| So my Iyengar classes are going well. At least, I'm enjoying them, even though I have the impression that I'm not learning some things as quickly or as well as my teacher expects. Anyway, we did some new stuff last night in class- revolved ardha chandrasana and a variation of shoulderstand where the sacrum is supported by one hand and the hips twist to one side. Hard, hard, hard. 
And it's all starting to feel a bit overwhelming. I have about 4 - 6 hours per week to practice at home. If I do more than that, something in my personal life has to suffer and that wouldn't be good for anything. But I feel that this isn't enough time to incorporate all the new (and maintain the old) asanas that I've learned. NOT TO MENTION the increasing complexity of the poses.
Add to this the awareness that I'm getting older and losing strength. I mean, I know I can continue to build my strength- at least for the time being. But at some point the pendulum will start to slowly swing the other way.
So I wonder- do I have even enough time (and youth and flexibility and strength) to practice enough to ever do the urdhva dhanurasana or other two and three level asanas that I would love to do? I know there are some people who can spend 3 hours or more a day practicing, but I simply don't have that amount of time (nor am I sure I would want to practice that much anyway.)
I don't mean to sound pessimistic, discouraged or feeling sorry for myself. Really, I love doing asanas and will happily continue to practice what I can. I just wonder how all of you with jobs and families keep up. Do you ever feel like this? There are so many poses and so many variations. How do you decide what to do? Almost every practice I do headstand, down dog and shoulderstand, but I sometimes have a hard time deciding what to do with the remaining practice time.
I'm not so much throwing all this out there as a problem to solve. I guess I'm looking for others to share their experience.
You know, sometimes I long for the innocent pre-Iyengar yoga days where I took sort of generic classes and, (aside from some gross misalignment problems at first) would just do, say, trikonasana and kind of figured that was about all there was to it. (Well, I say this and as I read it over I do remember always being the one asking questions in class. So maybe those days weren't so innocent after all.)
Anyway, thanks for listening. |
| karmann - 2007-08-22 7:04 PM
Add to this the awareness that I'm getting older and losing strength. I mean, I know I can continue to build my strength- at least for the time being. But at some point the pendulum will start to slowly swing the other way.
Which is exactly why obsessing over your asana practice will only lead to frustration, not to mention possible injuries. I was told this a million times when I started yoga but it took me a long time to truly understand it. I wanted to do everything and I wanted to do it in 5 minutes - I'm not sure how my chin survived my determination to master the scorpion the day I saw it. I did hurt myself a lot, though.
Someone posted a link here a while ago about a yoga teacher who broke her back. She still teaches and practices yoga from her wheelchair. Where would she be if she felt urdhva dhanurasana was a mandatory part of the yoga practice?
Not that I don't often feel like you - overwhelming is the right word. In fact, there are days when I just feel like crawling into bed with a bowl of Haagen Dazs and a bottle of wine. Sometimes I'll succumb, sometimes I'll go ahead and practice asana anyway and sometimes I'll just meditate if I feel my body really needs a break. The last alternative usually keeps me from self-destructive behaviour.
About the generic yoga classes where the teachers don't seem to mind if you're turning your trikonasana into a forward bend... been there. Some students are fine with it, others feel the need to evolve. I know what you mean when you say you miss those days, but I bet you will never want to go back.
And although some Iyengar teachers seem to have a stick up their a***s, I doubt yours expects you to be improving faster in your practice. Most likely, you're the one being anxious.
By the way, congratulations
PS. I'll have to try that sarvangasana variation!  |
Sometimes it's overwhelming!
