asana routines

[Guest guest]

Oh, yogis, <br>I feel like I'm at a crossroads in

my practice. My issue is with the routine of

ashtanga...I'm not one who does well with this kind of

structure. For ex., I used to do Bikram yoga ("GASP"), about

a year ago. I enjoyed the flow very much and it

really helped to open my body, but after only 4 months I

was totally burned out from doing the same thing

every day. So, I moved onward and upward to a daily

primary series practice, which REALLY opened me up and

brought my practice to a whole new level. After several

months of study/practicing this style though, the

repetition is starting to get to me once again. Hope someone

can offer some advice on these points:<br> - Is this

a problem for any other ashtangis out there? If so,

how do you cope with the potential of burnout from

doing the same routine every day? I imagine that some

people work on the same poses in the 1st series for

years before they are able to move on...<br> - How does

one find/generate creativity within the structure of

an ashtanga routine (if this is at all possible)?

Perhaps this only comes after "mastery" of the particular

series, but it could sure help me now.<br><br>I know that

practicing with a sangha could help a lot with these issues,

but I'm living in a virtual yoga-oasis. If I can't

break through this barrier, I might be forced to defect

back to Bikram (just kidding!).<br><br>Your advice is

appreciated,<br>Amrita

[Guest guest]

Dear Amrita:<br>This is coming from a "newbie,"

with a year and a half under my belt, so take it with

a grain of salt. There are certainly people more

experienced out there who can add their thoughts.<br>What I

like about the routine is it enables you to calm the

mind. The practice is like moving meditation. You don't

have to think about what comes next, you just flow

into it. It works to quell monkey mind, when your

thoughts are jumping around from one thing to

another.<br>I may be working on the same postures day in and

out, but they are never the same, due to how I feel,

how my body and mind are working that day. How I

approach a particularly tough pose may engage my

creativity; getting into one does surprise me sometimes. But

the best for me is to sort of lose thought, open my

mind, engage breath, bandhas, and drishtis and let the

practice take over.<br>I hope that my personal experience

helps...<br>B<br><br>PS, my friend who is an Iyengar teacher says she

can't concieve of doing the same thing day after day,

she needs variety. I find it calming and focusing.

[Guest guest]

namaste-<br>dristi, bandhas, ujjayi, dharana<br>this should keep you busy &

boredom free!

[Guest guest]

I sypathise with you. I myself find it very hard

to sustain interest in practising because of the

repetition (go on, tell me I have a butterfly mind, no

mind... whatever...). I can handle doing sun sals A & B

every time, and to a certain extent the standing

postures, but after that I really wish there was an

alternative set of postures so I could vary it from day to

day. Call me a heretic, but I don't find the tedium a

challenge and the predictability doesn't still my mind: I'm

off thinking about chips, or my pile of ironing, or

what gigs I'm gonna see. I'd concentrate MUCH more if

I could vary it. But, of course, I would be burned

at the yoga stake for doing such a thing.

[Guest guest]

You are so not alone. The phase of being stuck in

first series limbo can be excruciating if you started

yoga late and the progress is not the way it would

have been were you for instance starting as an 18 year

old indian boy. Or a westerner but with a dance or

gymnastic background. You have to be creative and vary it

but keep at first series inbetween whatever you vary

it with. Do all you can to accellerate your practice

to be able to move on from first series. Visualize,

practice 6 days a week, do a cleanse. Strenthen the parts

of the body that are holding you back. Be proactive

to prevent your ashtanga practice from falling by

the wayside due to monotony. No-one has the right to

tell you that it really doesn't have to be monotonous

unless they themselves are and have always been stuck in

first series. And even if they are - they are not you ,

creative exciting you. You who do not tolerate the same

day twice in a row. And i have this advice- visit an

intro to 2nd series class with a renegade. It will

expand your horizon with an explosion (- but only if you

know how to maintain alignment in poses that are

challenging in order to practice safely). Start a home

practice where you let your body lead you - it is a fun

and exciting journey full of surprises.<br>Take

workshops with a variety of teachers. Start additional

sutras classes. Open the whole wide world of yoga to

yourself - it is waaaaay beyond a repetitive

routine.<br>Bon Voyage!

[Guest guest]

I've been at this crossroads too and my approach

has been to try to make the practice more of a

meditation and bring a greater degree of mindfulness and

absorption into it, "to quell monkey mind" as bandawoman put

it. (And as the name implies, mine is a monkey mind

par excellance.) I used to find the routine

frustrating, now I find any deviation from it frustrating as

it dilutes my concentration. Studying sitting

meditation and doing retreats has been invaluable to me in

this as I bring what I learn back into my yoga

practice.

[Guest guest]

I don't know how arid your "yoga oasis" is, but I

find it helpful to occasionally take a non-Ashtanga

class if I'm feeling stuck. The biggest benefit of

taking other classes is that they always makes me

grateful for first series and how complete a practice it

is.<br>Maybe Ayatollah SPW will have a different opinion on

that.<br>If you see your practice as a chore it will be a

chore. But if you can approach it with gratitude, and

can try to find the joy in each asana -- enjoying the

work, enjoying being in your body -- maybe you will

find the cloud lifting. Be kind to yourself! Every

day!

