Day 39 and Day 40

Hopefully, you were able to remember that it was Friday today which of course means FLOW FRIDAY, and you did your groovy, flowy , asana practice even though it was quiet here. We are renting a house in Tucson, and the internet service has been eluding us. Chris just got here so now I am on his computer and it is working. Go figure.

And tomorrow is Day 40. Hard to believe. In many ways it seems like we only just began. But mostly, to me, it seems like a lifetime ago. Weird. Maybe all of the yoga and the busyness of late winter and early spring. Or perhaps just having a length of time that I am accountable for and then seeing how much I actually pack in to time. Either way, here we are. I am putting up the final sequence. I would love for updates, reflections, revelation if you would like to share. I will check back here for the next week or so. I definitely want to put up some sequences from the immersion. They will be whoppers. The perfect thing to go out on. I will put up some ramblings and reflections in the coming days too.

We rocked this practice this morning. Darren and Christina taught from the Goddesses and it was truly potent. Perfect for Spring. Full Potential, Creative Manifestation, and Sustaining Beauty. It was the most that I have stayed right at my edge for awhile. Not given in to fatigue or boredom, but really worked intelligently within the effort. And I definitely gained new insight.

Here you go.

Meditation

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Surya A 5x

Surya B 5x

Handstand

Pinca

Parsvakonasana

Trikonasana

Ardha Chandrasana

Ardha Chandrasana Chapasana

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

Parivritta Trikonasana

Parivritta Ardha Chandrasana

Parivritta Ardha Chandra Chapasana

Eka Pada Raja Kapotasana

Ardha Bhekasana

EPRK w/ a-b

Setu Bandasana

Urdhva Dhanurasana 5x

Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana 5x

AMS

Uttanasana

Parsva Uttanasana

AMS

AMV

Supta Padangustasana 1

Savasana

Day 37

Wow. This has got to be like a laser beam. I am getting on a plane in 8 hours with 2 small kids to fly across the country. 2 planes actually. But it is going to be oh so worth it. I promise to fill you in more when I have time. For now:

I just came across this sequence again the other day. I think that it is a variation of something Sianna Sherman taught several years ago.

3-5 Surya Namaskar

Dog

Eka Pada AMS 2x

Parsvakonasana 2x

Ardha Chandrasana

Vira 1 backbend variation 2x

Ardha Chandra Chapasana

Dancer variation 3x

Pigeon 2x

Puppy dog 2x

Pigeon prep quad stretch 2x

Dolphin 3x

Dhanurasana 3x

Eka Hasta Ustrasana 3x

Supta padangustasana 2x

Jatara Parivartanasana

Savasana

Day 36

I thought that I should take a break from cleaning my house and packing for Tucson to share some of the highlight poses from last night's class.

Here you go.

Utkatasana 3x

Crescent pose 2x

Parivritta Balasana (twisted child) 3x

Anjaneyasana

Vira 1

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

Shalabasana

Setubandha

Parivtitta Parsvakonasana

Marichyasana 3

Malasana

Savasana

Day 35

I am under the weather. So I thought it would be a good idea to do a restorative sequence that I have had for a couple of years now that is especially good for mucous draining. I am not sure where I picked this particular sequence up from, either Yoga Journal or Noah Maze. Even though I seem to recall that any restorative sequence that I have ever gotten from Noah has had a 5 minute handstand in. Hmmmhhh.

Here the holds are more conservative. Everything is held for 5 minutes, but I think that you could do 3 minute holds and be just fine. Anyhow, the Kapha is flowing, the dam has broke and we need to take care. I hope this helps. I feel a bit better after doing it this morning, along with daily neti and tea.

Supported Childs Pose 5 min

Supported Down Dog 5 min

Prasarita Padotannasana 5 min

Supported Uttanasana 5 min

Supta Virasana 5 min

Sirsasana 5 min

Sarvangasana 5 min

Halasana 5 min

Jatara Parivartanasana 5 min

Setubandha 5 min

Savasana

This took me right around 75 minutes with a 10 minute Savasana. Shorter timings will shorten the practice considerably. This is a perfect day to turn within and take your time. The advent of Spring is so packed with energy, it is important to maintain the balance.

Day 34

Excellent Practice this morning. Long holds. Steady Effort. Lovely.

