eye contact coming back with this one. What is behind that frozen face? Maybe it’s “Ommmmm” lost in the moment or “When will this class be over, will he ever pick a pose I can do?” or perhaps “did I leave the gas on? What shall we have for dinner later? Wait what was that last pose he called out?” They are either having a great time or can’t wait to leave and I will only know at the end of class, unless they leave early of course.

The smile, this one is always good to see. Sometimes people smile all through class, I tried it once, it’s really hard to do. Try it in your next class it is easily as hard and maintaining Uddiyan Bandha (The stomach lock) for the entire class.

“Locate the two muscles either side of the mouth and pull them back towards you ears” There now they are smiling, or if they are not, there’s the clue as to who will not be back next week.

I love Yoga! What a class

The sounds

Sounds are my favorite feedback mechanism, a little hard to interpret sometimes but always fun. A lot of teachers ask to hear the class breathe, we are even taught this in teacher training. “You can understand and control the class by listening to the breathing”. Yes sure in an advanced vinyasa class perhaps, what about the slow classes or the beginner class. Here are some other indicators I have heard, that they don’t tell you about at teacher training.

• The groan of pleasure, not the “x” rated kind, more a pleasant “ah feels good to get the leg behind the head at last” kind of moan.
• The groan of dis-pleasure. “Yikes! Better make sure there is a child’s pose ahead”
• The groan of pleasure, the “x” rated kind. It’s like that deli scene from “When Harry met Sally.” Not sure if I should slowdown or speed up. Enough said I think, at least they seemed to be enjoying it.
• The “Uhh” Michael Jackson like, and like Michael in his songs, I am never sure how to interpret the sound.
• The “Ahh” – in a good way, always nice to hear, must be doing something right.
• The “Ahhh” – the face plant, not so good to hear. Come to think of it I have only ever heard a face plant, I have never actually seen one. This always happens just as I am looking the other way.
• 

  Uhh!

  The “Ahhhhhhhh” – this one happened in class today, it was a good thing!

• The “Mmmmm” this one I hear mostly as I do shoulder adjustments in Savasana.
• The cheer “yeah.” I love this one. There is a cheer leader in my morning class. She always cheers when we get to pigeon. So we always do pigeon when she is in class. See feedback works to feed this fragile ego

The physical

I have never found listening to the breath very helpful. Giving additional options works better for me. Making chataranga optional once the class gets going. If people are still doing chataranga I need to throw some harder stuff in.

Rest in downdog, if you want more, take dolphin, want more take one leg in the air, still want more, take both legs in the air.

The announcement

Nandi Yoga is where I will teach my new Saturday morning class

This morning I had to announce to the class I have been subbing off an on for nearly a year, that I will be stopping. I have been offered my own prime time Saturday morning slot at another studio. I am going to miss them, I think some of them might even miss me too. Can’t be sure though, because there was no groaning, “there’s no groaning in yoga.”

Shoot the Moon

“What is this morning’s theme going to be?” Dawn asked me as I was getting ready to sub John’s Saturday morning class. When I was subbing this class on a regular basis I would go all out. As if preparing for some small Broadway play I would pick the theme the week before, research appropriate music, even create a special set of intro music to tease the class into guessing. It was a busy week at work, no time to prepare. I looked down at my new Yoga shirt. “The moon” I replied and just as Andrew Lloyd Webber didn’t for Phantom of the Opera, I made the rest up as I went along. In doing so I found some interesting transitions to a couple of the harder half moon variations.

Half Moon

Not surprisingly there are lots of poses associated with the moon. It is Hatha Yoga after (Ha = sun, Tha = moon). Usually we start the class with sun salutations. Today it was moon salutations. They are very similar just a little gentler.

• From the forward fold step back into a low crescent moon lunge with the knee down.
• Reach the hands up and look up. Want more? Curl the back toes under and straighten the back leg by pushing the heel away. Try to keep the hips low.
• Step back down dog
• Step forward to forward fold and come all the way up to standing.