[Guest guest]

namaste-<br>I find open classes and pre-ashtanga

classes quite helpful to my mysore practice. However, I

often end up trading the series for them. Anyone out

there do an open class and run the series as well in

one day? Would this make one vunerable to

injury?<br>Any experience out there?

[Guest guest]

Amrita-<br><br>I don't know where you live and

what sort of yoga and especially Ashtanga yoga

facilities are available to you. I also read all of the

replies to your message and agree with points made in

each of them. However: there are excellent teachers

around who teach "improvisational" Ashtanga classes in

addition to traditional classes. Some of these incorporate

intros to poses from series beyond the primary series,

or work on variations and alternative asanas to

those of the first series to develop particular points.

Perhaps I'm fortunate to live in Southern Californa since

this is a "hotbed" of Ashtanga activity. There is a

Saturday morning improv class in Encinitas that is

excellent, and I look forward to it; my regular practice is

always improved after that improv class. Look around in

the phone book and on the net! PS, you can also add

asanas and variations to your mysore routine for

development, just as you would to compensate for limitations

and injuries. It may not be perfectly orthodox, but

it is very good for your practice. Good luck. It

need never be boring or a chore, Ashtanga practice

should be a joy. Remember: Stritha sukham

asanam!<br><br>ok

[Guest guest]

I can't say I'm bored with Primary sereis yet but

I've often thought if I was I would have "theme"

practices. Kind of like on Sesame street where todays show

is brought to you by the letter "S" or "Q". You

could put a colourful card in front of your mat that

says "Today is mulabandha day" and focus only on

mulabandha in each posture. The next day could be brought to

by "drishtis".<br><br>The other thought I had was to

start learning 2nd series and alternate days of

humility with days of roaring familiarity. Or try doing a

full vinayasa day doing a full sun salutation between

postures and half vinyasa between sides.<br><br>Once

you've ascended to putting your foot behind your head

and second series gets dull there's always 3rd

series. I thought I'd read somewhere Sharath practices

first on Monday, second on Tuesday, third on Wednesday,

fourth on Thursday, fifth on Friday, skips Saturday and

does the ultra top secret grandsons only sixth series

on Sunday. So much yoga to look forward

to!<br><br>Or you could try practicing blind folded<br><br>Try

practicing naked.<br><br>Try practicing outside in unique

and exotic locations.<br><br>Try practicing to an

audio tape<br><br>Try practicing wearing funny

clothes<br><br>Try teaching your friends, family or people on the

street.<br><br>Try practicing to heavy metal music<br><br>Try

preparing yourself for the yoga championships (see

<a href=http://www.theonion.com/archives/monkgloats.html

target=new>http://www.theonion.com/archives/monkgloats.html</a>)<br><br>As

Einstein said: "Imagination is more powerful than

knowledge"<br><br>I think the key is make it playful. Once you stop

playing you stop living.<br><br>Hope this

helps.<br><br>Brad

[Guest guest]

Thanks a million for all your innovative,

inspirational suggestions. I agree with one of the responses

that boredome results from a lack of mindfulness, but

I don't think that this is completely my problem

(but definitely part of it). I'm just curious about

other postures. So, I've decided to start taking an

Iyengar class once a week, to sample the "yoga buffet" as

Mr. Wey put it, and to add depth to my practice. I

think this will help a lot. Thanks again,

all!<br><br>As for practicing with music:<br>I love doing yoga

with music...I got turned on to the devotional

chanting, tablas etc., when I practiced with some other

ashtangis at Kripalu a while back. I'm pretty clueless

about the whole genre of Indian music, though - the

only one I'm vaguely familiar with is Krishna Das (but

I know that I don't like the new-agey-type stuff,

though, heavy metal, neither). Can anyone recommend some

good music to practice to? I'd like to hear what your

favorites are. <br><br>Namaste <br>amrita

[Guest guest]

Less is more - for me, at the moment,

anyway.<br><br>I've been learning first series for a bit over four

years now, but I certainly don't feel stuck. I still

find it enjoyable and fascinating. There are things I

can't do - i.e. pretty much anything involving

padmasana, due to tight kness and hips - but they're coming,

gradually.<br><br>A lot of the time in the past I've done the whole

series, but with modifications or just very little depth

in the asanas I can't do. Recently though - actually

since going to Guruji's workshop in New York - I've cut

right back to just doing the first half of the series,

with a lot more depth of focus and more time in asanas

I have difficulty with. I feel like I'm making more

progress this way, and it's more interesting because I'm

more present in what I'm doing, rather than thinking

about skipping on to the next thing (next asana, OR

next series).<br><br>I'd like to be able to do 2nd

series, and maybe beyond, one day. And perhaps I will.

But that isn't the "aim" of my practice. I'm enjoying

doing what I'm doing now.<br><br>I also go to a

Jivamukti class once a week. I do it because it's fun to go

and play, not because I feel like I need a change

from my astanga practice.