So my first set of half moon was very uncomfortable and Vicki held us in that posture for what seems like forever. It could just be my perception (since I hate them), but the first sets of half moon and standing head to knee seem interminable. I keep thinking "are we done yet? Are we done yet?," which is completely unproductive. I really should be focusing on breathing and getting deeper/more comfortable with the posture. They both come early in the series and I haven't had much of a chance to focus my attention yet, at least that's my excuse. ;-)
My hamstrings sure made their presence known in the balancing series. Since we did the photo shoot last weekend, I've been trying to get deeper into poses like standing bow, but as soon as I would kick my leg up higher this morning, my standing hamstring would tug back and I would fall over. And then I would get frustrated by how poorly I was doing in this pose and, subsequently, balance even worse. It's a vicious cycle that will try to avoid next time. Just drop my story and do it!
However, despite my protesting hamstrings, I did quite well in the second set of standing head to knee today. I got my forehead to my knee on both sides for a good 2-3 seconds. Next time I'll shoot for 4-5! frustrated by how poorly I was doing in this pose and, subsequently, balance even worse. It's a vicious cycleI'll be more warmed up and ready to progress on Monday!
Positive Pose: Toestand
I think this is the one posture in which I am consistently seeing progress with each practice. I am balancing and meeting my gaze for an extended period nearly every time! Like in Awkward Pose, the trick is to engage your core. If you pull the balance out of your toe and into your stomach, it's much, much easier!!
Struggle Pose: Standing Bow
Ugh, as I get better at Standing Head to Knee, I get worse at this one. I think I must be developing some kind of mental block against it. Next time, with loose, wide awake hamstrings, I will do better. If I keep telling myself this, maybe it'll actually happen. Does this kind of thing really work? At least my feet (and calves) aren't cramping up anymore. That's a blessing.
Other progress: I weighed myself this morning and was dismayed to find that I am right back up to starting weight. Sad. I told my Hubby about this and he told me to go measure myself because I'd probably lost inches, if not any pounds. "You have too many muscles," he said. So I took his advice and broke out the tape measure--I am down a total of 2"! I lost 1" from my hips and 0.5" from each thigh! So I might weigh more than I would like to, but the gun show I'm carrying isn't exactly light! I'm strangely okay with this...
Yin/Yang yoga with Kate tomorrow!
-Allie
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