AcroYoga Workshop at Yoga Body Pilates Studio - November 2014

Every studio owner knows that relations between studios can be tenuous, which makes this workshop all the more important.  Ron & Linda Sambursky were putting on a YTT at their Yoga Body Pilates Studio in Johnson City, NY, and they needed someone to teach a workshop on another [very different] style of yoga.  They knew that Emily & I, at Binghamton Yoga, do a lot of AcroYoga and so they asked us to teach a 2.5 hour session for their nine teacher trainees.

Saturday morning practice.  Start time was 9:30.  They had arrived at the studio at 8:00am, but hadn't done any intense movement yet.  When I came in, Ron had them in a closed-eye meditation.  He ushered me in quietly and when they opened their eyes, I was sitting there with him - to surprise them - to greet them - etc.  Here's how we proceeded:

Sit in a circle with knees touching.  Look around the circle and connect with the group.  Go around and ask each person to introduce themselves and say a few things about their expectations.  Then sit quietly, and rest your hands on both neighbors' knees.  Feel them.  Connect with them.  How does that feel?  Touch is Powerful.  As yoga teachers you are granted the honor of touching many people and getting comfortable with it is important....

A Little History....Acrobatics & Yoga have mixed for a long time.  Photos of Krishnamacharya "flying" his students date back to 1938.  According to the AcroYoga Flight Manual, the 1980's saw the rise of something called AcroSage, which had some similarities.  Then came Contact Yoga - and then Circus Yoga.  Circus Yoga is important to me, because CY's Kevin, was the first person to introduce me to adult "flying".  He comes to Binghamton yearly for a 2-week kids circus-training event and Kristen Keuter knew him.  She invited him to Rexer's, where we taught, years ago, and we flew as a group.  It was fantastic and I was immediately hooked.  Then came Jason Nemur & Jenny Saur-Klein...they developed their system and called it AcroYoga....Acro is Greek for High and Yoga is Sanskrit for Union.  They believe AcroYoga can help fulfill our highest aim: to bring individuals into union with themselves and others.

How can AcroYoga benefit a new yoga teacher?  Simply put, it takes you off your mat and introduces you to an entirely new layer of "otherness," which is beyond your direct control.  It requires deep sensitivity, clear communication, and compassionate cooperation.  It will make it easier to "see into" the bodies, minds, hearts, & souls, of your students.

Today's practice will:

• Build Sensitivity thru Breath & Touch
• Build Verbal & Non-Verbal Communication Skills
• Expand your definition of Cooperation and "Working Out"

SOLO PRACTICE

Start Laying Flat on your Back in Corpse Posture
   Roll Head, Wiggle Jaw, Get Comfortable, Then Feel the Floor's Utter Support
   Place Fingers on Belly and Find Breath

Constructive Rest Postion
   Find ASIS with Fingers - Find Breath - Notice How Breath Affects ASIS
   Purposefully Flatten Lower back and Tuck Tailbone on Exhale - Then Counter Pose on Inhale
   Repeat for Awhile
   Keep Awareness - Feel Hips from Inside - Windshield Wiper Legs

Legs Straight Up
   Point - Flex - Rotate Feet & Toes
   Figure-4 Close In to Massage Feet - One at a Time
   Feel the Softness of your Feet - Soft Feet Feel Much Better on a Flier's Body

Stretch Long then Come to Simple Bridge
   Hold Bridge - Lower Bridge - Get Comfortable with It
   From Bridge Begin Rolling Knees Closed Then Open with Breath
   Inhale Widen the Legs - Exhale Squeeze Them Together
   Add Hip Drop on Inhale and Hip Lif on Exhale for Butterfly Bridge Lifts

Stretch Long then Return to Constructive Rest Position
   Lift - Tuck Tailbone with Breath - Harness the Breath
   Add Ab crunches with Breath - add Thigh Squeeze - Core Strngth
   Stomach Vacuum - Hold Out and Explore Knee Movements
   Stretch Long
   Hinges Several Times
   Hinge Roll to Front of Mat

All-4's ... Cow / Cat
Forearm All-4's ... Donkey Kicks

Lower Belly to Earth
   Reach for Traction ... Pull Back into Sphinx ... Engage Backside / Soften Front Side fro Seal
   Rest
   Learning to Fly on Ground Several Times - Learn Form & Strngth - Imagine Legs Holding You Up

