Saturday 10.30a Intro — Week 1 (September 5, 2009)

6 New students
Invocation in Swastikasana

1. Brick Tadasana (Brick between thighs)
a. To straighten the knee, lift both the kneecap and the back thigh up, away from the knee, to make the back knee light. Don’t just throw the knees back. This prevents indentations at either the top or bottom knee.
b. Lift to straighten the knee, not straighten then lift. The latter locks the knee backwards and prevents lift of the leg.
c. Pin the hips.

2. Urdhva Hastasana
a. Brick between thighs, lift the knees to lift the arms.

3. Tadasana (Urdhva Baddhanguliyasana)
a. How is lifting the arms different when feet are apart or feet together?

4. Tadasana (Namaskara and Urdhva Namaskara arms)
a. Omitted. Do next week.

5. Utthita Hasta Padasana

6. Parsva Hasta Padasana
a. Align knee. Don’t let pelvis drop.

7. Virabhadrasana II (3X)
a. Swap first prior to Trikonasana to get freedom in hips without the challenge of stiff hamstrings. Left heel at the wall.
b. Turn the right leg out more to bring the right femur more into the socket. Connecting the femur into the socket supports the pelvis and trunk.
c. Lift the right pelvic rim up, off of the thigh, to bring more freedom to the hip joint when bending the right knee. Keeping that up, then sit the right buttock down.

8. Utthita Trikonasana
a. Similar as above.

9. Parsvottanasana (hands on wall, concave back)
a. Omitted. Do next week.

10. Prasarita Padottanasana (hands on bricks, concave back)
a. Omitted. Do next week.

11. Forward Extensions
a. Omitted. Do next week.

12. Savasana