Wednesday 9.30a Intro — Week 16 (June 17, 2009)

Focus: Continue work on Week 7 of syllabus emphasizing arm work to open the chest and inversions. This sequence has a little bit of everything.

Note new poses for this week are in bold face.


Invocation in Swastikasana

1. Tadasana/Samasthiti
a. Don’t shrug the shoulders. Extend the arms away from you.
b. Roll open shoulders and move inner edge of shoulder blades into the back body without throwing the navel or thighs forward. This is an essential action in Urdhva Mukha Svanasana, one of our target poses.

2. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Jumping to Utthita Hasta Padasana, extend the “wings of the shoulder blades away from each other. Sharp action makes the arms vibrant.
b. When turning the right foot out, don’t let the left shoulder wander and turn with the leg. Keep it open and extending towards the fingertips.

3. Utthita Parsvakonasana
a. Don’t turn the trunk towards the floor. From the right femur coming into the socket, turn and open the chest.

4. Prasarita Padottanasana
a. Press down thumbs to lift outer deltoids up. This, in turn, cues the sternum to lift. Don’t just look up from head and neck and bring on nervous system problems. (DW & TH)

5. Vimanasana

6. Parivrtta Trikonasana
a. Left hand on right ankle, press down and lift up to bring left inner shoulder blade into the back body.

7. Ardha Chandrasana
a. Right femur coming into the socket, as in Parsvakonasana and Parivrtta Trikonasana to prevent falling.

8. Uttanasana
a. Fingertips on floor. If stiff, bend knees and lift up from back knee to straighten them. (JR)

9. Padangusthasana
a. From Uttanasana, hold the big toes. Foot and leg push/pull action. Toes press down on fingers and arms pull up to lift outer deltoids up to lift the sternum. Don’t just look up from head and neck and bring on nervous system problems. (DW & TH)

10. Virasana (Parvatasana arms)
a. Sit on brick. Be on the center of the shins.

11. Adho Mukha Virasana
a. Sit on brick. Keep buttocks down.

12. Adho Mukha Svanasana
a. Keeping the hips flexed in Adho Mukha Virasana, come up to Adho Mukha Svanasana.

13. Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (3 X)
a. From Adho Mukha Svanasana, hands on bricks.
b. Walk in the feet so that the arms are vertical and near the waist. Bend the elbows, bring the armpit chest forward, and lift the biceps to lift the side chest.

14. Sirsasana Cycle
a. Chair Sirsasana: Each shoulder on a chair seat to prevent shrugging the shoulders. Roll back and forth to massage shoulders.

15. Sarvangasana Cycle
a. Salamba Sarvangasana

b. Ekapada Sarvangasana
Foot on chair seat.

c. Halasana
Feet on chair seat.

d. Chair Supta Konasana
Omitted for time. Will start work on it next week.

e. Chair Karnapidasana
Knees on chair seat.
Omitted for time. Will start work on it next week.

Forward Extensions
Inserted after Sarvangasana so that Sarvangasana became the “neutral gear” after Urdhva Mukha Svanasana.

Dandasana
Urdhva Hasta Dandasana
Padangusthasana Dandasana
Paschimottanasana
Janu Sirsasana
Paschimottanasana

Savasana (10 min)