That is pretty much the sequence for my moon salutations. Variations include:- Twisted crescent lunge, Parivrtta Parsvakonasana, binding this twist or even the arm balance Eka Pada Koundiyanasana II (Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya II). Which means you can vary the class and make it possible to do the sequence for all levels.

During the standing sequences of course there was plenty of chance to throw in Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose) half moon. First in the warm up, twisted half moon arrived at from standing splits, not an easy transition. Then bound half moon, arrived at from bound triangle. It was noticeable how much easier yogis found it to release the bottom hand and bring it to heart’s center when in bound half moon using this transition.

Twisted Triangle first then ...

A better sequence to get to twisted half moon, which we also did, is this, :-

• Parsvottanasana (Pyramid Pose/ Intense Stretch Pose )
• Parivrtta Trikonasana (Revolved Triangle Pose)
• Parivrtta Ardha Chandrasana (Revolved Half Moon Pose)

Revolved half moon is a real “crowd pleaser” of course because it is quite a challenging pose. But this way in, through revolved triangle results in far less groans from the participants. I usually take that as a good sign The difference in everyone’s pose is clear when we enter via triangle rather than standing splits too.

.. Twisted Half Moon is just a matter of lifting the back leg

Finally a balancing vinyasa which is a great doorway into the variation of half moon where you hold the back foot. There is a sanskrit name for this pose of course, and someone told me what it was this week too, but it escapes me now. Usually there is flailing around on one leg in half moon whilst trying to grab the back foot which insists on flapping inches from the outstretched fingers, not so with entrance. You might even call it graceful. Here is the balancing sequence.

• Natarajasana (Lord of the Dance pose)
• Forward fold to this variation of half moon holding the foot (insert your sanskrit of choice here, just hope the studio is not full of experts when you teach)
• Release the foot to half moon
• Virabhadrasana III (Warrior III Pose)

Don’t be put off if everyone complains doing this sequence on the first side. This happened to me in class on Wednesday. But like the good drill sergeant I am we carried on and did the other side. Suddenly everyone could do it.

Maybe I should be planning next week’s Saturday class already, if I thought of the moon idea in advance I could have lined up music to match, maybe even made the intro tunes for the Norah Jones album. There is no excuse this week,I have plenty of time to make Andrew proud, alternatively I may just pull on a different tee shirt Saturday morning and see what happens.

Where did that instructor go?

And as I turn my back and walk away I hear a little cry followed by the sound of someone hitting the floor. So much for that adjustment enhancing the pose. We are nowhere near finished with the standing poses and I have one yogi already on the floor:)

This week I have been practicing adjustments, including wide legged forward fold adjustment from last weeks blog. The conclusion I have reached is that is the trickiest part of any adjustment is the exit. People have been falling like nine pins (ten pins if you were not born in England)

I sit behind the Yogi, legs on her hamstrings pulling her arms towards me as she takes the wide legged forward fold. I feel a little like Robin Hood drawing his bow. The tension mounts and she gets deeper into the forward fold. Something must feel really good about this pose because everyone I have tried it on pulls really hard on my arms, the tension is mounting even more. Now it feels like like I am tightening a guitar string. How do you tell when a hamstring is about to snap? There is no audible note getting higher and higher as there is when you are tuning. OK Its time to finish this adjustment.

Drawing the bow back

As I start to relax my grip she pulls harder. I try to relax some more but she is pulling harder. I can’t escape I am trapped in the ever tense situation. If I move my feet she does a forward roll. Like the little flip parents do with toddlers. If I let go she catapults up and forward taking out the legs of the Yogi directly in front of her.

I relax more, she pulls even harder, has she never strung a guitar? Does she not understand the dangers? The rest of class, now bored with 8 minutes of wide legged forward fold, start to gather around as we continue our tug of war, our battle of wills. Then it occurs to me perhaps she is not trying to get deeper, perhaps she is just afraid to let go, afraid of falling. “I am letting go now” I say to breaking the silence by stating the obvious. Gradually we release the tension and she releases her grip. We breathe a sigh if relief as finally she starts to come up. But my feet, still on her hamstrings gently push her forward as she tries to come up. Over she goes in a very gracefully forward roll.

