Saturday 10:30a Intro: Week 4 (Jan 24, 2009)

9 students – one new student

1.) Tadasana / Samasthiti
Tada = mountain, asana = posture
Sama = same, sthiti = stable

2.) Urdhva Baddhanguilyasana
Urdhva = upward, Baddha = bound, Guily = fingers

3.) Utthita Trikonasana
Utthita = extended, Tri = three, Kona = angle

— In middle of room; not getting hip action;

— Move mats parallel to wall to take support/balance;

4.) Utthita Trikonasana (several times)

— Work on hip drawing away from outer knee;

— Student with ankle pain: stress importance of the lift of the front thigh/quadriceps to support lengthening of back of thigh/hamstring to pull pain out of ankle;

— Other student unable to keep weight in the back leg when taking hand down to ankle/brick;

5.) Brick Tadasana

— Brick at inner upper thigh, then also above inner knee to prompt & feel lift of whole inner thigh; use that lift on both legs in…

6.) Utthita Trikonasana

— Back outer heel grounds, feels weighted when inner thigh lifts/supports;

— Toe mounds up on edge of brick, keep knee slightly bent to move the skin & flesh at the back of the thigh – relieves ankle pain;

— Front leg stronger, stable when entire thigh, front & back, are lifted;

7.) Uttanasana (2x)
Uttan = extended

— First time, Baddha Hasta (Baddha = bound, Hasta = hands/arms), hold elbows & bend forward; feel difficulties in pose to compare to…

— Second time, buttocks at wall, upper thighs belted tightly to the wall so thighs do not come away when extending forward to take head to bolster on chair seat;

8.) Savasana (5 min.)
Sava = corpse

— Modified with lower legs on chair seat, bolster on shins, blanket under head.