AcroYoga Playtime Sequence (Feb 2014 Two of Four)

Introduction

Last week's AcroYoga playtime at Binghamton Yoga went really well.  Emily & I were psyched to take things a little further this week since many students would be returning.  Like last week, there were going to be five components:

1. Solar Flow Warm-Up
2. Partner Potpouri
3. Acro Flying
4. Therapeutics
5. Thai Massage

Each section changed a little from last week.  The Solar Flow needed to be shortened and the other sections need to progress a tad.  Yet, we were really focused on continuing to build strong, confident bases with lots of repetitive experience.

Solar Flow

Base Building - No One Flies without a Base

Start on Back and Relax
Lift Legs Straight Up ... Point / Flex / Rotate Feet & Ankles

Pull Knees to Chest
Lift Legs Straight Up

Slowly Hinge Legs Down Counting to Five
Hover Legs Parallel to Floor for Count of Five
Relax for Count of Five
Repeat Four Times
On Fourth Time Hinge to Sit Up

Paschimottanasana
Janu Sirsasana Both Sides
Baddha Konasana

Stand in Squat at Front of Mat with Knees & Toes Turned 45 Degrees Out
Malasana Squat Lift Reps

Twisting Dragon (Twisting Lunge Thigh Stretch & Chest Opener Both Sides)

Adho Muka Svansana
Phalakasana

Flight Strength

Starting on Belly on Floor ... Reach Arms and Relax into Traction
Sphinx

Bhujangasana --> Come Halfway Down & Transition to Salambasana --> Relax
Half Dhanurasana with Elbow Support to Discuss Bone Stacking & Height
Full Dhanurasana

Balasana
Wrist Therapy

Partner Potpouri

Form Two Partner Group - Discuss COMMITTING to Partner & Posture

Partner Chest OpenerSwitch with Same Partner

Partner Hip Hugger Trust
Switch with Same Partner

Acro Flying

Form Three Partner Group with Very Similar Sizes

Communication is Crucial - Speak Up
Fliers Straight & Lifted - Bases Straight & Grounded - Spotters Aware 

All Three People: Calibrations In/Out with Spotter Giving Feedback

All Three People: Lift to Plank and Hold

All Three People: Lift to Plank and Press Reps


Form Three Partner Group with Designated Fliers & Change Groups Up to Get Everyone Flying

All Three People: Lift to Plank - Half Dhanurasana & Full Dhanurasana

All Three People: Lift to Plank - Go Hands Free 

Therapeutics & Thai Massage

Using Three Partner Group

Trust & Support - Trust & Relax

All Three People: Lift into Down Dog Mount - Hands on Shoulders - Hold

All Three People: Lift thru Down Dog Mount to Baddha Konasana Hands & Feet - Hold

All Three People: Folded Leaf

Consider Tricep Stretch and Cute Pose Variations



Two Partner Groups

One Person Lays Face Down & the Other Steps Between Ankles to Lift & Arch Bottom
Walk Side-to-Side

Same Person Presses Back to Balasana
Partner Uses Hands on Sacrum & Upper Back to Lengthen Spine - Go Side-to-Side

Consider Rolling Partner Over the Back of the Base IF it Makes Sense

Conclusion

Commitment, communication, and community.  Next week we go even further.

AcroYoga Playtime Sequence (Feb 2014 One of Four)

Introduction

Our AcroYoga workshop with Jean-Jacques Gabriel at Binghamton Yoga went really well last month and people have been asking for playtime.  Completely independently, Sheila Bunnell, our Iyengar instructor went away for four weeks.  This gave me a prime time time-slot to experiment with for a short time.  So, I decided to use this opportunity to run a four week, basic AcroFlying & Therapeutics series.  It will be led by me and my lovely assistant, Emily Brown.  It'll run Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:15pm, Feb 12 thru Mar 5, 2014.

The class will have five components:

1. Solar Flow Warm-Up
2. Partner Potpouri
3. Acro Flying
4. Therapeutics
5. Thai Massage

The Solar Flow is a fast warm-up to class.  It should take about 20 minutes.  The first half of the postures are base-oriented, while the second half are flier-oriented. The Partner Potpouri gets people into basic partner work and gets things rolling.  The AcroFlying will focus on calibrations and Plank / Front Bird.  Therapeutics will revolve around straight-forward, relaxed positions for the flier & solid, supportive ones for the base.  We will incorporate a small amount of Thai Massage into the the Therapeutics as Leg Love.

