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Strong Legs in Backbends

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In this video tutorial, I’m going to show you some work you can do in Urdhva Dhanurasana to not only deepen your backbend, but also to prepare you for the work of dropping back into, and coming up to standing from, a backbend.

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  • Today’s #ashtangamondays post is on #Salambasarvangasana, Supported All Limbs Pose, aka Shoulder Stand. - @vesic_jelena 💕 and I are in holiday mode. We have a few days left in Bali before heading to @ashtangayogaitalia in Milan for our Primary Series Intensive, and we’re staying at this beautiful villa. I put down my beer just long enough to make these 3 little tutorials. Hope you find them useful! 🙏 - Video 1️⃣ 🚫 Don’t tuck your chin. ✅ It’s so important to keep your neck off the floor in this posture. Necks are delicate and don’t like to be crushed! To keep the neck away from the mat, lift your chin away from your chest. Press the back of your head and shoulders into the floor. Video 2️⃣ 🚫 Avoid splaying the elbows. ✅ Try to set up with the elbows shoulder width apart. Keep the arms in external rotation and try to turn your hands so the finger point towards your hips. - Video 3️⃣ 🚫 Don’t forget your bum. ✅ Try to squeeze your bum and tuck your tailbone to lift the hips over the shoulders. Feel that your legs are active and reach straight up through your toes. - The vinyasa count: •7/Sapta: Inhale, from Downward Facing Dog, jump though and lie down. •8/Astau: Inhale, lift up. Breathe 10x. Nasagrai (nose) Dristi. Easy! For once😅 - Join in on #AshtangaMondays! And make sure to check out always beautiful demos and useful tips from @sirisyoga and @lottasebzdayoga. - Hosted by @sirisyoga @lottasebzdayoga @ashtangamondays @davidrobsonyoga - Gracious sponsors @runandrelax (sponsored) @liforme (sponsored) @kinoyoga @omstarofficial - @vesic_jelena is wearing @studio.k.yogawear - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #yogi #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #vinyasa #menatyoga #alignment #inversions
  • Here’s an excerpt from a workshop at @ubudyogacentre. I’m demonstrating the vinyasa for Ashtanga’s Trikonasa A&B. By getting rid of the extra movements we create more structure and focus in the Sadhana. - 🎥 by @hanadoesyoga 🙏 👖 from @sulawear - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #alignment #vinyasa #trikonasana #bali #yogaretreat
  • Here’s something a little different: @vesic_jelena is talking me through the vinyasa count for Ashtanga’s #utkatasana. - The sound is a bit muddled— too many roosters and wind chimes here in Bali 🤣— but I think it’s clear enough to hear Jelena’s amazing teaching. - Thank you @hanadoesyoga for catching this moment from our vinyasa workshop here at @ubudyogacentre. - I have some other clips of the workshop— would you like to see more? - 👖 @yogacrow - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #alignment #vinyasa
  • Today we finished our week long Intensive in Ubud, Bali at @ubudyogacentre with @artybatubara of @ashtangayoga42. - The beauty, heat and devotion of this magical island has been the perfect space for our Sadhana. Thank you so much to all of the wonderful students that made the trip to practice with us. See you next year!🙏💙 - Pics by @dolinainggolan 👌 - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #alignment #backbends #assisting #ubud #Bali #yogaretreat
  • Today’s #ashtangamondays post is all about #urdhvadhanurasana, Upward Bow Pose. - This is a classic backbend posture. And while it’s a fairly simple posture, that doesn’t mean that it’s easy. To help you safely get a little deeper into the pose, here are 4 yes/no tutorials from me and @vesic_jelena. - Video 1️⃣ 🚫 Don’t start with your heels too close to your hips. ✅ If You’re having trouble lifting into the pose, you might be setting up with the hands and feet to close together. Make your life a little easier (and keep your knees happy) by keeping a bit of space between you hips and heels and place your heels directly under your knees. - Video 2️⃣ 🚫 Avoid splaying the elbows. ✅ Try to set up with the elbows over the wrists, shoulder width apart. Keep the arms in external rotation as you press into the hands to lift. When the elbows collapse out to the sides, you’re moving into a danger zone for the shoulders. - Video 3️⃣ 🚫 Don’t tuck your tailbone to lift up. ✅ Try to use your legs, not your bum, to lift the hips. Start by preparing on the floor with an anterior tilt in the hips. When your in the right position, there will be space under your lower back. Do your best to maintain that same shape in the back as you use your legs to press the hips up. - Video 4️⃣ 🚫Don’t avoid the