I have been teaching for a month now. Talk about seeing is believing, or maybe "seeing, I can't believe what I am seeing." As a yoga student, I practice what feels right for me, I am flexible, forward bending, side bending, twisting, not a problem for me. I go to class just to be on the mat with teacher cueing me poses after poses. I know how to flow, according to my own body. So now, I am on the other side of things, being a teacher, teaching body awareness to my students, most of them, beginners have been an eye opener. I have been teaching yoga fundamentals, the mechanics of a downward dog, inhale/exhale with movements. The most important, the breath. The general population always associate yoga with "Flexibility" and "Zen". But what exactly being zen means? Why we think flexibility is a prerequisite for getting on the mat for some yoga?
First, flexibility - where does flexibility come from in your body?! bones? tendons? muscles? Perhaps is a combination of things, since our body is a complicated networks of bones, tendons, muscles, fibers, and mind.
Second, what does being "Zen" feels like? This is google search's meaning: Zen (noun) - a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism emphasizing the value of meditation and intuition. Geez, it's not even a verb. This is urban dictionary's meaning: One way to think of zen is this: a total state of focus that incorporates a total togetherness of body and mind. Zen is a way of being. It also is a state of mind. Zen involves dropping illusion and seeing things without distortion created by your own thoughts.
I am not feeling zen right now because I am not sure what is my point for this blog....Grrrrrr.
Long story short - flexibility, I am seeing a lot of tight hips and tight hamstrings. Maye we should focus on these muscle groups instead of that tight 6-packs abs. The hip is an extreme complicated network of muscle groups which affects both upper and lower body. If these muscles are not "flexible". It can create bad postures that eventually will lead to back pains, forget about jumping into a flow yoga routine, your back is not going to like it. So now, you know, the illusion of being "flexible" for yoga really comes from taking care of those hamstrings of yours.
Experiment: 30 days challenge of hip/hamstring stretches for my soccer family: coach and my son. I look forward to see the effects.
Friday, January 30, 2015
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
The benefits of a private session
So today I finally had a chance to review the P90X- YogaX routine, I have been hearing about it, it's supposed to be Ashtanga yoga style inspired. In today's fitness world, as soon as you put the word "yoga" to anything, it will sell like hot cakes. I have seen class descriptions such as 'Yoga Aquatics' or 'Yogalites' - the hybrid child of 2 hot trends: Yoga + Pilates. In today's busy world, we want to squeeze in as much core/body workout into a 60 minute time frame. P90X's first YogaX routine is 90 minutes long, insanely long according to some of the reviews I have read. Hence the creation of YogaX3, shorter version of Ashtanga inspired 30 minute high intensity Yoga workout for the mass.
I can't help but have to blog about what I saw with P90X's Yoga X and related videos on YouTube. Yes, the wonders of YouTube, one person buys the DVD and shoots it up on web for the mass to use for free. Why should I pay for yoga if I can get it for free? So, in MHO, please....do yourself a huge favor and find a good live teacher to teach you all the right from the wrong. I am hesitant to say this, maybe if you are a seasoned yogi and have a solid practice, you could use this video for "flow" purpose, I guess. Actually, maybe I wouldn't suggest it. I am a seasoned yogi and have been practicing solidly for the past 4 years with a lot of good teachers, even I can't support the sequence of the YogaX routine. Seven minutes into the sequence, they are in a humble warrior pose; another 3 minutes, a bound extended side angle pose. Honestly, these 2 poses are considered advanced poses. While you certainly can muscle your way into the poses because......for whatever reason, I would look at what are the different muscle strengths and flexibility are required to get into these 2 advanced poses; you have to have extremely flexible hip flexors, hamstrings, and back muscles. In a 60 minute class, these 2 poses would surface around 45 minutes into the class. If you are not warm up correctly before getting into these deep poses and you are prone for injuries.
The majority of us are not conditioned like the 3 fitness celebrities from the YogaX video, case in point, I then clicked over to another video with a big guy demonstrating his Yoga X workout. I applaud his effort for trying yoga. The word "Yoga" sounds intimidating, but he's doing it. 15 minutes into the routine, he is struggling big time. There is no correct alignment cue for posture setup, his back is hunching over in forward fold, his hips are out of alignment for standing postures. Basically, he's just going thru the motion without the guidance of a live teacher. To further drive the point home, another lady with the same video on her couch and begin.....only she doesn't even know where to stand on the yoga mat to begin her sequence, foot placements are all out of whack! YIKES!!