Child's Posture

Come to Wall for Wall-Assisted Uttanasana - Hold & Explore

Come Back to Mat
   Down Dog
   Anjanayasana ... Twisting Dragon ... Twisting Thigh Stretch ... Same-Side Thigh Stretch
   Down Dog
   1/2 Squat Lunge ... Press into Half Down Dog then Back into 1/2 Squat Lunge
   Down Dog --> Plank --> Updog ... Strong Spinal Roll Sequence Between each Side

Prasaritta Padottanasana
   Side to Side Inner Thigh Stretch & Strength
   Narrowing to Come Up to Deep Goddess ... Calf Raises ... Hops

Tadasna ... Totally Relaxed Uttanasana ... Child's Posture

PARTNER PRACTICE

Without Talking - Find a Partner - Choose One to Come into Child's Posture

Assisted Child's Posture - Feel Breath - Quiet Non-Verbal Communication with Hands & Faces

Take Child's Posture Further with Wheel-Over-Child's Posture
   Really Communicating with Concise Words

New Partner

Learning To Fly - Tight is Light

New Partners

Partner Squats
   Partner Squat Opposite Hands Releases

Flying

Form Threesomes

Demo

Calibrations - Learn about Trust, Spotting, Tight is Light, Posture, Balance, Foot Placement, Etc.

Bird ... 1/2 Bow - Spotting is Incredibly Important

New Threesome

Demo

Bird ... 1/2 Bow

Some People into Bow

New Threesomes

Demo

Throne

Demo

Throne Presses

New Threesomes

Demo

Folded Leaf

Demo

Folded Leaf --> Spinal Traction --> Twists for some

Thai Massage

Find Groups of Two and Pick Someone to Receive & Someone to Give

Receiver Lays on Ground - Giver Sits Between Ankles....Simple Foot, Calf, & Quad Work
   Then Come to Sit Behind Head ... Adjust Shoulders ... Open Chest .... Work on Neck

Other Way Around

Thank Partner

Integration

Come Back to Circle

Sit Quietly with Knees Touching - Reach Hand to Neighbors' Knees  

How are Things Different?  How have You - How have We Changed?



Thanks to Emily Brown for being my Partner in this Workshop.  I think we did a great job of working the practice & lesson between the two of us.  Thanks also to John Sykas for joining us as an experienced spotter and moral-supporter.

Yin 90 Minute - Wall Supported Hip Streches

Binghamton Yoga instructor, Yvette, was on vacation for a week and we needed a gentle 90 minute replacement.  I used this sequence on one of those days.

Since these students are used to Svaroopa style yoga, they have a good awareness of the Sacrum and surrounding areas.  However, they don't hear much about Facia, so I usually spend some time introducing the idea of differences between muscle, bone, and fascia.  Then I talk about the 3 S's of Yin:

1. Softness
2. Stillness
3. Steadiness

Yin Yoga 90-Minute Sequence:

• Svaroopa Style Savasana with Tall Blanket & Bolster Stack
• Add Dirga Breath
• Svaroopa Style Half Spinal Twist
• Sacrum Supported Shoulderstand w/ Bolster
• Draw Feet Over Head for Half Snail w/ Bolster (Salamba Arhda Halasana)
• Crime Scene --> Cat Tail
• Come to Wall for Supported Forward Bend (Salamba Uttanasana)
• Hip Hump Side Stretch w/ Bolster
• Supported Sphinx
• Come to Wall for Legs Up into Wide Leg Split (Salamba Supta Upavistha Konasana)
• Wall Figure-4 --> Twist
• Legs Up Wall or Svaroopa Style Savasana with Tall Blanket & Bolster Stack

Yin 90 Minute - Outer & Frontal Hip Opening

Binghamton Yoga instructor, Yvette, was on vacation for a week and we needed a gentle 90 minute replacement.  I used this sequence on one of those days.

