Can’t you just hear Julie Andrews blasting out those lyrics while twirling around on a beautiful Austrian mountainside? The sound of music can just sweep you away, and I got to have one of those Julie Andrews musical moments last week while practicing yoga.
I showed up for yoga class just at it was about to start, and when I walked in the room, the class was jam-packed. I surveyed the room quickly to find a small patch of floor that I could shnorkel* my mat into, but there was no room left. Everyone in the class just kind of gave me a look like, ‘Don’t even try to fit in here next to me.’ I looked up at the instructor, and she waved me up to the front of the class as she picked up her mat and motioned me to take her place on the floor. Not wanting to further disrupt the class, I walked to the front of the room, placed my mat horizontally, and, with a huge amount of unease and angst, I started class with everyone staring at me.
I always wanted to know what it felt like to be a yoga instructor, and now I was getting my opportunity with 20 people facing me head on. I decided the best way to get over my stage fright was by closing my eyes and just getting into the flow. I really like closing my eyes and losing myself during yoga class, so it ended up being a really great class.
After savasana we were all seated for the final moments of class, and the instructor asked us to participate in a few chants of om. Everyone took a deep breath and started their om, and when they did, this beautiful wave of sound washed over me. I was surprised by how loud and strong the sound was as it reverberated off the walls in the front of the room. It felt like I was being bathed in a glorious, magical song—it was uplifting and soothing. Just as the first wave had settled over me, another one came in just as forceful, and I allowed it to flow over me with delight.
If you ever get the chance to face the oms, I highly recommend it. Just like Maria spinning around in the mountains in the Sound of Music, it was a religious experience that I’ll never forget.
*shnor-kel (shnôrkl) verb – a word that was originally developed by Maria’s husband that has crept into her daily vocabulary meaning to connive, sneak, or get yourself into place in a line, an event, or a crowded area. Used in a sentence…That dude shnorkeled his way into the mosh pit to get a better view of the stage.
A few weeks ago at the beginning of yoga class, the instructor asked the class to plug in. She wasn’t talking about plugging in our computers or our cell phone chargers; she wanted us to plug our minds into our yoga practice. We were being asked to feel the heat in our bodies as we went through our asanas and to plug into what our bodies were telling us. She wanted us to plug into the present and fully embrace the yoga experience.
I think my yoga extension cord may have a factory defect. My internal surge protector sometimes fails me, leaving my mind to plug into other things, like everything I didn’t get done that day or the shower gift I need to buy after class or why I can’t bend my elbows the way I need to in crow pose. Being fully present in yoga class is a challenge.
I think I may just draw a picture of an electrical socket on the top of my yoga mat to serve as a mental reminder to be fully present during class. When I do I can feel the prana my body and breath generates as it courses through my muscles and spine like an electrical current. I’m not focusing on how much time is left in class, but focusing, instead, on my breath, the graceful and purposeful movement of my hands in my mudra, every move perfectly choreographed as I embrace the dancing yogini I want to be.
At the end of class, when we got into savasana, the instructor repeated the request to plug in again. I always thought savasana was the time to unplug and check out, but really focusing on how my body felt and sealing in my practice brought a whole new meaning to savasana.
The cool thing about plugging into your yoga practice is that you don’t need to worry about conserving energy or having a higher bill if you leave the lights on. The more you connect to your mind and body, the more amazing your yoga practice becomes.
I’ll never forget the first time I was in a yoga class and the instructor invited us to dance. It was a morning class on New Year’s Eve, packed to capacity with students wanting their final yoga fix for 2009. There was a cool vibe in the room; the yoga instructor was brimming with joy and enthusiasm, and she was armed with an amazing playlist! A great song came on, and as she was taking us through our final sun salutation, she invited the class to dance along with her. I don’t need any arm twisting to shake my booty, so I quickly got into dance mode. I looked around the room to see my fellow yoginis getting down with me (except a few shy folks who were too timid to get their groove on). I couldn’t think of a better way to close out my year than with a little dance on the yoga mat.
Yoga really is a form of dance. I think that is one of the reasons why I love it so much—because, for me, it does feel like a dance. I’m a ballerina at heart and took lessons for years, even though you would never know it today. Seriously, I think my parents should get a refund on all those ballet dance classes and pink tutus they paid for, because I am about the most ungraceful person on the planet.
I love dancing on my yoga mat, in bare feet, using my dancer arms as I flow gracefully through a series of asanas.