Here are some highlights:

Trikonasana 2x 90 second holds

Parsvakonasana 2x 90 sec holds

Vira 1 90 sec hold

Prasaritta Padottanasana 2x 90 sec holds

Sirsasana 5 min

Handstand

Pincamayurasana

Ustrasana

Salabasana 3x

Danurasana 3x

Parsva Danurasana 2x

Urdhva Danurasana 6x

Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana 3x

Supta Baddha Konasana

Bharadvajasana 3x

Paschimottanasana wide leg 2x

Setubandha with the sacrum on a block

Savasana

Have at it.

Day 33

Is your day over? Have you practiced yet? Do you still need a sequence?

Well, I really do not know where the day has gone. I travelled back from Minneapolis this afternoon after 2 hours spent in Ikea. With 2 small children. By myself. 2 hours.

So, I am feeling the burn of a different sort.

I would still like to spend a little time on my mat tonight, even though tomorrow is Sunday morning. But, if you are still in the market for a practice today, here you go:

Surya Namaskar A 3x

Surya Namaskar B 1x

Parsvakonasana

Trikonasana

Ardha Chandrasana

Parsvottanasana

Pigeon

Pigeon thigh stretch

Setubandha and any fun variation that you can think of

Urdhva Dhanurasana

Supta Padangustasana

Sucirandrasana

Jatara Parivartanasana

Savasana

Day 32

Good Morning!

Welcome to another beautiful Flow Friday. This week when you set your timer to flow, let go of any idea about what a "proper" Surya Namaskar is. I really just want you to do what feels right. By now, you should have enough experience up your sleeve, that you will tell YOU what to do. As my friend Noah always says, "practice for 10 minutes, most likely at the end of that 10 minutes you will want to keep practicing." Have you found that to be true yet?

Have Fun!

Day 31

Hi Folks.

I am in Minneapolis visiting my sisters and a whole slew of cousins. Very cool. We are loving the weather and feel a lot like country mice in the big city.

The practice today is a short visiting practice. Something you could do anywhere just about any day and not have it be an imposition of any sort on your plans. Think 10 minutes. You, of course, can do more if you like. You have a month's worth of sequences now. My big sis is a city yogi, so we will hop on our mats at some point together today.

AMS

Uttanasana

Lunges

Parsvakonasana

Trikonasana

Anjaneyasana thigh stretch

AMS

Uttanasana

Savasana

Day 30

I am taking a trip up to the cities tomorrow, and I want to get this out there while I have a chance. This sequence will look a lot like todays practice and a bit like what I have lined up for my class in the morning. Basically, I am thinking about shoulderstand and poses that will really get folks ready for some enjoyment in that pose.

Here it is:

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Supta Padangustasana 1-4

Parsvottanasana

Parivritta Trikonasana

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

Prasaritta Padotannasana c

Ardha Bhekasana

Anjaneyasana thigh stretch

Setubandha variation sitting on hands

Setubandha

Halasana uppavista

Sarvangasana

AMS

Bharadvajasana

Savasana

Day 29

This is what I did this morning, and it was awesome. So, here you go. I hope it is as amazing for you as it was, and still is, for me. The sun is shining!

Urdhva Prasarita Padasana

Jatara Parivartanasana

AMS

Supta Padangustasana 1-4

Parsvottanasana 2x

Parivritta Trikonasana 2x

Parivritta Parsvakonasana 3x

Uttanasana

Handstand

Pinca Mayurasana

Sirsasana and variations

Urdhva Dhanurasana 3x

Bharadvajasana

Janu Sirsasana

Uppavista Konasana

Parsva Uppavista Konasana

Baddha Konasana

Malasana

Marichyasana 1

Sarvangasana and variations

Savasana

This took me around 90 minutes. But you can just do the first 8 poses for about a 40 minute practice. This is really fun and totally old school. (By old school, I mean something that I gave had around for at least 3 years). This particular sequence is from 2 different classes taught by Chris Saudek in Lacrosse. Love her.

Day 28

Whoa. This day almost got away from me. I am not sure what happened. Our rooster turned on our girl today and the rest of the day has been a pretty big wash so far. I am headed in to practice before I teach, and I am planning on doing something like this.

Again, my apologies for my brevity. Life has me in her stronghold and I am taking the ride.

Day 27

Today, lets take it easy. Daylight savings and all. I was up at 5, and on my mat by 6 (old time of course). So, now I am very sleepy, even after gallons of Black Tea. Mmmmm. So I think that if I were just about to practice right now, here is what I would do:

AMS

Uttanasana

Supta Padangustasana 1-4

Supta Virasana

Uttanasana

Jatara Parivartanasana

Paschimottanasana

Supta Baddha Konasana

Savasana

Delicious!

