Vinyasa Basics: City Filled with Jewels: 1.24.12

With asana, breath, mantra, sutra 1.34, asteya, and aparaigraha, we connected the will to the heart and felt into the vast abundance within.

windshield wiper
side waist stretch

eye of the needle with tipping buddha
twisted root
rest
other side

cat
cow
balasana
sphinx/seal


tadasana
uttanasana

step up on brick play

lunge
twisted lunge
hammock
low crescent

vinyasa with baby cobra and locust

balasana

supine shoulder openers
heart dips

balasana
toe torture

plank
downdog

tadasana

lunge
warrior I dance
eagle arms
eagle
vinyasa
other side

pigeon

vinyasa

supine pigeon play with rock the baby

bridge x2

gratitude meditation

easy twist

savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

(there were some Yams, Rams, and lams in there too...)

Prototypes Women's Center: Gentle and Kind to ourselves: 1.23.12

Some of the talking points were about prana, svadisthana (had a request for low back mischief), kidneys and fear, taoist cycle of creativity,muladhara and grounding.

windshield wiper

eye of the needle

sukasana side bending x2

tadasana

at wall lengthen side waist and breath

uttansana at wall

Malasana at wall

tadasana

lunge

low crescent

tadasana

other side

downdog

sphinx/seal

downdog

uttansana

tadasana

crow play

navasana play

bridge

twisted root

savasana

sit

OM (!)

Namaste

Yoga Blue: Connection and Ease: 1.21.12

sutra 1.12 inspires a two fold view of connection. That of diligent, ceaseless practice and effort, and also of surrender and ease. We playing tonight in the invitation of connection with ease. If we let go, we can perhaps see we are already there.

sutra 1.14? right alignment and joy

windshield wiper

eye of the needle

sukasana side bending x2
shoulder shrugs

tadasana
uttanasana

lunge
tadasana

other side
with uttithatadasana and uttanasana variation

low crescent lunge salute
balasana
tadasana
YAM

Second side with arm variation

downdog

baby cobra
locust
locust variation
balasana

navasana play

bridge x2

gratitude meditation

twisted root or easy twist

savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

Vinyasa Basics: Choose Freedom: 1.17.12

We dove into the feeling tone of freedom so we could begin to embody what freedom feels like. We must know it before we can choose it. Yogis believe it is our thought, our mental and emotional states that hold us back from freedom. Hence the definition of yoga in sutra 1.2. We played with mantra, chin mudra, asana and (new for our practice) a story (Narada and 'How Long to Freedom').

sit
chin mudra
heart meditation
aparigrapha
OM

side bending with bend and stretch

plank
downdog
uttanasana
uttithatadasana
tadasana

lunge salutes with hammock, low crescent side bending and 3 part hamstring stretch

vinyasa with baby cobra and locust
crocodile

balasana
plank
downdog
uttanasana
tadasana
YAM

lunge
hammock
warrior II dance
peaceful warrior
trikonasana
parvatadasana
lunge
vinysana with baby cobra and locust variation
other side

from balasana
virasana or on bricks

eagle arm stretch with neck option

balasana

frog
frog with cat/cow tilt
frog with forward and back motion

uttanasana
walk about

uttanasana
malasana

twisted root with story of Narada

savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

Yoga Blue: Silencing the Small Self. 1.14.12

One of the reasons I love the practice of yoga is because it helps to cue me when I'm playing small. I've been drawn to the mantra Aham Brahma, as translated by Ravi Ravindra as 'I am vastness' as it assists me in establishing a feeling tone of spaciousness. Tonight we used asana, and pranayama to help check in the feeling tone of vastness to help prepare for the teachings of Aham Brahma.

sit
chin mudra
heart meditation
OM

sukasana
forward fold
two way side bend


cat
cow
barrell roll
balasana
puppy dog

plank
downdog
uttanasana
uttithatadasana
tadasana
YAM

simple lunge salutes with brick

shoulder rolls and uttanasana variation

lunge salues with hamstring stretch
warrior I

plank
sphinx/seal

bridge x2
cosmic rest

tipped sukasana

eye of needle
twisted root
rest
other side

supine 4 part breath
focus on exhale
savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

Prototypes Women's Center: Prana; 1.9.12

We played with the concept of Prana as vital life force, noticing what it feels like and noticing we can play with the movement of it and how it relates to our thoughts in (active) addiction and addiction recovery.

The breath in the palms exercise from the preceding hour (Brain, addiction, and recovery) brought the entire group on board and was particularly effective today so I riffed off of that learning. There was more enthusiasm than most classes today so we did more poses that normal.

sukasana
cow arm prep
cow arm
os

tadasana

guitar hero
crazy 8's
neck stretch

tadasana

warrior II dance
wide forward fold

tadasana
utanasana

tadasana

trikonasana
warrior II
peaceful warrior
other side
forward fold

tadasana

navasana play

eye of the needle

bridge x2

easy twist

savasana

sit
gratitude meditation
Namaste

Vinyasa Basics: Entering 2012 with an Open Heart. 1.3.12

New Year seems to bring about an examination of things we'd like to change, and under that, things about ourselves we are not happy with. Instead of letting these shadow sides bring us down, the practice of yoga suggests rather that we make room for it. It is much easier to work with the tight spots from a place of love, an open heart, and lots and lots and lots of room for what is.

We practice meeting each moment with freshness and newness.

We played with the mantras Yam, Aham Brahma, and So Hum, sutra 1.12, pranayama and asana.

Heart opener over bolster
Aham Brahma
YAM
windshield wiper
rest

cat
cow
easy side plank

balasana
sphinx
seal

plank
downdog
uttantasana
uttithatadasana
tadasana
OM

lunge
twisted lunge
hammock
low crescent
other side
vinysasa with baby cobra and locust
balasana

plank
downdog
uttanasana
tadasana

shoulder shrugs

lunge
hammock
warrior II dance
trikonasana
extended side angle
pigeon variation
three leg dog
vinysasa with locust and locust variation
other side

(forgot pigeon variation so we went back to it!)

bridge with long breath

twisted root

savasana
so hum

sit
OM
Namaste