Solar Flow

Base Building - No One Flies without a Base

Start on Back and Relax
Lift Legs Straight Up ... Point / Flex / Rotate Feet & Ankles
Hinge Down to Floor

Pull Knee to Chest & Hold ... Lift Head-Neck-Shoulders ... Play thru 1/2 Happy Baby & Straight Leg Toward Ear
Repeat Other Side
Both Sides

Hinge Down to Low Boat Hold
Bicycle Abs

Hinge & Roll To Front of Mat

Stand in Squat at Front of Mat with Knees & Toes Turned 45 Degrees Out
Malasana Squat Lift Reps

Plank --> Down Dog --> Leg Up --> Donkey Kicks --> Lunge --> Lunging Back Leg Lifts --> Float Forward --> Single Leg Balance Straight Back Leg / Bend Front Knee Only Lifts
Pada Hastasana Forward Bend
Repeat Other Side

Plank --> Side Plank --> Side Plank --> Floor

Flight Strength

Starting on Belly on Floor ... Reach Arms and Relax into Traction
Sphinx --> Sphinx Belly Lift Hold
Walk Hands back to Feet at Back of Mat

Uttanasana --> Ardha Uttanasana --> Urdhva Hastasana
Levator Scapulae Rotations
Hands behind Head ... Standing Backbend ... Bend Sideways ... Other Side

Lunge Forward - Back Knee Down Hand Out - Twisting Thigh Lunge Stretch

Come to Floor --> Cobra --> Up Dog --> Salambasana

Balasana Long Hold
Tread Needle Shoulder Stretch & Twist Both Sides

Sit

Partner Potpouri

Form Two Partner Group

You must Commit to your Partner & your Partner to You - Halfway is Not Enough!

Wheelbarrow Across Room
Switch with Same Partner
Return Wheelbarrow Across Room

New Partner
Partner Chest Opener
Switch with Same Partner

Acro Flying

Form Three Partner Group

Communication is Crucial - Speak Up
Fliers Straight & Lifted - Bases Straight & Grounded - Spotters Aware 

All Three People: Calibrations In/Out with Spotter Giving Feedback

All Three People: Lift to Plank and Hold

All Three People: Lift to Plank and Press Reps

All Three People: Lift to Plank - Go Hands Free

Consider Half Bow and Full Bow Variations

Therapeutics & Thai Massage

Using Same Three Partner Group

Trust & Support - Trust & Relax

All Three People: Lift into Down Dog Mount - Hands on Shoulders - Hold

All Three People: Lift thru Down Dog Mount to Baddha Konasana Hands & Feet - Hold

All Three People: Folded Leaf

Consider Tricep Stretch and Cute Pose Variations

Keeping it very simple - After Last Lift, Flier Gives Leg Love
Base Feet Straight Up - Pound Feet
Step Beyond Feed - Ankle Rotations
Step Between Ankles - Bull Fighter Pull
Bus Driver

Conclusion

This is a very basic introduction to AcroYoga flying.  We learned that communication, commitment & community are the key to successful pratice.  You can't do this by yourself!

Next week we'll form new groups and build on what we've done.

60 Minute Flow: God is in Everyone

My Monday night class at Binghamton Yoga is well-attended by regulars.  This means that most of the people in the class have a pretty good sense of the fact that I'm not a religious person - possibly not even a very spiritual person.  So, when I opened class with a god-oriented parable, I think they were surprised.

The story I told came from Deborah Adele's Yamas & Niyamas book, which I'm reading as part of the teaching training I'll be doing this summer in Syracuse.  The story goes like this:

A few months after God finished making humans he realized that he was getting a lot of requests from them for help.  As a kind & benevolent God, he was inclined to want to help, but doing so would be more than [even] he could ever do.  So, he decided he needed to find a way to hide from them.  He assembled a group of elders (who is elder to God, I don't know) and asked them to help him find a hiding place.  They proposed the top of a mountain, but he knew they'd find him there.  They proposed the bottom of the ocean, but he knew they'd find him there.  They proposed the moon, but again, he knew they'd eventually find him there too.  So, they pondered & pondered until one elder had a bright idea.  He proposed that he divide himself up into little pieces and hide a little piece of himself inside each & every human - THEN we'd be sure that humans would never find him!