Day 26

This one is going to be very fun. Check it out.

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Surya Namaskar w/lunges

plank-chaturanga-cobra-dog

in a flow:

Uttkatasana

Parsvakonasana

Trikonasana

Vira 1

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

Anjaneyasana thigh stretch 3x

Vasistasana

Vasistasana to Wild Thing

Purvottanasana knees bent

Setubandha variations (sit on hands, toes tucked, one leg in bhekasana)

Supta Padangustasana

Jatara Parivartanasana

hugs knees to chest

Savasana

Thats all for now. Let me know how it goes.

Day 25

I think that today should be the day that we re-commit. I have certainly let my commitment here slide over the last week. But there are still 15 days left and frankly, it is never too late to start or re-affirm something amazing. So lets do it. I am here with you.

Yesterday, someone told me that when I made the suggestion to journal, that they became overwhelmed by the implications of this sort of reflection, and let go of the resolve to practice everyday. I think that this may have happened to a number of you, because you all disappeared after that post. Kind of interesting, isn't it? What is it about turning within that has us all wanting to run tail? I do not think that this is unusual in the least. But I also think that this is a path of self-inquiry and self-reflection and at some point you are going to have to ask yourself some questions that will be uncomfortable. I hope that this doesn't sound too harsh. Because here, all that I am recommending that you do is take a little bit of time to write down any insights that you might be having in your practice and through this process.

So today is FLOW FRIDAY! Time to get on your mat, set your timer for at least 20 minutes, and go for it. Breathe and move and sing the song of your heart. I love Fridays.

Day 24

I think that today would be a good day to work on some hamstring stretches. I am going to do some balancing and some twisting with the 8:30 class this morning, so if that sounds good to you come on in (I am also teaching at 4:45 and 6:30, brace yourself Eider...).

But here, I want to look at some good hamstring openers. I like to start on the front and do some thigh stretches 1st. I am thinking somewhere between 20 minutes and a half an hour.

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Eka Pada Bhekasana

Supta Padangustasana 1 & 2

Runner's Lunge

Lunge/twist/thigh stretch

Janu Sirsasana

Triang Muhkaikapadapaschimottanasana

Hanumanasana 2-3x

Uttanasana

AMS

AMV

Savasana

Day 23

While I have a moment..

Maybe.

I have not been able to give this site as much attention as I would like to for the last week or so. I really want to get some links up on the sidebar with dates for regional Anusara Yoga events, but I have yet to do so. And I would like to out up some pictures in a tutorial form. Keep your fingers crossed that something emerges over the weekend. This is turning out to be a very busy time for me both with family and with teaching, I am also gearing up for a big trip to Tucson again at the end of this month (coinciding nicely with the end of our 40 days).

So, lots of busyness as you can see. Oh, and I want to make a quilt. Did I mention that? And some leg warmers, and a kitty hat, and organize my seeds for the season, and, well really I better not get started down that road. It is not yet 7am.

Let's see. Today I am teaching headstand and shoulderstand in class. But here, I am thinking more along the lines of forward folds.

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Uppavista Konasana

Parva Uppavista Konasana

Janu Sirsasana

Baddha Konasana

Marichyasana 3

Paschimottanasana

AMV

Savasana

This is a shorter practice. However, you may really find that you want to stay in poses for longer than a minute. I think that is great, so long as you really keep your legs steadily engaged. Also, you can add some Surya Namaskar in the beginning if you are so moved.

Have Fun and stay in touch!

Day 22

My apologies for getting this up so late! If you have not done your practice yet today, I hope that you enjoy this one.

Some days I cannot drop into my practice. Today was one of those days. I can give myself any variety of reasons as to why: I am too busy, my house is too cold, I am anxious about one thing or another. But really the truth is that sometimes that is just the way that it goes. I do my best to stick with it and give myself a chance at shifting my energy. But sometimes, no dice. This is especially frustrating when everything seems lined up for a good practice, i.e. a quiet house... Oh well. In some ways, it really helps me to appreciate the times when I do so easily drop into the flow, into my body and into my breathe. Maybe even more than I would without days like today.

I did an old standby practice today, mostly because I needed to do inversions (which, by the way I will be teaching on Wednesday...), but if I weren't doing them, this practice would be fun.

AMV

AMS

Uttanasana

Uttkatasana

Vira 1

Vira 2

Garudasana

Parsvakonasana

Trikonasana

Parivritta Trikonasana

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

Ardha Chandrasana

Prasaritta Padottanasana

Uttanasana

AMS

AMV

Savasana

Standing Poses!

