Charmed Chatter

The musings of a Personal Trainer/Foodie, en route to adding Yoga Teacher to the mix!

Today marks the second post in my 30 week Primary Asana Series Challenge!

The first two weeks have gone amazingly well, and so has my studio practice. With the help of my awesome instructors and my amazing massage therapist I am slowly starting to recover from a series of right hamstring injuries, and my flexibility is increasing dramatically now.

I actually took the photos for the new poses featured in this post before beginning this challenge - and since dedicating myself to this extra little bit of "homework" I have to say that already I notice a huge difference in my expression of the poses! It's so exciting, and I can't wait to shoot the next poses for weeks 5 to 8 now, and visually see the difference!

If you would like to see the poses for weeks 1 and 2 please click here!
As I've previously explained, "Light on Yoga" gives many details on how to move into and out of these poses, but in the interest of time (and our attention spans) what I am going to do is show the pictures of the postures, and give some directions on variations to suit your capabilities (and mine!) and the time frames to hold the poses.

Please ensure to listen to and respect your body, and always continue to take deep even breaths, both in and out throughout all the poses. Breath is one of the most important elements in yoga, so if you are not able to breathe smoothly, in and out, ease out of the pose a little. 

Here we go!

Weeks 3 and 4:

1) Uttita Trikonasana - Triangle Pose
In the book, Iyengar has his hand flat palm down on the floor, and his legs are further apart. Back foot is at a 90 degree angle to the front foot which is straight forward.

As I was doing these poses in the morning (when I'm less flexible) it means that to respect my limits, I kept my palm a little higher up. Sometimes it can lay flat, others not.

You can put your hand anywhere along your leg to where it feels comfortable, and bend as far as you can comfortably. Looking up at your palm is also dependant on how it feels for your neck, you may look straight forward until you feel more limber.


Hold this pose for 30 seconds to one  minute on each side.

2) Utthita Parsvakonasana -Extended Side Angle Pose
In this pose your body should make one straight angled line from your feet to your hand, with space between the body and the leg. Your front foot should be pointed straight ahead with your knee directly in line with the ankle, and your back foot should be at a 90 degree angle to the front foot, parallel with the back of your mat.
My hip needs to be lower, as I'm not quite in one straight line as shown right. This means I need more flexibility in my hips and hamstrings. That's okay, I'm working on it. The goal is to do it how you are able to comfortably and work towards more opening and expression!

Hold this pose for 30 seconds to one  minute on each side.

3) Virabhadrasana I - Warrior I
Again, in the book Iyengar has his legs further apart, his hips facing directly forward, and his lunge is deeper than my pose is.

Your back foot should be a 45 degree to 90 degree angle to the forward foot which is straight out in front of you. Hips should be squared forward with the both feet pressing down. You will feel the stretch mostly along your back calf. To make this easier, shorten and widen the stance, and look up at the palms only if it is comfortable for the neck.
 
Hold this pose on both sides for 30 seconds to 1 minute.



4) Virabhadrasana II - Warrior II
From Warrior I extend your arms one front and one back, widen your stance, ensure the back foot is at a 90 degree angle to the front and if comfortable look over the front middle finger. Press into the mat with both feet evenly, and ensure both feet are flat on the floor. Adjust your stance to allow this.

Try to tuck in your tailbone and ensure the front knee is directly over the ankle. It has a tendency to fall inwards sometimes. The deeper into the lunge you go, the harder it is to hold, so do so at your own pace.


Hold the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side.


5) Parivrtta Trikonasana - Revolved Triangle Pose
In this pose you should have your front foot straight and your back foot at about a 45 degree angle. You should continue to have the hips squared to the front and twist through the torso, opening your chest.  

You can put your hand anywhere along your leg to where it feels comfortable, and bend as far as you can comfortably. Again, looking up at your palm is also dependant on how it feels for your neck, you may look straight forward until you feel more limber.

Hold the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side.
 
6) Parsvottanasana - Head to Knee Pose
This pose is an intense stretch. In the book Iyengar has his chest completely flat against his leg, with his nose touching! Which I obviously do not!

You can shorten your stance, clasp your elbows behind your back, or leave them forward (as opposed to the prayer position that mine are in), and only stretch to your comfort zone. Shoulders should be back, try not to round the back.


Hold this position for 30 seconds to one minute on each side as well. 






7) Prasarita Padottanasana - Wide Legged Forward Bend


Here, you can see that my lower back is not completely level, and this indicates that I have less flexibility on one side. I'm working on it!



In the book Iyengar has his head resting on the floor, but instead you can just bend forward at the hips to where ever you feel comfortable, keeping your hands on your hips if you can not yet place them on the floor.

Hold the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute.

8) Salamba Sarvangasana - Shoulder Stand                                         
 There are a lot of ways to get into this pose, and if you can't go all the way in right away that is no problem! Just start with holding the pose where you can.

Start on your back, lift both legs up and slowly work your hands underneath your lower back to hold yourself up.

Hold the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute.

9) Halasana - Plough Pose
From shoulder stand above, let your legs come down to where they sit comfortably - whether that is on the floor or not. If you can stop supporting your lower back you can extend your arms along the floor behind you, or even clasp the palms.

Be mindful of your neck, and keep your head straight.




Hold this pose for 30 seconds to one minute.

10) Savasana - Corpse Pose
Savasana is a resting pose, to let your body rejuvenate and rest after the postures.

Keep your breathing even and easy, while laying on your back with your palms up and feet mat width apart. Try not to move whatsoever, and try not to think about anything in particular. Just be in the present, and rest.





Hold this pose for 2-10 minutes. 
(Or longer if you can or want to, it is up to you! They say that this is one of the most difficult poses to master as it means being still for a long period of time!).

Hopefully, you have really enjoyed the first two weeks of the 30 Week Primary Series Asana Challenge, and I hope that you equally enjoy the second part! If you have questions, or comments, I would love to hear them!

Namaste!

0 comments:

Post a Comment