Guest guest Posted September 8, 2002 Report Share Posted September 8, 2002 Asha~ Glad you wrote, and I hope I can be of some help to you. My first suggestion would be to get a book. The best Ashtanga book I have found so far is by John Scott called Ashtanga Yoga, the definitive step-by-step guide to dynamic yoga, ISBN: 0-609-80789-2. People reccommend starting with the sun salutations to work on moving in a fluuid way, and using tristana or the combination of breath/movement synchronicity, bandhas (the energy locks), and drishti (eye gaze). This book outlines those tools for practice pretty well. Many beginner classes will teach the Sun Salutations to introduce those ideas. Work toward this hierarchy of engagement: 1. Breath 2. Bandhas 3. Movement 4. Drishti Never move without breath, move engaged working from the root lock or the mulabandha. Move consciously. Use a focused gaze to help eliminate wondering eyes, and to focus your practice. Are you familiar with these practices? I teach a "modified primary series" to my beginners which eliminates a lot of the more difficult poses and offers a lot of modifications to tailor the practice to any level. Would you be interested in a list of that series? You can have a powerful home practice, and benefit from periodic "public" classes to offer some insight into poses, or other ways you can modify or exprienment with your practice. Always recognize your strengths and weaknesses. Never jepordize your breath for a posture. Work to engage the bandhas throughout the practice, keep your breath long and equally metered, recognize the difference between pain and sensation... avoid pain. Take the ambition out of it. Let me know if there ways in which I can help deepen your practice. Best wishes. Tonya Makowski Certified Yoga Instructor 415.336.2632 www.geocities.com/trmakowski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 28, 2003 Report Share Posted November 28, 2003 1. Feeling a headache after practicing could represent your body releasing toxins that would have otherwise continued to contaminate your body. On the other hand, this could also be a sign of dehydration. Because astanga is an intense practice, your body must remain hydrated. Continue to drink water about 30 minutes before your practice and begin hydrating yourself approx. 10 minutes after your practice. Do not drink during the practice. 2. If you cannot get into the full pose, work on a modification. For example, if you cannot place yourself in full lotus, could you work on half lotus? David Swenson's book offers modifications for all of the poses. Don't skip it...just work towards getting there. Struggling through a pose defeats the purpose of practicing. You must be comfortable in a pose in order to benefit... 3. I had some flexibility before I began the practice, but I had major breast surgery 6 weeks before my first class. So, it took some time for me to condition my body. I do practice primary and I have not mastered it. I'm not so sure we will ever fully master the primary...this takes a few lifetimes...perhaps never... Have patience... OmShanti ashtanga yoga, "kunal_nadir" <kunal_nadir> wrote: > hi....i just started with Ashtanga 2-3 DAYS back..before that i did > some other form of yoga. Would like to have some tips about you > people on how to approach Ashtanga: > > 1. After practicing, I feel some headache. Is this normal?...some > kind of early purging effects? > > 2. What do u recommend somebody to do when they cant get into an > Asana....skip it or struggle thru it even though it might disrupt > vinayasa? > > 3. Did you people take some time to master the primary series or were > u already very flexible when u started? > > Regards > > Kunal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 29, 2003 Report Share Posted November 29, 2003 I agree with everyone else. If you have headaches, make sure your diet is good, your hydrated, and well rested. If you are having trouble with an asana, consult your teacher for help and modifications. You may also need to take more breathes to get into a pose. You may also need to feel out a pose and break it down to get it. One of my teachers says, if you never practice it, you'll never learn how to do it. There have been poses I have skipped, and then went back to them and discovered they weren't so unattainable after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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