Since these students are used to Svaroopa style yoga, they have a good awareness of the Sacrum and surrounding areas.  However, they don't hear much about Facia, so I usually spend some time introducing the idea of differences between muscle, bone, and fascia.  Then I talk about the 3 S's of Yin:

1. Softness
2. Stillness
3. Steadiness

Yin Yoga 90-Minute Sequence:

• Svaroopa Style Savasana with Tall Blanket & Bolster Stack
• Add Dirga Breath
• Twisted Roots
• Under Leg Lengthening
• Over Leg Lengthening
• Side Psoas w/ Bolster
• Sleeping Swan w/ Bolster & Block Under Forward Knee (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana)
• Centipede (Paschimottanasana) w/ Blanket & Block
• Square Pose (Agnistambhasana)
• Dragonfly (Upavistha Konasana)
• Cat Tail
• Saddle with Bolster (Modified Supta Virasana)
• Come to Wall for Supported Forward Bend (Salamba Uttanasana)
• Svaroopa Style Savasana with Tall Blanket & Bolster Stack

Align & Flow Sequence: Pelvic Power Redux

Based on my previous Pelvic Power blog post. This 75 minute Binghamton Yoga class was taught on a Friday morning to about a dozen yogis who are experienced enough to appreciate the need to take care of ourselves.


Props:  
Chair, 2nd Yoga Mat, 2 Blocks, 1 Sandbag, and at least 1 Blanket

Start: 
Seated on floor in Sukhasana or on chair in "Ready" position

Discussion:  
Our pelvis is the epicenter of our existence.  It's where our umbilical cord connects and the "bowl" that holds all our vital organs.  Unlike many other (lower) animals, our pelvis and abdomen are not contained within an extended ribcage.  Instead, we have a basic bony structure of hips & pubis, wrapped with tough, but soft, muscles and tendons.  Every time we breath and/or move this area expands and/or contracts its contents.

Consider the F-A-B....Features-Advantages-Benefits of this area.

• Display the features of our pelvis....ASIS, PSIS, Pubic Symphysis.  Talk about how they move in unison & opposition. 
• Display the advantages of our pelvis.....The cooperation of these features builds a system capable of balancing, flexing, pressing, rotating, bending, flexing, etc in a multitude of directions and gives us humans great Pelvic Power.
• Display the benefits of pelvic power......Powerful, balanced pelvis is the epicenter of proper yoga and thus a way to unbounded health.

Warm-Ups:  Talk about visualizing pelvic features & how they work toward advantages.

Standing
Belly Dance Hip Swivels
Oblique Rotations with Variations
Air-Swim Arms & Shoulders Forward & Back
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Side Squeezes
March......Add Twist......Add Elbow Twist Rotation
Hands & Feet
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Pocket Stretch for Levator Scapula

All-4's
Simple Cow/Cat
Diagonal Cow/Cat
Side Squeezes
Child's Posture
Spinal Rolls
Wrist Work

Finding Our Pelvis:  Talk about the need for muscles to have range of motion.
Sit in Chair with 2nd Mat on it
Feel Sit Bones and Pelvis in Chair
Blanket Under One Sit Bone - Take Time to Feel It
   - Pause & Level - Do Other Side
Back to First Side with Blanket - C-Curve Toward Sunken Hip to Lift - Reps then Hold
   - Pause & Level - Do Other Side
Block Between Inner Thighs - Squeeze on Exhale - Relax on Inhale- Reps
Boat Pose Balanced on Chair - Add Block Between Thighs
Figure-4 Forward Fold Both Sides to Relax Pelvis and Stretch Outer Shell
Repeat Inner Thighs, Boat & Figure-4

Weeble Walk from Front of Room to Back Wall - Emphasize Ab Zipper Action, Inner Spiral
Cobra at Wall - Hold
Uttanasana Folded into Wall - Hold

Pranayama 1:  Talk about the supple pelvis facilitating intense breath.
Sit in Chair with 2nd Mat on It
Fire Breath - Exhale Version - With Fold-Over and Rise to Hold-Out
   - Repeat 3 Times

Moving Up the Body:  Pelvis is the Core and on it we build an amazing structure.  Move into the other floors. Understand that the shoulder girdle is the "pelvis" of the upper body.
On Back for Spinal Rolls w/ Sandbag
Back of Head Presses - Manually Lengthen & Massage Neck - Understand Engagment
Dolphin Plank....Dolphin Down-Dog....Swimming Dolphin
Sit Back & Stretch Shoulders
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Clasp Hands Behind Back & Look Up
Reverse Table

Headstand: So strong that the entire structure can stand upside down.  Turning arms into legs.
Come to Wall with Both Mats + 1 Block
Talk about Ab Zipper Action and Inner Spiral to Float Up
Headstand Prep Variations
Headstand HOLD - Feel Shoulders Working Like Legs
Child's Posture
Head/Neck,Shoulders

Slow Flow: Take the Pelvic/Shoulder Knowledge & Emanate Out like a Flower Blooming - or a Starfish waving in the water's flow.
Balancing Flow....Simple Tree --> Floar Back to High Lunge --> Turn Sideways --> Repeat
Wide Leg --> Side Angle
Wide Leg --> Prasaritta Padottanasana --> Triangle
Uttanasana

Pranayama 2:
Sit on Chair
Nodi Shodahana - Alternate Nostril Breathing

Savasana


Conclusions:
This class was even more well-received than the first time I taught it! 

