The Thinking Yogi's Guide to Approaching Asana

Hello my friend! 

Kelsey here - YogaAnatomy.net Director.

Welcome to your next installment of The Thinking Yogi’s Guide to Approaching Asana.

At YogaAnatomy.net, our passion is to help you evolve your thinking about yoga and your body so that you can become more confident in your teaching and more skilled in your practice.

Today, I’ll introduce you to one of Leslie’s teachings that you can use immediately in your practice and teaching.

Let’s dive in...

We all know that getting into the perfect shape is “not the point” of yoga... but it’s still something that our students find rewarding. And in that quest, we want to help them figure out how to explore those shapes safely. 

It can be a little tricky guiding your student into a challenging shape when you can’t feel what your student is feeling, right?

With all the injuries from adjustments that are surfacing nowadays, repetitive stress problems, and normal pain students feel during practice, what’s a teacher to do?

Here’s an idea to tuck in your back pocket that will take all of that out of the equation...

When we practice, we’re looking for...

A little bit of movement in a lot of places

Let’s see how this might show up...

Many students attempt a pose like a backbend and try to CRANK at their most flexible point, the lower back, between L4 & L5. Even if you’re not familiar with the names of those vertebrae, you surely know what this looks like.

Check out this yogini - though this photo is yoga-calendar gorgeous, it’s a perfect illustration of this point. Most of her back is STRAIGHT - she’s just super bendy at that one spot:

This is not necessarily a problem. She can do the pose, right? 

But think about it - if this is how she achieves all her back-bends, which spot is taking the responsibility for the majority of the movement? Which spot is getting the most friction? Which spot is taking all the load?

The vast majority of the movement is happening at that one joint at L4/L5, right?

You can see it more clearly here:

So... she’s really flexible in her lower spine. What’s the problem?

Let’s consider a few points...

• Overuse of something that’s easy for us is how our natural-born super-strengths can turn into repetitive stress injuries without us even realizing it. 
• And even shorter term, in the space of a yoga class, what is left for her to do? She’s already in the “fullest expression” of the pose. What’s next?

...

I happen to have a habit exactly like this, and I’ll tell you what’s next... 

The shadow side to a super flexy L4-L5 is that the upper spine can be locked up tight, and you’ll never even notice because you can “do” all the shapes.

It’s really obvious when she’s in Camel: (Poor stock photo model - I know I’m picking on you...)

Check it out - all the movement is at L4/L5. Her upper spine... not even really a “backbend” aside from her neck...

Here’s where the intention you give the class can make all the difference...

Imagine what this super advanced yogini will feel like when you help her find something brand new. 

When you help her notice something she may have never noticed before - that there is more movement available to her.

And more than that, finding movement in her habitually locked upper back is a completely foreign experience.

It will feel super hard at first - she’ll have something to work on.

She’ll struggle against her habit...

...And then she’ll break through and find something fresh in a pose that hasn’t challenged her for years.

It will feel like magic. And she will love you for it.

What does this look in practice? 

Let’s see...

What might feel like an actual CHALLENGE for a student like this... what might be super enlightening / interesting / groundbreaking in her practice... Is to quiet all the movement in the flexy part of her spine, and JUST do a camel from her bra-line and up... Or at least start there, find all the movement she can in her upper back, and THEN drop her hands.

As a visual, here’s an example of someone in Camel where the movement is more well distributed throughout her spine. Of course, that L4/5 joint is still flexing the most (as it does on everyone), but you can see how it’s not just like a hinge with to straight pieces on either side.

THIS is what Leslie means by “a little movement in a lot of places.”

And this concept is GOLD.

You can use it everywhere.

FOR FLEXIBLE STUDENTS:

This concept becomes a new challenge because it gives students who are used to being able to “do all the poses” something else to work on.

It’s a simple tool you can use to help advanced students uncover unconscious habits, and reveal opportunities for mindfulness and growth.

FOR TIGHT STUDENTS:

This concept is freeing because it can help tight students find more movement in untapped places so they feel more successful.

FOR YOUR ENTIRE CLASS:

This concept can be a great equalizer.

If everyone is focused on the experience inside their own body - quieting what likes to move and inviting movement in places that are more naturally stiff, it can take away the idea that what we’re aiming for is “an ideal shape.”

It also helps students focus on their own experience and not simply try to copy the shapes of those around them.

When you define “success” differently, more students will be able to find it.

...And weirdly, though it’s not the point, this concept totally helps people get into pretty shapes.

How might you explore this idea?

In Cat/Cow:

This is the perfect, easy place to find spots in the spine that like to move, and other spots that are used to letting someone else do the heavy lifting. It’s also a brilliant pose to introduce this concept in a way that’s exploratory early in class.

In a Twist:

You might ask yourself, “Can I do a little bit of movement in each vertebrae, so that the majority of the movement isn’t coming from one place? If I notice there’s a place that is very GOOD at moving, can I allow it to take a break while I explore what it’s like to move the places that aren’t used to moving so much?”

In a Forward Bend:

You might explore, “What if it’s not just about ‘folding at the hip joint,’ but instead finding length across the entire back-body from the bottoms of your feet, to the top of your head?”

...And on, and on, and on.

Again, it’s not that one way is right or wrong, necessarily. Though any cranking at one joint is much more likely to cause repetitive stress issues over a long period of time.

It’s about opening up the experience for your students, and giving them far more options for success and self-discovery.

Leslie’s teacher, T.K.V. Desikachar, said it best:

“Our practice has to be a little bit more clever than our habits.”

Here’s a simple tool to help you do exactly that.

I’d love to hear if this concept is useful to you and how you experiment with it in your practice and teaching.

More coming up in the next few days.

Until then - I wish for you a practice that’s just a bit more clever than your habits.

All My Best,

Kelsey Kaufman

YogaAnatomy.net Director

P.S.This concept is one that Leslie adopted from his YogaAnatomy co-author, the brilliant Amy Matthews. We are all better for hanging out with Amy. (She guest-teaches online so you’ll get to meet her, too.)

P.P.S. Do you teach Vinyasa?  What about applying this concept to a transition between postures.  ... Did I just blow your mind?

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At YogaAnatomy.net, our passion is to help you evolve your thinking about yoga and your body so that you can become more confident in your teaching and more skilled in your practice.

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Images from the book Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff & Amy Matthews displayed on this website are used under license.