Friday, July 18, 2014

Listening to your body

When I teach, I remind my students often to listen to their bodies.  Every day is different and I know all too well that it also affects our asana.

A couple weeks ago, I was at my usual Sunday morning Yoga in the Park.  For whatever reason, I had no energy and felt very wonky.  There was one point when I just felt too tired to complete some of the Sun B.  Consequently, I sat down, grabbed some water, then moved into Child's Pose.  I sat in that pose until the instructor moved everyone into core.  I don't feel guilty about that.

In the US, we are pushed to compete, with others and ourselves.  Always pushing harder and harder.  It's no wonder that Yoga Flows and Hot Yoga are so popular here.  At some point, though, something has to give.  There is a limit to what we can do and when we run into those limits we must take a step back for ourselves.

The point of asana is to be mindful and listen to what our body needs.  Take the water break, towel off, rest in Child's Pose, or even sit there and just watch what is going on.  It will serve us better than pushing through our limits and potentially injuring our bodies.

Namaste my friends,

Chess

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Touch

One thing that the training forced me to do is touch others, including people I don't really know.  In the US, it is mostly forbidden to touch others, unless you know them really well.  When passing someone, you try your hardest not to brush up against them.  You say "pardon me" when you bump into another person, or even if you came close to it.  You even do a little dance when two people move to the same side when trying to pass each other.

There wasn't much hugging or touching going on with my family members when I was growing up.  I find it very awkward when others touch me on the shoulder, or even worse, when others try to hug me.  If I am consoling someone, that isn't hard for me, but any other time it just feels so weird.

The worst part is, this hurts us.  We don't feel connected with other people.  In our digital world, we find it easier to not touch or connect with our friends and family.  Then when we try to reconnect, we feel awkward or out of place. No wonder we love sex so much.  It is one of the only places we can touch each other and know full well what is expected from that touch.

So now I am having to learn how to give positive energy to my students through touch, which is very difficult for me, because I don't really know how to touch people.  But just like anything else, the more I do it, the more I learn.  The more I learn, the less awkward I feel doing it.

And through this, I also realize that some of my students probably feel the same way.  They don't know how to be touched.  So I am learning how to be gentle when working with my students, so that they feel comfortable and cared for.  They are important and if I am the only person who makes them feel seen, heard, and touched, then I am doing my job right.

Love and Light,
Chess

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Scaling back

I have been feeling very run down lately.  I think I have been doing too much lately.  A number of people have told me to slow down and relax a little.  Sometimes if you aren't listening to your own body, you have to listen to your loved ones.  They know you well enough, and can see you in a different light.  They will see things that you may not.

In an effort to find a little more time in my week, I have decided to scale back a little with my yoga classes.  Right now, I have students on Fridays, but not Mondays.  Since I started teaching, I have been showing up on Monday nights in the chance that I might have students.  It takes time out of my evening that I could be using to do some other things.  Consequently, I have decided that I won't be at the studio unless I know for sure that I will have a student.

Technology allows communication to be much easier now.  Students and potential students can text me, email me, or message me on Facebook to let me know that they are interested or will be there for class.

I look forward to seeing my students each week, but it is very hard to sit for twenty to thirty minutes waiting for no students and then drive home.  I hope this helps me relax a little.

Namaste my friends.

Chess