Align & Flow Sequence: Pelvic Power through F-A-B

I've been reading Eric Franklin's Pelvic Power book,and decided to base today's class on it.  This was perfect because Binghamton Yoga's Iyengar instructor, Sheila Bunnell, was away and I was subbing her 75 minute evening class.  Her students are well-prepared to find interest in smaller muscles and finer actions.

Props:  
Chair, 2nd Yoga Mat, 3 Blocks, & at least 1 Blanket

Start: 
Seated on floor in Sukhasana or in chair

Discussion:  
Our pelvis is the epicenter of our existence.  It's where our umbilical cord connects and the "bowl" that holds all our vital organs.  Unlike many other (lower) animals, our pelvis and abdomen are not contained within an extended ribcage.  Instead, we have a basic bony structure of hips & pubis, wrapped with tough, but soft, muscles and tendons.  Every time we breath and/or move this area expands and/or contracts its contents.

Consider the F-A-B....Features-Advantages-Benefits of this area.

• Display the features of our pelvis....ASIS, PSIS, Pubic Symphysis.  Talk about how they move in unison & opposition. 
• Display the advantages of our pelvis.....The cooperation of these features builds a system capable of balancing, flexing, pressing, rotating, bending, flexing, etc in a multitude of directions and gives us humans great Pelvic Power.
• Display the benefits of pelvic power......Powerful, balanced pelvis is the epicenter of proper yoga and thus a way to unbounded health.

Warm-Ups:  Talk about visualizing pelvic features & how they work toward advantages.

Standing
Belly Dance Hip Swivels
Oblique Rotations with Variations
Air-Swim Arms & Shoulders Forward & Back
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Side Squeezes
March......Add Twist......Add Elbow Twist Rotation
Hands & Feet
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Pocket Stretch for Levator Scapula

All-4's
Simple Cow/Cat
Diagonal Cow/Cat
Side Squeezes
Child's Posture
Spinal Rolls
Wrist Work

Finding Our Pelvis:  Talk about the need for muscles to have range of motion.
Sit in Chair with 2nd Mat on it
Feel Sit Bones and Pelvis in Chair
Blanket Under One Sit Bone - Take Time to Feel It
   - Pause & Level - Do Other Side
Back to First Side with Blanket - Do Reps then Hold
   - Pause & Level - Do Other Side
Block Between Inner Thighs - Squeeze on Exhale - Relax on Inhale- Reps
Boat Pose Balanced on Chair - Add Block Between Thighs
Figure-4 Forward Fold Both Sides to Relax Pelvis and Stretch Outer Shell
Repeat Inner Thighs, Boat & Figure-4

All-4's
Child's Posture
Spinal Rolls.....Add Side to Side to Find Pelvis & Abdomen
Wrist Work

Pranayama 1:  Talk about the supple pelvis facilitating intense breath.
Sit in Chair with 2nd Mat on It
Fire Breath - Exhale Version - With Fold-Over and Rise to Hold-Out
   - Repeat 3 Times

Moving Up the Body:  Pelvis is the Core and on it we build an amazing structure.  Move into the other floors. Understand that the shoulder girdle is the "pelvis" of the upper body.
Dolphin Plank
Dolphin Down-Dog
Swimming Dolphin
Sit Back & Stretch Shoulders
Head/Neck/Shoulder Circles with Variations
Repeat
Reverse Table

Headstand: So strong that the entire structure can stand upside down.  Turning arms into legs.
Come to Wall with Both Mats + 1 Block
Headstand Prep Variations
Headstand HOLD - Feel Shoulders Working Like Legs
Child's Posture
Head/Neck,Shoulders

Slow Flow: Take the Pelvic/Shoulder Knowledge & Emanate Out like a Flower Blooming - or a Starfish waving in the water's flow.
Tree --> Toppling Tree --> High Lunge --> Warrior II --> Triangle --> 1/2 Moon --. Tree

Pranayama 2:
Sit on Chair
Nodi Shodahana - Alternate Nostril Breathing

Savasana


Conclusions:
People really seemed to LOVE this class.  Personally, I enjoyed the balance of physique with intellect and strength with awareness.  Best of all, my hips & pelvis felt super-charged well into the next day. 