So, my yoga theme song for the week is “Tiny Dancer” by Elton John. It’s a classic song that brings out my inner ballerina and reminds me how much I love dancing in the sand and dancing in yoga class.
What an amazing feeling to express yourself through the dance that is yoga. Embrace your tiny dancer and bust a few moves in yoga class this week.
In my recent blog “Amazing Yoga Moments,” I announced that I had triumphed over one of the many “ego poses” (thank you, Meg (@yogasavestheday), for that term) that had eluded my yoga practice. As I got into tripod pose for the first time, I blissed out with a major sense of accomplishment. As usual, instead of just relishing in the glory of my new achievement, I immediately set myself a goal to get even further into the pose. Yes, I threw down the gauntlet and publicly announced that I would dive further into Ego Pose Land and accomplish a tripod handstand before the month of September. For that, you can call me a big, fat yoga dork if you’d like!
To make sure this experience wasn’t really a fluke, I kept trying the tripod pose at home. Amazingly, I was able to repeat the pose without the supervision of my yoga instructor. Each time I tried it, I also attempted to pull my legs up into a headstand. These futile attempts clued me in that this was not going to be a solo effort. I needed a little help from my friends.
Drumroll…
Last week I got the help I needed from my instructor and got those legs up in the air into my very first tripod headstand! Everyone in class was super supportive, and I even got a little applause when I came out of the headstand. I have to admit, it was really hard getting into the pose, and I would not have been able to do it without assistance. I never realized how much strength you need in your core to pull up your body like that, and I’m going to need to get my gut in shape if I ever want to do a headstand on my own.
So, I got by with a little help from my yoga instructor. I got a yoga high with a little help from my friends. I got closer to accomplishing my goal of achieving tripod headstand. Sending a shout out and thanks to Deirdre at Lifesource Yoga!
I recently wrote a blog about yoga mat fêng shui and the fact that where you place your yoga mat can have a big impact on your yoga class experience. It got me thinking that maybe where you place your mat in class says something about your yoga personality. So, after extensive scientific research*, here’s what I came up with.
Front row: There are two types of people who willingly pick the front row in class. The first group comes from the experienced yogini camp. They are givers, ready to share their well-honed yoga technique with the class. They possess no fear, are totally comfortable in their own skin and their great-fitting black stretchy pants. The second group is made up of teacher’s pets and needy people jockeying for the yoga instructor’s attention and sucking up all the chithe instructor is sending off.
Midcenter: These yoginis are fully present, centered, and ready for the yoga instructor to bring it on. The center of the classroom really is the sweet spot as far as I’m concerned, and if you are lucky to get a spot in center stage, you are going to rock that class. These people are organized, disciplined, never late, and the kind who are willing to show up four hours early to get in line to nab the best seats for a show.
Against the wall: These folks just need a little extra support to help them through class. They are sensitive, conservative, and actually very wise to put themselves in a place where they’ll get the support they need.
Back row: Again, there are generally two types of people who pick the back row. The back row is a refuge for the beginner yoga students. There’s no pressure that anyone is looking at you, and they’ve got plenty of other people to look to for guidance during class. I think there should be a rule that the back row is always reserved for beginners. If you are an experienced yogini and pick the back row, you enjoy people watching, are a tad shy on the leadership skills, are too cool for school, and may be having a bad black-stretchy-pant day. If you’re an experienced yogini taking up prime real estate in the back row, please think twice before settling down your mat, and give us beginners our safe haven.
Near exit: These yoga students have either not fully committed to their yoga practice or just can’t let it all go and leave their troubles off the yoga mat. The door serves as a reminder that they can make a quick exit back to reality.
The desert island: Finally, we have the situation where a class is not full and one student decides that placing his or her mat in Siberia is a good thing. These people are afraid of cooties, sweat, and, in general, are germaphobics. A few heart-opening poses and a little love is all they need to bring them back into the fold.
So, where do I put my yoga mat? Well, I forgot to mention that there are a few other people up there in the front row. They are the ones who did not choose to be there, but have placed their mats there as a last resort because they got to class late. I am a charter member of this group. We have great intentions but just can’t our act together to make it to class on time.
I have to admit that I’m still fond of that back row, but I’m building up my mojo, and you’ll be seeing me in that rock-star center row position very soon.
*I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that absolutely no scientific research went into this—it’s just my own funky freudian observations. Let me know where you put your yoga mat and what you think it says about your yoga personality.