This pose is especially hard, but in a lot of other adjustments too it’s the “dismount” that causes the problems. In simple forward fold yogis like to push harder into my supporting hand to get deeper. Like a scene from a bad chick flick I announce quietly “I’m leaving now” and gradually release the supportive pressure. However slowly I release, this lack of “wall” can cause the yogi to wobble unstably as they try to find the balance point on their own.

The particular pose I was referring to in the opening paragraph was Triangle. I had been supporting the Yogi from behind, helping to straighten her shoulders. As I move way all seems stable. But like in the silent movies where the chair is removed just as the guy sits down, the yogi lean back to find me again, and crash.

I will just have to keep practicing the “dismount” until I can leave without drama. Leaving the Yogi sprawled over the floor is certainly not enhancing the pose.

Of course I am always on the look out for new adjustments too. The ones where the instructor is in plain view should be easier. Here is a great one, an adjustment for warrior 2, The Fit Yogi (my son) invented. Of course Beth is a lot smaller and more nimble than I am but I sure given enough practice I could master the “dismount”

I’m leaving now.

The class is looking confused, we are on the home straight, class seems to have gone well but it’s always so hard to tell. I try again “From plow, roll your shoulders under, support your back with your hands and raise your legs up to vertical” Typical instructions for shoulder stand. The problem was I kept calling it bridge.

I roll out the time tested excuses of course. “It’s early I am still waking up’, “it’s been a long day” and they have their usual affect. Might as well have kept my mouth shut. Advice I should have given myself a little earlier.

This started me thinking of the strange things we say, see, hear and do in Yoga classes. The problem is the more classes we go to, the less bizarre it seems.

Imagine that aliens have been monitoring planet earth for some time now. They have lived amongst us developing a deep understanding of our human nature. The English language was now fully within their grasp. It was time to move closer and begin to explore more of the culture on this planet. Yoga appears to be something popular throughout the globe. Important to a large cross section of the planets inhabitants. This would be their first foray into understanding humans at a deeper level

Being no larger than a small insect it was possible for them move about us unnoticed. The proverbial fly on the wall at any Yoga studio.

Alien #123232A reports back-

The purpose of these gatherings was not immediately clear. The mating ritual theory has to be abandoned. There is much that resembles the courtship rituals of other species on the planets. They are attended by the more physically fit of the species. The males often remove excess clothing to “strut their stuff” in front of overwhelming numbers of the opposite sex. However courtship does not appear to be the purpose of these Yoga gatherings.

Basic Instinct.

For the longest time we believed that basic abilities were natural for humans, not something that had to be practiced and honed. One of the main purposes of a Yoga gathering is to learn how to breathe. This explains why it is practiced world wide in growing numbers. Listen to this recording from the start of a class of advanced practitioners.

“Take a big inhale…………exhale…………inhale…….”

this recording goes on for 5 minutes. In some classes students are encouraged to breathe like their favorite film heroes, emphasizing the need to practice this basic instinct.

“Breathe like Darth Vader.”

One startling discovery is that if a human is struggling with breath others can come to their rescue. Many times the command

“breathe for the person next to you”

was heard.

Conclusion, Overtime humans forget how to breathe and have to be constantly reminded.

Note:. We have reviewed our basic understanding of the human anatomy and can find no evidence to support the notion that humans can actually breathe for each other much less the whole room which was also requested.

Use of language

The use of language in these gathering is complex. A combination of English and Sanskrit was observed. The instructors and students become so adept in both languages that often a sentence or even description of a pose will be described using elements of both languages. Our studies could not determine on what basis the language was selected. For example

A pose called “Pigeon” was always called “Pigeon” never Eka Pada Rajakapotasana

One theory advanced was that the shortest name was always used. However consider this simple example.

