So, this has not been my best week... Seems I'm on a run of stressful, difficult days lately but we soldier on, right? Because, as a dear friend often says, "What's the alternative?" So true. So at Yoga today, I was looking forward to just a soft-focus practice of familiar asana and a time for breath and meditation. Hmmm....
What I got instead was a student suggesting we "go to the wall". Huh? Oh sure, I'd seen the installation of hooks and straps on the wall of the studio. I figured that was some advanced form of yoga asana that the teachers all got together to do after hours -- the kind that looks and feels rather torturous. And I am a student of the "no hurting" yoga school.
But today, once our sweet Kundalini warm-up was over, Karen directed us to choose two long straps from their location at the end of the "wall of death" and attach them to the hooks at the uppermost level -- over my head. (There are three levels of hooks -- just to give many options for attaching ourselves to that crazy wall). My group approached our part of the wall slowly and with some degree of confusion, a bit of skepticism, and perhaps a moment of wondering if once lined up there we'd be handed blindfolds.
But we are a trusting lot and assumed all would be well once we wriggled our way into the straps over our heads and dropped them down to waist level. We were instructed in various postures using the straps to hold our body weight as we stretched forward into folds, outward into Warrior poses, Pyramid poses, Side Angle poses, poses with our arms stretched high over head, out to the sides, into Downward Dog and finally with the straps holding us as we dropped completely backward into deep backbends.
I wondered at one point if this strap thing was "cheating". We are constantly reminded that yoga is not competitive, but I do like to know I am trying as hard as I can to build strength, agility, and alignment. There were times when I felt the straps were doing all the work and I was just flopping my body around, but then Karen explained how the straps help us do deep fascia work -- moving us deeper into familiar poses by supporting our weight, but still allowing us to work intently in a different way. And I realized I was working deeper by not having to worry about tipping over or losing balance. I am willing to give "the Wall" a chance again some day.
Oh, and speaking of competition. Karen also had us do "wall sits" -- those sitting with back against the wall, knees at a 90-degree angle, thigh muscles in full contraction poses that football players and other athletic types do to build leg strength. She had us sit there for a good long time as she reminded us eventually that we are not competing against each other -- knowing full well, no doubt, that at that precise moment competing was exactly what we are doing! Either that, or every other student has much sturdier thighs than I do! I had to smile as my legs shook and burned and I finally stood out of the pose. Yep. I didn't want to be the first to stand, but when I did I saw others rising up too. So, if I was the one to give "permission" to the others that they had at least defeated one other student, well, good for me! And you're welcome -- because we could STILL be sitting there if I hadn't given up first!
I love how the lessons just keep coming for me -- seeing my fear of new things, my self-judgement about whether I am "trying hard enough" if something seems too easy , the way my ego sneaks up on me and wants to "win" at the silliest of times.
Oh, Yoga, I love you....NOW, UP AGAINST THE WALL! ©
Namaste, donnajurene
Photo Source: http://embodyphysicaltherapy.com/hanging-out-the-yoga-way/
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