The story was well-received and class began.  We worked through a series of deep hip-opening flow postures and punctuated them with solid ab holds.  The goal was to reach a variation of Eka Pada Koundinyanasana II in about 40 minutes...

...then switch gears 180 degrees and relax into a series of 5 long-hold Yin-style postures, including Star, Happy Baby, Snail, Cat Tail, and One-Legged Hero - before ending in Savasanasa.

Finally, after coming back to a seated position I asked the class to remember the story I told at the beginning of class about a little piece of God being hidden inside each one of us...then, I said, "were you better able to find him during the fiery work of Eka Pada Koundinaysana or during the calm, extended holds of the Yin yoga?"  That's when I saw some lightbulbs flash above a couple of heads.  The truth is that it's much easier to get in touch with your spiritual side when you slow down and listen to your body.

Flow Sequence

Planning 60 minute flow for Monday evening class at Binghamton Yoga.  Will focus on connection between breath & movement.  Even though there are a lot of postures in this sequence, I hope to approach it in a calm manner to better facilitate that connection.


Seated
Ujjayi Breath Connection btw Movement & Breath
Become Larger with Every Inhale & Relax Exhale
3 Ohms

----------------------- 1st FLOW ----------------------

Tadasana
Swan Dive into Gentle Uttanasana
Right Leg Back - Long Lunge
Decend into Anjanayasana & Relax
Step Back to Down Dog
Decend Knees into Balasana
All-4s
Cow/Cat -- Explore -- Rolls
DOwn Dog
Right Leg Forward into Long Lunge
Decend into Anjanayasana & Relax
Uttanasana
Half Up -- Swan Rise
Tadasana

Second Time thru...
Anajanayasana Arms Up
Plank Hold
Balasana
All-4s
Table -- Extend Leg & then Exhale Knee to Nose
Balasana btw Sides
Wrist Stretching & Strengthing
Down Dog
Anajanayasana Arms Up
Uttanasana
Half Up -- Swan Rise
Tadasana

---------------------- INTERLUDE -----------------------

Shoulder Work
Goal Post Rotations

Step Wide into Prasaritta Padottanasana Feet
Side Stretch Flow -- Toward Holding
Prasaritta Padottanasana -- Moving from Wide to Narrow
Goddess w/ Breath -- Inhale Out Exhale Up
Goddess Hold  (Utkata Konasana)
Tadasana

----------------------- 2nd FLOW ----------------------

Back to the Front of Mat

Swan Dive into Chair
Step Back to Plank (Not Worrying about Lunge)
Down Dog --> Plank --> Baby Cobra --> Down Dog
Warrior I Forward --> Back
Warrior II Back --> Forward
Windmill to Earth
Plank --> Cobra --> Plank --> Down Dog
Step to front of mat
Uttanasana --> Utkatasana
Pavritta Utkatasana -- Both Sides w/ Uttanasana Btw
Tadasana

Second Time thru...
Up Dog instead of Cobra
Utkatasana
Pavritta Utkatasana Lifting Leg -- Both Sides with Uttanasana Btw

Step Wide into Prasaritta Padottanasana Feet
Utthita Trikonasna -- Both Sides
Pavritta Trikonasana -- Both Sides

Urhdva Hastasana --> Down Dog
Plank
Side Plank Hold -- Both Sides Hold
Any Backbend on Floor
Balasana

----------------------- SEATED ----------------------

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana
First Down & Long Then Up & Hold Foot with Balance
Both Sides

Dandhasana
Reverse Table -- Lift a Leg -- Both Sides
Pursvottanasana
Paschimottanasana

Janu Sirsasana w/ Focus on Bent Leg
Stretch it Long into Air to Clear It
Ardha Badha Padma Paschimottanasana
Marichyasana -- Deeper
Cow Face
Repeat Other Side

----------------------- ENDING ----------------------
Shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana)
Plow (Halasana)
Fish (Matsyasana)

Savasana
Om

AcroYoga Practice: High-Flying Whale with Emily & Sam

Emily & I try to practice partner-type things at least twice a week.  Last Friday, following my 9:30am Yoga class at Binghamton Yoga, we "played" with our yoga friend, Sam Ley.