If you are a beginner to yoga and have been wanting to try yoga but intimated by the whole idea of yoga, this is where a private sessions can be helpful. A few sessions with a qualified teacher is the best investment that you can do for yourself. When my younger son first started swim lesson at the age of three, he was not liking the idea of putting his face in the water, we went thru a couple sessions of small group class, but his confidence in the water was still not there; to get him over that hump, I enrolled him in a few one-on-one lessons, it is in the private lessons that he gained the confidence to put his face in the water. The best bang for my dollar! He now thrives in his small group lesson and enjoys swim lessons very much.
Yes, a video at home is good, but only good enough to cue you from one pose to the next. A good teacher will see you, hear you, teach you the fundamentals and help set you up for success as you step foot into any group classes.
I can't help but have to blog about what I saw with P90X's Yoga X and related videos on YouTube. Yes, the wonders of YouTube, one person buys the DVD and shoots it up on web for the mass to use for free. Why should I pay for yoga if I can get it for free? So, in MHO, please....do yourself a huge favor and find a good live teacher to teach you all the right from the wrong. I am hesitant to say this, maybe if you are a seasoned yogi and have a solid practice, you could use this video for "flow" purpose, I guess. Actually, maybe I wouldn't suggest it. I am a seasoned yogi and have been practicing solidly for the past 4 years with a lot of good teachers, even I can't support the sequence of the YogaX routine. Seven minutes into the sequence, they are in a humble warrior pose; another 3 minutes, a bound extended side angle pose. Honestly, these 2 poses are considered advanced poses. While you certainly can muscle your way into the poses because......for whatever reason, I would look at what are the different muscle strengths and flexibility are required to get into these 2 advanced poses; you have to have extremely flexible hip flexors, hamstrings, and back muscles. In a 60 minute class, these 2 poses would surface around 45 minutes into the class. If you are not warm up correctly before getting into these deep poses and you are prone for injuries.
The majority of us are not conditioned like the 3 fitness celebrities from the YogaX video, case in point, I then clicked over to another video with a big guy demonstrating his Yoga X workout. I applaud his effort for trying yoga. The word "Yoga" sounds intimidating, but he's doing it. 15 minutes into the routine, he is struggling big time. There is no correct alignment cue for posture setup, his back is hunching over in forward fold, his hips are out of alignment for standing postures. Basically, he's just going thru the motion without the guidance of a live teacher. To further drive the point home, another lady with the same video on her couch and begin.....only she doesn't even know where to stand on the yoga mat to begin her sequence, foot placements are all out of whack! YIKES!!
If you are a beginner to yoga and have been wanting to try yoga but intimated by the whole idea of yoga, this is where a private sessions can be helpful. A few sessions with a qualified teacher is the best investment that you can do for yourself. When my younger son first started swim lesson at the age of three, he was not liking the idea of putting his face in the water, we went thru a couple sessions of small group class, but his confidence in the water was still not there; to get him over that hump, I enrolled him in a few one-on-one lessons, it is in the private lessons that he gained the confidence to put his face in the water. The best bang for my dollar! He now thrives in his small group lesson and enjoys swim lessons very much.
Yes, a video at home is good, but only good enough to cue you from one pose to the next. A good teacher will see you, hear you, teach you the fundamentals and help set you up for success as you step foot into any group classes.
Monday, January 5, 2015
Same Goal, new intention.
New year, new goals? How many of us continue to carry same or smiliar goals year to year? Loss weight is probably on everyone's list year after year. Perhaps, we should look at goals as intentions. Perhaps for this new year, instead of a goal of "lose weight", you may want to set it to "eat clean". By setting the intention of eating clean, let it manifest into making the right choice of food that you will consume to help you achieve your goal of losing weight. Once you start thinking about your goals as intentions, they become more achievable and practical to practice for the next 365+ days.
One of my personal "goals" have been the same for the past couple of years. One being "hug more", while this is not a specific goal that can be measure by numbers, it is an intention that helps me to stay focus to anything and everything that will allow me to practice "hug more". This has manifest into improving my own behavior of being more compassionate and having more patience towards others, especially to the people whom I take for granted everyday. By having this intention of "hug more", I notice myself being less critical of others, less Type A and more at ease when shit hits the fan. Granted, I am still not perfect in all of these, but with the help of a little note on my bathroom mirror, I am making progress towards my goal.
One of my personal "goals" have been the same for the past couple of years. One being "hug more", while this is not a specific goal that can be measure by numbers, it is an intention that helps me to stay focus to anything and everything that will allow me to practice "hug more". This has manifest into improving my own behavior of being more compassionate and having more patience towards others, especially to the people whom I take for granted everyday. By having this intention of "hug more", I notice myself being less critical of others, less Type A and more at ease when shit hits the fan. Granted, I am still not perfect in all of these, but with the help of a little note on my bathroom mirror, I am making progress towards my goal.
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