upper back opening. ✅ Use the legs to press the chest away from the feet and the shoulders over the wrists. Keeping the arms externally rotated, gently push into the tension of the upper back. - The vinyasa count: •7/Sapta: Inhale, from Downward Facing Dog, jump though and lie down. •8/Astau: Exhale, prepare for the posture. •9/Nava: Inhale, lift up. Breathe 5x. Nasagrai (nose) Dristi. •10/Dasa: Exhale, come down onto the crown of your head. Repeat 2 - 5x. On the last one: •10/Dasa: Exhale, bend knees to lower all the way down onto your back. •11/Ekadasa: Inhale, Chakrasana vinyasa to Chaturanga Dandasana. •Exhale there (no count/no movement) •12/Dwadasa: Inhale, Upward Facing Dog. •13/Trayodasa: Exhale, Downward Facing Dog. - 📷 @macaroniemaloo 👖 @yogacrow - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #backbend
  • @vesic_jelena and I are about to start our next retreat adventure in Bali. But before we do that, I wanted take a moment to recognize the incredible work that just happened at our retreat in Zagreb, Croatia with @supersoulyoga. - This was our 4th retreat in Zagreb, and they just keep getting more powerful. We had over 50 people from 13 different countries giving it their all every day. The Mysore was held at beautiful @gaiayogazagreb, and each shift had just 18 students, guaranteeing lots of one-on-one teaching. Every single morning was sweaty and powerful. - The evening and weekend workshops were all about assisting techniques. These workshops gave us the opportunity to really explore the fundamental techniques that guide our practice. - Next year we will do it all again. The theme will be Mindfulness, and it will run from November 30 - December 11, 2020. Maybe you can come? - 📸 @msshantino - #ashtanga #mysorestyle #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface
  • Today’s #ashtangamondays post is on the last pose of Primary Series: #Setubandhasana, Bridge Configuration Pose. - This posture is a bit strange, and not at all like the other postures of the Primary Series. I find that students really need to work on their alignment in this one, otherwise the neck starts to hurt. In that spirit, check out the 3 yes/no tutorials that follow the demo. - Video 1️⃣ A demo of the vinyasa count: •7/Sapta: Inhale, from Downward Facing Dog, jump through and lie down. •8/Astau: Exhale, prepare for the posture. •9/Nava: Inhale, Straighten the legs to lift the hips and roll on the head. Breathe 5x. Nasagrai (nose) Dristi. •10/Dasa: Exhale, bend knees to lower down. •11/Ekadasa: Inhale, Chakrasana vinyasa to Chaturanga Dandasana. •Exhale there (no count/no movement) •12/Dwadasa: Inhale, Upward Facing Dog. •13/Trayodasa: Exhale, Downward Facing Dog. - Video 2️⃣ 🚫 Don’t set up on the crown of your head. ✅ If you start the posture on the crown of your head, you will end up with a very deep bend in the neck. Instead, start by setting up on the back of the head, so that as the legs straighten you will roll to the forehead. - Video 3️⃣ 🚫 Don’t bend the knees too much. ✅ The bend in your knees will determine the depth of the backbend. The deeper the bend the more difficult it will be to straighten the legs in the full expression of the posture. Start by bending the knees just 1/3 of the way. - Video 4️⃣ 🚫Avoid lifting up with the hips. ✅ Use the legs to push back, not up. By straightening the legs to press your hips back, you avoid using the hips and the neck to lift the weight of your body. - 📷 @vesic_jelena 💙 🍑 @sulawear - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #alignment #backbends
  • Some people commented that they couldn’t see the 3rd video from my last post. 🤷‍♂️ #Kapotasana Tip 3️⃣: 🚫Try not to collapse the thighs behind the knees. ✅ Keep the legs really strong by pressing the thighs forward and the shins and feet down into the floor. Keeping the hips over the knees means that your hands and head will be much closer to your feet when you go back. - The vinyasa count for Kapotasana is: •7/Sapta: Inhale, from Downward Facing Dog, jump onto your knees, and bring you hands to your waist. Exhale there. •8/Astau: Inhale, lift the chest, and exhale into the backbend. Hands on your heels, head on the floor. Breathe 5x. Drsti is the nose. •9/Nava: Inhale, hands to the floor near the toes. Straighten the arms. Breathe 5x. Drsti is the nose. •10/Dasa: Inhale, hands to the waist, come back up. Exhale there. •11/Ekadasa: Inhale, hands down and lift the legs off the floor. •12/Dwadasa: Exhale, jump back to Chaturanga Dandasana. •13/Trayodasa: Inhale, Upward Facing Dog •14/Caturdasa: Exhale, Downward Facing Dog - 📷 @jessica_cxz 💙 - #ashtanga #ashtangayoga #onebreathatatime #ashtangatoronto #yoga #mysoretoronto #learntofloat #dontsmashyourface #alignment #backbends

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