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!