June 2014 YTT Questions

The training I'll be going to this June requires us ask three people four basic questions about Yoga.  They are:

1. What is yoga?
2. Is yoga a religion?
3. Do you need to be a vegetarian to practice yoga?
4. What benefits do you receive from practicing yoga?

It's possible that these questions could evoke some interesting conversations with the right people, however, since I've been practicing yoga for over ten years now, most of the people I know already have an informed opinion.

Person 1: Sheila - Iyengar Yoga Teacher

Practices yoga every day.  Teaches eight classes a week.  Has travelled to India several times.  40's.

1. Yoga is the union of mind & body.
2. No.
3. No.
4. For me...it integrates all layers of my being.

Person 2: Jill - Waitress & Coworker

Practiced yoga for one semester. Found it very beneficial.  30's.

1. It's an exercise.  It's stretching, breathing, focus, awareness, etc.
2. No ... some people might think so, but they're probably pretty ignorant.
3. No ... some new age people might think so but that seems unnecessary.
4. Since I've started doing yoga I feel I have less stress, more flexibility, and generally feel healthier.

Person 3: Kirstin - Customer Service & Coworker

Does not practice yoga. Cousin is yoga instructor.  20's.

1. Exercise
2. No - that's dumb.
3. No - that's like asking "Do you have to be a hippie to practice yoga?" Of course not! You can be if you want to.
4. It must be exercise because my cousin used to be a "chunker" and she's really skinny now.

Me:

1. Union of being & embodiment.
2. No.  Religion asks for blind faith.  Yoga does not.  Yoga is experiential philosophy.  A yogi makes hypotheses about existence and tests them thru direct experience.  Often running the same test hundreds or even thousands of times before drawing a conclusion.  Yoga is a technology, and art, a science....
3. No.  I know yogis from novice to nationally-known and the vast majority of them eat meat.  I understand that some people believe that eating meat is violence, but I find that to be a relatively naïve argument for far more complex question.  The fact of the matter is that even the Dali Lama eats meat.  IMHO, tying vegetarianism to yoga is totally outdated.  The most important thing for a yogi is being free to explore & experiment with any course of action.  Accepting vegetarianism without repeated direct experience and experimentation isn't yoga.
4. Bliss, Self-Awareness, and much more.

June 2014 Teacher Training Goals

I'll be attending a 14 day yoga teacher training at Lotus Life Yoga Center in Syracuse, NY this summer.  Prior to going we're supposed to develop a list of 15 goals.  The syllabus says the goals should pertain to "yourself during this training and also for your life."  That seems a bit too general to be of much use for me, so I'm going to focus on goals for the during the training, yoga practice goals, and goals for our yoga studio.

1. Immerse Myself in Yoga for Fourteen Days 
2. Enjoy Vacation with my Girlfriend
3. Be a Student
4. Commune with a deep, loving Community of similarly-Minded Yogis for a Time
5. Experiment with New Teaching Ideas
6. Learn how to Teach Better...
• ...Yoga Postures
• ...Yoga Sequences
• ...Yoga Classes
• ...Themes
7. Blog my Yoga Insights & Sequences
8. Glimpse Jason without Work for Fourteen Days
9. Develop an Understanding of the LLYC Business and Compare it to my Own
10. Prepare my Businesses & Studio so Well Before I Leave that there is No Need to Worry
11. Help my Studio's co-Director Plan her own Teacher Training
12. Try again to get my Dad to attend our Gentle Yoga Class on Thursdays
13. More Training...
• ...AcroYoga
• ...Yin
• ...with John Friend
14. Continue Visiting Physical Therapist for Insights from Western Medicine
15. Understand why people think the kind of Yoga we Practice is Ancient
16. Continue exploring the difference between Training and Straining for myself & others
17. Achieve Yoga Magic
18. Obtain Yoga Alliance 200-Hour Certification