Reverse Namaste the full English translation is Reverse prayer, clearly shorter and with no need to switch languages half way through.

Conclusion: This is advanced training for humans looking become bilingual.

Now if I can just get to a handstand from here

Animal Instincts

These humans are looking to advance their previously lost animal instincts. It starts with the establishment of territory. Each Yogi bring a mat to define their space. The gaps between the mats are then evenly distributed ensure that each yogi has the maximum amount of territory available to them for the given conditions. A late comer to the class can cause a ripple effect on the spacing which though some mysterious group calculation is immediately re-calibrated such that all mats are once again equally spaced. Is there some kind of advanced group mathematics at play here?

Anatomy lesson

Once happy with the territory the real class begins. These Yogis believe they can transform their bodies in ways that conflict with our research Here are some excerpt to support the case

• “ground with all four corners of your feet” – research has shown most human feet do not have 4 corners
• “It’s an inner spiral, now apply an outer spiral” – our research suggest that spiraling the hips in and out at the same time is not anatomically possible
• “Breathe in through the right leg and out through the left.” – We can find no evidence to suggest that these humans can breath through either leg
• “Close your eyes to see more” – We are aware of the expression “eyes in the back of the head” but can find no examples of this in our research even amongst this special set.
• “Take in the whole room” – This command is odd. Nothing seems to happen after this command is issued.

So what is the real purpose of these gatherings?

The only conclusion we can draw is that these humans are not happy with their bodies abilities. They practice poses that remind them of animals and strive for what appears to be physically impossible. Being able to put both legs behind the head and walk around the room on their hands has been lost to all but a few, yet this select group dutifully attempts get closer to this feat on a daily basis.

So it is not clear what the purpose of these gatherings is. Other group gatherings for physical exercise appear to be much more demanding on the body. Only in Yoga though is it necessary to take a long rest at the end. There is clearly something unique and complex about these gatherings that we were unable to determine. As one teacher was heard to remark

“This is no small thing we do here”

The secret of Yoga remains with these Yogis. It seems the only way to find out what is going on is to join them.

The long conversation after class finishes with compliments about the class and a promise to come to more classes, maybe even to try the harder class too. We have talked about many personal things including family, injuries and reasons for doing yoga. A connection seems to have been made. The Yogi apparently likes my style and approach to Yoga. Of course I throw in the mandatory plug for my blog while we are talking.“I will definitely check your blog” they say as they depart. And that is it, it is the last time I see them.

This has happened more than once, what is going on,? Was it something I said? Is it something I wrote? Is this more than just coincidence?

Since Thanksgiving I have been subbing two additional classes and teaching between 8 and 9 classes a week. There has been no time for me to actually attend a class. It’s been all work. This week saw the return of John, the main person I have been subbing for. The timing was perfect for me as I could not teach this weekend anyway. Coincidence, may be not.

For the past 3 months I had not had a problem making the Tuesday night class that I had been subbing. This week I planned to attend as a student. My first yoga class in ages. It was not to be. Apparently some crack team of hackers in Asia decided the computer servers of a struggling start up were the idea place to strike gold. Unless they were looking for a cheap vacation I imagine they were sadly disappointed to hack in and just find 7 million reviews of Hotels. Keeping these “mission impossible” rejects at bay means working late. So I could not get to the class for the first time in 3 months. Coincidence, perhaps. I can’t get to his Saturday class either as I am away this weekend.

Friday was a PTO day for me. I love that US term somehow it feels like its designed to make me feel guilty. “It’s time off, AND you are getting paid”. In the UK it’s just a day off, no big deal, you get 20 minimum there, so they don’t need to be cherished so deeply. So for my first PTO day in I can’t remember how long I take my first Yoga class in I can’t remember how long. It is a great class too, thank you Lauren.

There are two things that strike me about being a student again, repetition and breath. In my classes I tend to stay away from repetition. 3 sun salutations is about the extent of my repetition. Even with the overall class and the play lists I try to change and vary them so that people don’t get bored. But in class today I realized that repetition is fine. It’s more than fine. It is a chance to learn more about the pose, to perfect it. After all we learn through repetition.

