Training UPDATE The Third

Preface: Training started to overwhelm me so I had to take a break from blogging and just focus on absorbing as much information as I could and really trying to devot myelf to being present/relaxed during the week. Funny that I thought my vacation from work would be very mellow, but my lack of preperation and the mindest that I had of just being a sponge ready to absorb set me up to go into freakout mode about needing to bring my full knwoledge base and undivided attention to both class and the work I was doing to prepare for class.

My weekend opened with a class that I have really become to cherish. Got to give it up to Megananada for her Yin & Yong Taoist Flow class. The accessibility and compassionate knowledge within the class can benefit anyone with any level of practice. I've been trying to prescribe to Bikram class @ least 3 times a week. Got in a class the same day teacher training started, which felt great, but since then I've been unable to set aside enough time to get down to ventura. Made it 2 weeks in a row, only 1 class this week. Oh well, I here it takes 21 days to form a habit and I wouldn't want to get addicted to a 105º torture chamber =).

In teacher training we continued to become familiar with observing, thinking, and touching. Growing into our yoga teacher skin. After dropping in and tuning to the group energy we began to talk on "the myth of the pose". We looked at comparative pictures in our manual to understand why alignment is different for each person/style of practice. If you've never seen Iyengar in headstand check it out, wild looking! We started to get really close with our partners during this session on how to adjust and recieve feedback on how much pressure to apply during an adjustment. This is really something I found helpful because I don't have much experience doing bodywork and brought up some anxiety due to my partner being one of my most respected teachers as well as being a beautiful women. Next we practiced then moved to observing each others warriors 2 stances. This helped to again reinforce the difference in body types and the importance of being able to allow the work to be personal for each student. At the end of class we got to work on some savasana thai yoga massage. I'm really eager to be able to become proficient in this, I always feel lighter/ blissful when I get a good savasana adjustment. Again tons of fun to play with partners but my hands were shaking giving the savasana adjustmets. Confidence comes with experience so got to keep practicing.

A few excerpts from my notebook:

What ideas am I holding in my mind that could be manifesting physical pain or injury? (( We are wired to push )) Do I want to feel pain? # Injuries will be your greatest teachers # [Where am I misdirecting the stretch? Ignoring the messages my body is sending because an asana is overwhelming me.] >>Allow the current of your life to carry you but keep a paddle handy<< *Tension is created to feel held, being held is associated with feeling safe* ~Record your patterns so you can learn from them~ //Relaxation is exhaustion. Relaxation takes practice//

