Who wants a strict teacher?

Someone has asked my teacher to be more strict. He mentioned it in class last night. I don't know what he made of this request (inscrutable yoga teacher!) but it rang alarm bells to me. More strict? Seriously? For me he's strict enough already. But subtly so and only if I choose to meet him there (some... Continue Reading →

January 13, 2017 5

Physio for the brain

I was back with my physio this weekend, checking progress with the exercises I have for the pain in my right tricep. Initial diagnosis was that this was related to stiffness in my neck. She had expected it to resolve in a week. Three weeks on and my neck and scapulae seem to have increased... Continue Reading →

December 11, 2016 0

Easy does it

Hubby's started practising a little at home again now. I'm so pleased for him to have got to the point where this feels like a good thing for him. He's rehabbing himself gently and I am so immensely proud of his patience and his quiet efforts. I'm learning so much from him, from hearing him... Continue Reading →

December 4, 2016 1

Getting (un)comfortable

My teacher often talks about playing the edge. I'm still not sure I get where this is exactly. Maybe that's part of the game, part of the playing -- first finding it, then flirting with it, finally staring it down rather than running away. I always thought I was good at the staring game, unblinking,... Continue Reading →

October 3, 2016 1

Waking up at sunset

Hubby's got himself a new osteopath and a new diagnosis for his back pain. It all sounds like progress to me. I like the sound of his osteo -- and not just because his description of our yoga together recently got her thumbs up!! So now he's accommodating to a new way of perceiving his body and... Continue Reading →

August 25, 2016 2

Getting comfortable

I really enjoyed the restorative yoga class last night. I'm getting more used to letting go, 'inviting the pose' as the teacher puts it, rather than trying to get somewhere -- or indeed fervently wishing I was somewhere else entirely! Maintaining concentration is still really hard, but I'm more conscious of physical sensations and unnecessary tensing... Continue Reading →

July 23, 2016 1

Corpsing in class

At the beginning of teacher training we were asked what our favourite and least favourite yoga pose was. As my least favourite I settled on Tāḍāsana. Though it was a close call between that and Śavāsana. No-one else seemed to get the difficulty I had here; these are simple poses right? Huh, well not so... Continue Reading →

July 15, 2016 2

The colour of judgement

I am picking up a minor theme of class recently where the teacher reminds us to observe without judgement. Since I came to yoga āsana from mindfulness practices, this notion isn't a new one to me and I often like to think that I'm getting pretty good at it, that I'm pretty aware of the... Continue Reading →

June 27, 2016 3

Warrior 3 with a coffee

I sometimes wonder if I should give up coffee. Not because I'm a yoga fundamentalist who thinks that this kind of drug is incompatible with a dedicated yoga practice (please no!), but simply because I'm now more aware of how it makes my body feel and the aftermath of a strong coffee isn't so great: it... Continue Reading →

June 4, 2016 5

Today we have naming of parts

I am a big, big fan of the English Patient, the film and the book. I would want them on my desert island. One of the many, many things I love about it is the mingling of scientific brain with emotional brain in the figure of Almásy, the geographer and lover. I love the exploration of territory... Continue Reading →