This week in Yoga

When I started teaching yoga regularly I picked a theme each week and taught my classes based on the theme. While I may not have had strict sequences set, it gave me a good idea of where I was going or structure if I got lost along the way. I stopped doing it a few months ago because it takes time and I honestly don't think my students care one way or the other.

However today I taught a class based on what I learned over the weekend. To regard the journey more than the destination and to focus on balance.

Since I cannot foresee living on the West Coast forever, I want to make sure that I see all the sites in CA that are worth seeing. So when I saw a backpacking and camping trip to Big Sur on one of the discount websites I jumped. It took me almost a full year to use it, but I went with a group of strangers camping overnight. I really do enjoy camping and would love to do it more.

But back to my lesson. 

As we began our 3 mile hike in, our guide Chris said that we will go at a slow pace. For him it was more important for us to see the surroundings than to get to our campsite. Because really, there was little to do once we got there. But his instruction forced me not to race. To take my time with my steps to find balance and footing. There were a number of felled trees that we either had to climb over or duck under. This may not have been difficult, but when you add a 20 pound pack, your center gets all wonky and balance is more difficult. I did try and "stop and smell the roses" occasionally, but it was a balance between staying with the others and not falling on my ass. I'm sure that can be applied to life - but I decided to bring it into yoga today. Making sure we slowed down and were aware of how we flowed from pose to pose. Since standing balances in my classes are difficult - or at least I find the tension and frustration levels high when we do standing balances, I found a sequence online that we followed for the most part. My goal is to be able to flow this on Friday

Utkattasana (Chair)

Garudasana (Eagle)

Vrksana (Tree)

Natarajasana (King Dancer)

Virabridrasana III (Warrior 3)

Arda Chandrasana (Half Moon)

I found when we got to King Dancer that my standing leg was tired so I decided to take a break. We got to Half Moon through Warrior 2, Triangle and then Half Moon and passed on Warrior 3. We rarely do arm balances, so after Headstand, we did Bekasana and then ended with Plow and Shoulderstand.

When we got the end of the class, I felt more satisfied. While I am proud that I can teach a class based on instinct without prep, I find the practice is deeper when I have some structure. We will continue playing with the journey and balance the rest of the week. I am curious to know the destination we will reach at the end.