Day 21

Over the hump!

Here is what is inspiring me this morning. Big time.

It is Monday morning, so I will keep it short as we get going with our day and our week.

How about this...

3 Surya Namaskar

5 standing poses, you choose.

2 hip openers and thigh stretches (you choose, think low lunges and pigeon...)

3 backbends of your choice

3 forward folds

Savasana

I am curious to see how this goes for folks. Let me know if this is OK. I think you are ready.

Day 20

Well folks, this is our halfway point. 20 days past, 20 days to go. Now is the perfect time to consider: Has my life shifted in any notable ways in the last 20 days? Is who I am today different from who I was when I started out on this "project"? Do I hold the same intention, or has it changed somehow? How? I mean, we could go on and on here. I think that you get my point. Self-reflection and contemplation are central to practice. And it is my experience that the ability to stretch yourself in this way, might actually be the whole point in stretching yourself in more physical ways. Well, not the whole point. Lets not forget about doing it just for the sheer, unabashed, play-filled fun of it.

Today, I feel like thinking about all of this, and taking it easy.

Here you go:

AMS 3 minutes

Uttanasana 1 minute

Supta Virasana 5 minutes

Supta Padangustasana 1-4 1 minute each

Supta Baddha Konasana with support 5 minutes

Day 19

Attachment is suffering, and suffer I did when I could not find my sad little $3 kitchen timer yesterday as I headed out to practice. Fortunately, I used all of my tech savvy to use the timer on my phone. Not ideal, but entertaining. All of this reminded my again of central question: why have I still not purchased the Sportline timer? Procrastination aside, I cannot justify the shipping expense, which is basically 1/3 of the price of the timer. This is ridiculous really, because if you live where I do, ordering goods through the mail is virtually unavoidable. So, I am just going to put this out there, if 4 people want to order the timer ($20), the shipping cost will be waived. Let me know in the comments of you are game. (Of course, you must live in the Viroqua area...) What makes this timer so much superior to the regular kitchen timer, well, in a word, everything. It is designed for the particular use of the repeat function, so you do not need to come out of your practice to keep on re-setting your timer. Enough said.

OK. That was rather long, so I will keep it short from here.

I want to share with you the practice that I did yesterday. It may be a bit confusing in the translation, but I felt so good afterward that I had to share it here. Let me know if you have any questions and again, if you do not practice inversions, skip them.

Funky Eka Pada Adho Muhka Svanasana hip opening that we did with Sianna last weekend

AMS (1 min)

Sirsasana (5 min)

low lunge (1 min)

Uttanasana (1 min)

AMS (1 min)- lots of shins in thighs out

Standing on one leg -holding the other knee (Utthita hasta padangustasana prep)

Parsvakonasana (1 min)

Vrksasana (1 min)

Parsva Utthita Hasta Padangustasana (1 min)

Uttanasana

AMS

Setubandha

Supta Padangustasana prep

Supta Padangustasana #2

Succirandrasana (3 stages)

Supta Padangustasana #3 2x

AMS

Malasana

Janu Sirsasana b/t the legs

Baddha Konasana

AMS

Runner's lunge to lunge/twist/thigh stretch

AMS

Uttanasana

Hanumanasana

AMS

Sarvangasana (6 min)

Savasana

Rock it.

Day 18

Flow Friday

Isn't it nice to have something that you keep returning to? Sure Practice in a larger sense, but flow friday is pretty great in the immediate, right now, smaller scale sense of things.

So, get on your mat and Salute the Sun. What a good day for it! The Sun is on the rise here in SW Wisconsin, and it feels like spring is on its way more than usual for this time of year. It is bright and clear and the days are getting longer. That seems like sufficient inspiration for me this morning.

Have fun. That is always primary. And then, any variations that you like. Breathe, move, flow, let the boundary between you and this magnificent day dissolve.

Day 17

Isn't it amazing that after just a few minutes of breath and movement your whole energy can be so radically shifted? I practiced for right around 30 minutes tonight, after I put my kids to be, which is usually such a sleepy not so productive time. But it was great and I felt totally re-energized and inspired for the evening and now I am ready to hit the hay. So good. It is so siple and yet it continues to be so profound for me. I feel so good when I practice. I feel more like myself more of the time. Amen.

Enough of my personal testimonial. What about you? What is happening for you through this process?