Here's short video of a portion of the fun:

In this video, Sam bases me into High Flying Whale.  What's significant about this is that Sam has very little AcroYoga experience but she found the strength & confidence to do this.  Meanwhile, Emily is spotting, which makes a big difference here.  New bases often wobble and Emily's adjustments facilitate a steady base.  

Physical Therapy Visit: How Psoas Tightness Relates to Limited External Rotation of the Hip

Visited Darrell Hunink at Park Manor Physical Therapy again today for my bimonthly training & therapy.  The main topic of today's session was how a tight Psoas could lead to limited external rotation of my leg at the hip.

A little background: For years I experienced lower back pain.  The obvious thing to work is abs, but that often caused me even more pain.  Then, through Darrell, I realized that I needed to strengthen the Multifidi around my spine before it could handle the stress of full-on Ab work.  Once my Multifidi were in-shape I found that Oblique twists really helped eliminate my pain.  Feeling great, I wanted to go further and I began shooting for press-handstand, which led me to serious Ab roll-ups and the Spinal Activation I now do in many of my classes.  Then one day I got serious pain in both my Piraformis.  It was only after I did extended abdominal-lengthening stretches - backwards over a workout ball - that the pain subsided.  So, today's visit was to ask Darrell to explain WHY these two are related and HOW that relationship may have been playing out long before this incident occured.

Darrell explained that ab curls are concentric type exercises which shorten the abs.  As they shorten, the tailbone get overly tucked.  An overly-tucked tailbone pulls on the muscles & tendons around it and they pull back in an effort to stabilize the situation.  Well, my piraformis couldn't handle it anymore and went into spasm.  Only by using a prolonged eccentric stretch was I able to end the spasm.

My piraformis ... to be continued ...

Align & Flow Sequence: Pincha Mayurasana from Core & Shoulders

75 Minute Align & Flow 1-2 Class at Binghamton Yoga

Spinal activation, core strength, rotator cuff activation, and shoulder strength have been swirling in my head for weeks now.  Today's practice will bring these things together to build Pincha Mayurasana.  This graceful posture eluded me for years.  In the beginning the problem was pure disbelief, then it became lack of shoulder awareness & strength.  Now my shoulders are limber & strong AND I no longer fear it.  I built this class to share the triumph and bring that sense of accomplishment to others.

Spinal Activation with Concentric Ab Work

• Windshield Wiper Legs
• Pelvic Tilits
• Roll-Ups with Sandbag Behind
• Oblique Twists with Sandbags on Sides
• Stretch Long
• Single Side Oblique Crunch Elbow to Knee Across Torso

Abdominal Length with Eccentric Ab Stretching

• Roll onto Belly
• Sphinx
• Side Sphinx --> Side Sphinx
• Straight-Arm Sphinx
• All-Fours ... Move Knees Together & to One Side Then Drop Hips to Opposite Side

Transition to Standing

• Down Dog ... Walk Forward ... Roll Up to Stand

Shoulder Awareness & Arm Strength

• Robot Arm External Rotations for Infraspinatus
• Arms Out Laterally at 45 Degrees for Suprapinatus Pulses
• Shoulder Lift & Drop for Levator Scapulea
• Arms Out Laterally Parallel to Floor --> Flap Arms Like Wings
• Hands in Front, Elbows Bent, Block Between Hands --> Draw Elbows Toward Center & then Out
• Hands in Front, Elbows Bent, Press Forearms Together --> Lift & Lower Pressing Arms 
• Arms Out Laterally Parallel to Floor --> Small CirclesHammer Curl with Serious Spin Out
• Sit on Edge of Chair --> Tricep Lifts 
• Come down onto Knees and Put Elbows on Chair with Palms Facing One Another and Block between Hands for Shoulder Opener

Flow to Warm & Prepare

• Surya Namaskar A with Anjanayasana, Plank & Baby Cobra
• Surya Namaskar A with Alanasana (High Lunge), Plank & Bhujangasana
• Forearm Plank --> Side Forearm Planks
• Ustrasana (Camel)

Pinnacle Posture at Wall

• Measure Strap Shoulder-Width and do Baby Cobra Standing at Wall
• Set Up for Pincha Mayurasana Down Dog Prep
• Full Pincha Mayurasana
• Long Relaxed Uttanasana
• Sirsasana (Headstand)
• Balasana (Child's Posture)
• Matsyasana (Fish)

Ending

• Viparita Karani