Since I've been able to do the entire Power Yoga with Rodney Yee DvD things have dramatically opened up for me. The upward bow positions, which at first caused me severe pain, are becoming positions that I'm gradually learning to look forward to. More importantly, though, is that the stretches in the last 20 minutes or so provide an amazing sense of relaxation in my body and mind. I'm so grateful I didn't quit when I thought about it a couple of months ago. Quitting the DvD before learning to do the complete workout does not do it justice. It's become a ritual of welcoming, gratitude, and petitioning to my day now.
One of my latest observations has been the relationship between the shoulders and the sacrum. This is a phrase that Rodney uses over and over in different positions. "Observe the relationship between your shoulder blades and your sacrum" he loves to say. The other day I was doing week 6 day 1 in the book "Moving Towards Balance 8 weeks of yoga with Rodney Yee", and he suggested observing the relationship between the shoulder blades and the sacrum while in downward facing dog. By playing around with my positioning I can identify those muscles that tie those points together. It's quite something to be able to do that by someone who, up until now has not ever had a clue about her body other than the fact that it was a source of great pain and tremendous inconvenience.
I've been doing the handstand daily, in order to facilitate my understanding of how to gracefully enter into that position. One of the observations that John and I both have had is that, if you can't make it up on your first kick, every subsequent try weakens you more and more. It seems that you have only so-many tries and then you may as well get up and go do something else and come back later, because your body will only get more and more exhausted trying. There is still a point of fear that I feel, and I think that contributes to the sense of exhaustion with each attempt.