And what about this next sequence? Are you all still using these? Or are you so comfy at this point that you know just what to do? Perhaps a bit of both I suspect.

So, for Thursday, how about some backbends?

Surya Namaskar A 3x

Surya Namaskar B 3x

-for both of these, stay in cobra for several breathes instead of just an inhale.

Handstand and Pinca Mayurasana if you practice these, if not just skip 'em.

Virabadrasana 1 with hands clasped behind your back.

Anjanyasana

Parsvottanasana

Parivritta Parsvakonasana

(look familiar?)

Anjanyasana with a thigh stretch 3x

Pigeon thigh stretch

Dhanurasana

Setubandha and any variations that you like

Urdhva Dhanurasana 3-10x (not a typo)

AMS

Uttanasana

Baddha Konasana

Janu Sirsasana

Paschimotanasana

Savasana

This looks like somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour depending on holds and time between poses. Have a blast!

Day 16

I just go through planning tomorrow morning's form class, and even though I spent the morning up in Iyengar Yoga land, I am still all flowing from the weekend with Sianna. Feels good, but definitely shifts the energy that I usually bring to Wednesday morning. Oh well. One thing that I know for sure to be true about myself is that I have to teach to what is inspiring me at the time. I am not sure if this is good or bad or confusing for my students or whatever. I just know that it is pretty much true. Hmmhh.

So, what I really want to put up here is a 20 minute practice. There is no way that I can put up what I have planned for class. Trust me. It would make no sense whatsoever. But, I think that it will prove to be rad tomorrow morning. We shall see. But here, 20 minutes. And then if you feel so good at the end of that 20 minutes that you want to keep going, grab an earlier sequence and breathe and move to your heart's delight!

3 Surya Namaskar A

3 Surya Namaskar B

(1 minute each/side)

Urdhva Hastasana

Trikonasana

Parsvakonasana

Ardha Chandrasana

Virabadrasana 1

Baddha Hasta Uttanasana (ahem, "ragdoll"- not rag-like)

Marichyasana 3, 3x

Paschimottanasana

Savasana

We are officially done with our 2nd week of practice so now would be a great time to pull out your personal journal again and reflect a bit on your experience so far. How was week 2 different from week 1? What shifts have you noticed not just in your practice, but in the way that you carry yourself, the way that you breathe, the movement of your awareness? Have you noticed any changes in your connection to your spiritual heart?

If you feel like sharing any of your personal insights, feel free.

Day 15

My idea for this morning is a short one. Telling isn't it?

3 10 minute segments. You can do 1, you can do each, you can do some now, some later. The world is your oyster.

#1

AMS 3 minutes

Uttanasana 2 minutes

Supta Virasana 5 min

#2 (1 min ea/side)

Uttkatasana

Virabadrasana 1

Virabadrasana 2

Parsvakonasana

Parsvottanasana

Urdhva Prasarita Eka Padasana

#3 (1 min ea/side)

Supta Padangustasana 1,2,3,4

Baddha Konasana

Paschimottanasana

Savasana

Day 14

Awake. And thinking about practice. For me that is sort of like the perpetual state of "pre-practice". Christina once said that preparing a theme for a class was a lot like a bird circling around something coming closer and closer, taking your time. I think that I feel like that in relationship to a lot. That there is a part of me that is always in the context of practice in one way or another. I certainly spend a lot of time thinking about it, but that is not all that I mean. I put a great deal of dedication toward my behavior being something that is supportive of my practice, something that leads me there. This is perhaps obvious and most likely a much longer conversation, but there you have it.

Those of you that went down to Madison have been sharing how fantastic your experience was over the weekend. And let me tell you, it is self-evident (but I love to hear about it too). Everyone had such a beautiful luster in their eyes and smooth richness to their voices, it was like you could see the cellular make-up of these people moving and shifting around, coming into an expanded harmony. Let's just say that the inspiration was vast. We will all continue to be affected by the Grace that Sianna brings for many days to come.

So what shall we do today?

Urdhva Hastasana with thumbs hooked

Surya Namaskar A 3x with some extended time spent in Cobra

Surya Namaskar B 1x long uttkatasana

Parsvakonasana

Handstand (find some wall space)

Vrksasana

Lunge with a thigh stretch 3x

Pigeon with a thigh stretch

Ustrasana

Setubandasana (if there are some variations that you want to do, go for it)

Urdhva Dhanurasana

and then for fun:

Uttana Padasana to Urdhva Dhanurasana

Uttanasana

AMS

AMV

Savasana