Slow Ashtanga

01-11-2007, 06:35 AM

Hi All,
I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
VERY slow ashtanga practice.
And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
injured points.
It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
and I have more time to think about alignment.

The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)

01-12-2007, 04:20 AM

hi annie,

same has happened to me, only i am 8.9 months pregnant! i have the relaxin hormone kicking in which is causing the strain but i have found a great chiropractor who specialises in pelvic / sacrum pain where i found results in 48hrs after seeing her. Poss an idea for you?

i have cut my asana back to 30-40 mins now though in the last 4 weeks

is there something you are not telling us?

take care,
Sophie

anniegurton wrote:
Hi All,
I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
VERY slow ashtanga practice.
And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
injured points.
It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
and I have more time to think about alignment.

The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)

---------------------------------
The all-new Yahoo! Mail goes wherever you go - free your email address from your Internet provider.

01-12-2007, 12:04 PM

That is great(your discovery), I think that slowing down such a
vigorous practice helps us from pushing so hard. I had the same
experience of SI pain and had to slow way down which caused me to also
be alot more mindful and gentle with myself. I have a tendency to push
way hard and brute myself through things so this is a much needed
lesson I have learned from my practice. Heres to many more lessons
learned! Peace,T

--- In ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "anniegurton" wrote:
>
> Hi All,
> I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
> of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
> VERY slow ashtanga practice.
> And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
> week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
> into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
> up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
> injured points.
> It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
> and I have more time to think about alignment.
>
> The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)
>

01-16-2007, 03:06 AM

--- In ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "anniegurton" wrote:
>
> Hi All,
> I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
> of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
> VERY slow ashtanga practice.
> And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
> week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
> into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
> up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
> injured points.
> It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
> and I have more time to think about alignment.
>
> The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)
>

This is an inspiring message for me and seems like the right procedure
for me too as I have arthritis in both hips and some postures have
become impossible. Balance, awareness, ahimsa, alignment, are what I
need to focus on and am learning about accepting my limitations the
hard way.

01-16-2007, 09:43 AM

--- In ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "anniegurton" wrote:
>

>
Annie, this sounds like something to try, I respect the fact that you
kept your practice going and honered your body at the same time. I
couldnt think of a better way to spend three hours
Nameste
Jeff C

01-16-2007, 04:50 PM

HI Annie,Good for you for not stopping. I'm studying anatomy with Paul Grilley and he talks pretty exclusively about continued practice in facilitating healing{yin yoga}. namastae

----- Original Message -----
From: Sophie Anderson
To: ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) ...oups (DOT) com>
Sent: Friday, January 12, 2007 1:20 AM
Subject: Re: [Ashtanga Yoga] Slow Ashtanga

hi annie,

same has happened to me, only i am 8.9 months pregnant! i have the relaxin hormone kicking in which is causing the strain but i have found a great chiropractor who specialises in pelvic / sacrum pain where i found results in 48hrs after seeing her. Poss an idea for you?

i have cut my asana back to 30-40 mins now though in the last 4 weeks

is there something you are not telling us?

take care,
Sophie

anniegurton > wrote:
Hi All,
I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
VERY slow ashtanga practice.
And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
injured points.
It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
and I have more time to think about alignment.

The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)

---------------------------------
The all-new Yahoo! Mail goes wherever you go - free your email address from your Internet provider.

01-17-2007, 12:01 AM

I would be very surprised as I am 57 and my husband has had a vasectomy !

--- In ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, Sophie Anderson
wrote:
>
> hi annie,
>
> same has happened to me, only i am 8.9 months pregnant! i have
the relaxin hormone kicking in which is causing the strain but i have
found a great chiropractor who specialises in pelvic / sacrum pain
where i found results in 48hrs after seeing her. Poss an idea for you?
>
> i have cut my asana back to 30-40 mins now though in the last 4
weeks

>
> is there something you are not telling us?
>
> take care,
> Sophie
>
> anniegurton wrote:
> Hi All,
> I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
> of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
> VERY slow ashtanga practice.
> And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
> week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
> into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
> up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
> injured points.
> It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
> and I have more time to think about alignment.
>
> The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> The all-new Yahoo! Mail goes wherever you go - free your email
address from your Internet provider.
>
>

01-21-2007, 12:01 AM

Hi Irene,
I certainly found this to be true - the ashtanga practice became like
physiotherapy, and I'm sure helped the healing process. I certainly
felt better, and my back felt better and more flexible each morning
after practice. The trick is not to push it beyond the point where
you feel pain. Once you reach that edge, then back off a little and
hold the asana for longer, breathing into the injured area.
I took one day off last week and, Boy, did I suffer for it next day -
the healing had taken three or four days backwards. I had one day of
real pain again, but then, next day, the improvement was back to as it
was before I took the day off.
I'm with Paul Grilley - use yoga to facilitate healing, but don't be
irresponsible about it. There is also a school of thought that says
you should 'work through' the pain, and I think they take it too far,
over the pain edge, and cause more trouble and make the injury last
longer by exacerbating it.

By using common sense, the practice is always good !

IMHO, of course.

--- In ashtangayoga (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "IRENE WHITE" wrote:
>
> HI Annie,Good for you for not stopping. I'm studying anatomy with
Paul Grilley and he talks pretty exclusively about continued practice
in facilitating healing{yin yoga}. namastae

01-26-2007, 06:35 AM

Dear Annie

Thanks so much for sharing this with us. Time and again, I've to remind myself yoga is not a competitve sport, not a race. I've been told off by my wonderful yoga teacher for going too fast in class, haha. Thanks for reminding me it's really alright to slow down!

Namaste,
D

anniegurton wrote:
Hi All,
I currently have a moderate back injury - muscles/ligaments at the top
of my sacrum/pelvis - and for the last few days I have been doing a
VERY slow ashtanga practice.
And its very nice - I think I will do it regularly at least once a
week, even once my back is better. It takes me two breaths to get
into standing forward bend, I hold chaturanga for three breaths, hold
up-dog for three breaths and so on, all the time very conscious of my
injured points.
It's brilliant! My practice has never been as focused (on the injury)
and I have more time to think about alignment.

The only problem is that my practice takes 3 hours :-)

---------------------------------
Expecting? Get great news right away with email Auto-Check.
Try the Yahoo! Mail Beta.