6.12.2009 Training Day 2

Wow! I was floored at the amount of information and experience gained in this first 5 hr session.  I guess I need to start with the Joel Kramer article we were assigned to read for homework.  I'm positive that I didn't fully absorb the article, probably could spend days researching all the info that was in the article.  The thing that really hit me the hardest was how Joel brought to light the opening of the mind and body/ generating of energy within the body as the focus of the practice instead of the normal "results" we look for i.e.  always shooting for a more advanced pose or always pushing your flexibility limitations.  Also the state of mind your in when you practice having a profound effect on your bodies ability to open and energize I found to be quite a brain tickler.  With this in mind we began practice.  The opening practice was nice and relaxing, nothing overwhelming.  I really felt the "buzz" of energy emanating from my sacrum for the first time, after shimmying up and down for 30 sec or so(rocking the pelvis back and forth with back and heels on the floor) a very subtle wash of energy ran up my spine then down my legs, arms, and up through my neck out my crown.  Felt awesome!!  I think the Kramer article really made me drop into myself with "right mind" and a new level of body awareness.  At the end of the opening practice we sat sukasana and began to forward fold.  This is where it got really good.  My mind was so tuned on feeling what's really going on in each stretch I could feel, almost individually, my hamstrings and IT band just begin to stretch as I leaned forward just touching down with my hands.  I really began to focus at this point and it seemed as if I was alone.  The stretch in my right hip and glut began to intensify, not because I was increasing the forward fold, but because I was being truly attentive to what my body was saying.  My mind flashed back to all the times I'd been stuck in some pose I wasn't ready for and just bearing the pain telling myself "oh suffering is just part of yoga".  It just blew me away at how subtle the stretch was yet I was pretty much on pain overload.  Goes to show that if you're actually attentive to what messages your body is sending you don't need "go for it" to open and energize yourself.  "Just be" as Alana says.  This was my major lesson for the day.  Next we sat for a lecture.  We started talking about the Sympathetic Nervous System and the Parasympathetic Nervous System.  Kinda scary stuff what the body does when your not paying attention to it, luckily we have the deep ujayyi breath and the vagus nerve.  We also touched on emotional stress manifesting physical injury and smaller joints and muscles becoming overworked and damaged due to lack of awareness and improper form.  This helped me to realize that I don't really stretch my hamstrings very often.  They are so tight its hard for me to access them because when I do stretch them its a very deep intense stretch.  Post lecture we practiced mainly on the floor then broke down down dog.  We worked on raising our legs laying supine and internally and externally rotated our raised foot working towards controlling this motion from the hip.  During this my sartorius muscle on my right leg fatigued very quickly, didn't cramp but once me leg touched down there was a lot of residual heat in the muscle.  We finished our practice with some more hip joint awareness, a standing series in which the 2 of the 5 of us(who have never taught) lead the group in half sun salutations.  I totally panicked when kira picked sarah to go first and then stood behind me, luckily she picked kelly to go next and both of them were flawless.  After practice we studied each others downward dog.  I think I learned the most from this section of class.  Kira did some amazing mimic down dogs that really showed how to help ourselves and others in this posture that I like but am having trouble falling in love with the feeling of it.  We also did some partner assisting while in down dog.  These felt heavenly and it gave me some tricks to work on my own dog.  SO grateful for every ones willingness to demonstrate and my petite partner for being strong enough to allow me to stand on her low back while in half handstand!  

06.11.2009 Lulu Teacher Training Begins

Hello my name is Nicholas Constantine Fontana-Sandoval.  I have started this blog to keep a record of Lulu Bandha's teacher training.  I've been so busy this past month or so that I realized (as I was getting out of my car, grabbing my mat and heading into class) I hadn't really taken any time to prepare myself for something I've put so much hope into!  So anxiety hit, I tried to clear my slate with some deep breaths and a few mula bandhas.  This evening Kira, Kelly, Joe, Wanda, Sarah, Uschi and I began our journey with a yin yoga practice and some dialogue about the path we are about to embark on for the next 10 days.   I thank Kira for allowing the space to just "land" in the studio, felt so good!  We began our practice with Yin Butterfly had to remember to relax and let my body release on its own, not force my head down to my heels.  Next I think most did Swan, I chose to do Eye-O-Needle against the wall.  I'm trying to be more accepting of support so the wall was great for that and Swan tends to twist my knees too much. Between sides we went into Child's Pose and the arch of my left foot started to cramp, don't know if the left being the foot I had on the wall was the reason but readjusted a few times and it went away.  Sphinx was next a favorite of mine, so easy yet so useful. Interesting work we did by positioning the feet closer together or further apart.  Seemed to me bringing the feet together runs the energy right up the lumbar spine where separating them brought the pressure to the sacrum.  Child's and then a spinal twist I chose a kind of extended hand to toe twist.  After the pose with legs straight noticed my left IT band is much tighter than the right. Couple of thigh to chest squeezes and happy babies and we were ready for savasana, which I welcomed(Bikram+Work= Tired).  Savasana brought back memories of the top of Half-Dome and the savasana I experienced there, my body being completely charged with new vibrant oxygen and all weariness melting into the granite beneath me.  After the practice we all shared a bit about why we were taking the training.  It was cool to learn about what had brought each of us to this point and hopefully we can reach far beyond our goals!