A weekend with David Robson

So I haven't posted in a while and I have to admit it had a lot to do with the my own superstitions! I didn't want to jinx it!  What's "it" you say? Well you might remember that I applied to a teacher certification program at East Meets West Yoga, well...I GOT ACCEPTED!!!!  I actually got the news a couple of weeks ago but its been such a whirlwind around here lately that I didn't get a chance to share the great news!

Needless to say, I'm so excited to embark on a new branch of my journey through life.  This really is an exciting time and I'm so thrilled to share it will you!

Not sure who to give credit to for this but I first
saw it on Pinterest and I love it! Hilarious!

The day I got the news was the same day that launched a weekend of workshops with the amazing David Robson, owner and Director of the Ashtanga Yoga Centre of Toronto.

The first workshop was Learn to Float and boy was it a humbling experience. After introductions, David guided us through Sun Salutations to a hypnotic drum beat that empowered you to focus on movement following the breath and having the inhale = the exhale. Traditionally in my practice I would have believed I was adhering to this but my focus (without me realizing it) was on the movement and matching my breath to it when I should have been focusing on my breath and slowing down/speeding up my movement to match.  Moving to the drumbeat (which I have since purchased from learntofloat.com) exposed how I was moving too quickly through some asanas. I actually chuckled at myself a few times when I found myself already in chaturanga at only the 2nd count of a 4 count exhale.

My aha moment in workshop #2 Hips, Knees and Forward Folds came when I figured out I was always over flexing my feet in seated folds. This took the stretch out of my hamstrings and into my calves. The final workshop was Jumping Through & Back and what can I say other than its going to take YEARS before that happens (if at all).  I learned a lot of things about my body that I just need to accept and work with, like the fact that my torso is the longest part of my body (proportionately speaking that is) so when I'm trying something like jumping back and through I need to work even harder pulling up and in with my core to get my body through the small amount of space my arms allot me.  I also believe this contributes to my collapsing in when doing poses like Utthita Trikonasana and Utthita Parsvakonasana.  Since these workshops, I've been focusing more on finding length on both sides of my body.

As much as I learned from the entire weekend though, there is one overarching idea that has resonated with me above all and it applies to a number of habits I've developed in my practice.  That idea is finding the work in every pose, the real work that is, and getting rid of all the "extra" stuff or breaks. A great example of this is uttanasana or standing forward fold. A pose that in a lot of ways was a "break" for me.  I collapsed in and took a brief moment of rest. David spoke frankly to us about how every time our hands touch the ground we should be rooting down -palms flat pushing the earth back.

Another example that this idea applies to is the body's natural tendency to succumb to the easiest way to accomplish something. I realized I often rely on my flexibility and the strength in my limbs (which ironically I didn't think I had a lot of) to compensate for the lack of strength in my core.  Going forward, I'll be doing a lot more core work! Sadly, this will not win me any friends in class when the teacher asks "any requests?".