The breath is the other big thing that strikes me. For months I have been reminding everyone to breath. Even had a class theme focused on breath. But as a teacher you don’t get to breath with the class. Try saying “breath in” as you breath in. As a teacher you are always doing the complete opposite to the instruction. The more you talk the less you breathe. It feels so good to breath again after all that work.

I am writing this sitting in a strange hotel, away for the weekend. Dawn is calling to me to take a walk. I dutifully leave the “typewriter” and watch as one of over 200 screen savers gets selected at random

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.

…
repeats down my screen with a simulated typing cadence. I think back and realize, the roads leading to this vacation spot were long and wound through the mountains. Our room number is 13. Why were those twins staring at me earlier? Was the bartender real last night? Now I learn there were three Yelp reviews saying this place is haunted.

It was over 3 months since I had taken a yoga class with either John or Lauren. I am pretty sure they both know I love their classes. “of course I will see you next time” rings in my mind. Can one really have 3 months of distractions that keep you from class? Apparently. I am just like the student in the opening paragraph. Coincidence has kept me way for 3 months. Perhaps then, over time I will see them all again. Its not me, its not the blog, I am not crazy.

Honey, I'm home!

This weeks blog seems a little dry, maybe because all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Dawn is calling to me once more. Is that snow I see falling?

”It’s cold out there this morning” one of my regular morning Yogis announces as the walks into class this morning. He was right, I rode the bike and it did feel a little chilly. “It’s 37 degrees” he continues. What would we do without digital thermometers in our cars. On the bike of course things are a little less scientific. Are my hands numb when I get to class? If so, its a cold one.

As a motorcyclist you dress in layers to stay comfy. Too cold add an extra sweatshirt, too hot take one off. Back in England it was not unusual for me to where 3 pairs of gloves in the winter. No winding up the in car digital thermostat to a cozy 74 degrees here. If you are cold, or hot, you have to stop the bike, get off, add or subtract a layer, then continue on your way. So you ride with the dilemma swirling through your mind and upsetting your concentration. Do I stop mid ride and change, or am I almost there? Ignore the discomfort and keep the flow going.

I have been struck this week by this same phenomenon while teaching Yoga. Women, and to a lesser degree men, tend to come dressed in layers. As we warm up so the layers come off and as we head towards savasana the layers go back on again. Doesn’t this destroy the flow? Though in some of my more intense classes maybe its a crafty excuse to take a welcome break:)

From a teacher’s perspective layers coming off feels like a good thing. “I am getting them warmed up, that’s good for stretching later”. The counter is not true as the layers go back on. “have a slowed things down to early?”, “should I put the heater on?” At the end of the class, usually just before final savasana the biggest disruption occurs. People reach for blankets, extra sweatshirts, gloves, bobble hat …… It’s a good thing of course it’s hard to reach Samadi with your body shaking uncontrollably and your teeth are chattering louder than the music system. Got to be comfy in savasana.

So how does an instructor make this more like a car ride and less like a road trip with the Hells Angels? There is the heater on the wall of course, very similar to the car, in operation. Just dial up the correct temperature and problem solved. I always put the heater on before class to warm up the room a little before we start. But the heating systems these days have a mind of their own. I think they call it “fuzzy logic”. They decide when they will come on and more importantly when they will switch off. Important because the heaters in Yoga studios like to let you know when they are on. The mystery of what all those ex Concorde engineers did, after that deafening aircraft was taken out of commission, is solved. They came to US and now build heaters for Yoga studios.

So here is the dilemma. Putting the heater on at the end class is like taking savasana at the end of San Francisco airport’s main runway. Not putting the heater on means people have to stop during the most important part of the flow to layer up like a motorcyclist.

As a Yoga enthusiast and motorcyclist I see the solution is close at hand though. The Beatles summed it up on Abbey Road. “Here comes the sun”