The Great Thing About Bad Yoga Teachers

The interesting thing about yoga teachers, love 'em or hate 'em, is that they are giving you their all.

And I don't mean, giving it their all. They're giving you their all.

All they've learnt about yoga. No secret recipes or poses held back.

Now, I'm not saying that yoga teachers are telling you everything about their personal lives or that they are using yoga as a platform for talking their own book. At least the good ones won't be.

But yeah, they should be telling you their good, solid, yoga stories, that back a yogic viewpoint.

Assuming, your yoga teacher is following this example. Then you'll be getting everything that person has learned, about yoga, to date. Unfettered, gift wrapped and delivered to your door.

Pretty cool eh? J.

Do You go to a Yoga Class or a Yoga Lesson?

Yeah, yeah...what's the diff.

Tom-ar-toe...tom-ay-toe.

Funnily enough. There's no difference between a yoga class and a yoga lesson. The event could be billed as both. It could be run as billed, and yet it still could be either a class or a lesson.

Students turn up to class all the time, and still people grow up ignorant.

....<deep pause>...for profound effect.

OK, so, where were we before that random pearl of wisdom... oh yeah, whether it's a class or a lesson depends on whether the student' intends the practice to be a class or a lesson,

...and whether they are receptive to new ideas or not.

Can a class be a lesson, if the student is unreceptive? Yes if something they see, experience or hear resonates and they take notice, and it's a part of a growing body of knowledge, that results in practice later..

Is the practice always a lesson, if the student intends to be receptive during the practice? No, if they are unwilling to make sacrifices.

Remember, yoga is (99%) practice, 1% theory, not the other way around.

This is where we get superficial yogis. Hey, it happens. They talk the talk, thinking that's the way it's supposed to be done. Check out 'response bias'. It's a form of that.

The sad thing, is that it's ok to use yoga for fitness. No personality change required.

But, yeah, short answer; whether it's a class or lesson, is up to the student. Not the teacher. And sometimes it's not even up to the student.

CU in class lesson, J>

You Gotta Take A Bite Outta Life

Yoga is freakin' awesome.

You get so strong doing this stuff. Freaky strong and freaky loose.

Next thing you know, you are smiling more and people see you all loose and strong and smiling, and they want some of that, so they gravitate towards you.

Now you're popular, happy, healthy...if you're waiting for the catch, there isn't one. Yoga brings good things to those that practice it.

Next thing you know, you are more patient. Waiting for people to do this and that. They notice, they appreciate.

Doors start opening. You need to start opening some doors also. Try something new with your new super powers.

Inline skating. No problemo (wear the wrist guards and pads if you're gonna shred city streets).

Surfing. No problemo (learn the rules, start with smaller surf).

Climbing. No problemo.

Keep it sane, keep it safe. But yeah, get out there and use your new you.

Experience this life you  are living.

Absorb the flavors of life.

Stop reading blogs and get your Ferris Beuller freak on,  J.

What To Do When You HATE Your Yoga Teacher

So there's one of the yoga teachers at your local studio, who for some reason, rubs you the wrong way. How to proceed?

Now gritting your teeth and being all determined to attend the class, and not let the yoga teacher
'get' to you, is the Western approach.

 Approaching this yogically (yes you can use that word I just made up) takes a different approach.

The yogic approach is ALL about...drum roll...

You guessed it...focus and detachment. Two yoga principles I'm always banging on about.

So how do we apply focus and detachment to our conundrum?

Firstly, you are attending class to practice asana. So that's the focal point.

You are at the class for the asana (pranayama, drishti, etc).

As long as you are in an asana, you are where you should be. Whatever the teacher says or does doesn't really matter (because you are in an asana, and that's where you should be).

Next up, you need to detach from the teacher. You see.

There is an attachment there or you wouldn't be reacting negatively.

Now the attachment is probably because you are listening to what they actually say. Don't do this.

Now, you know from previous posts that you, and only you, are your yoga teacher. Nobody can teach you yoga except yourself.

So practicing yoga is very self-empowering. In fact, you simply cannot progress to 'advanced' practice unless you have taken control and responsibility for your own yoga. This is a yogic truth, plain and simple.

Some people, who cannot make the transition to self-empowerment will languish in yoga mediocrity, until they do accept responsibility for their practice. Sad, but true.

Ok, so now you know that there really aren't any yoga teachers out there (because you are the only yoga teacher you know. I am the only yoga teacher I know).

All you are doing, by attending class, is going some place, at a certain time, and allowing another person to cue you into asana.

This is great, because you don't have to think of what asana to get into next. You can just focus on the asana you are currently in, your breath and your drishti.

Get back in there and teach yourself some yoga, J.

Why The Commercialization Of Yoga Shouldn't Worry You ...One ...Little ...Bit

Commercialized yoga is awesome. What's not to like?

There's more classes. More choice within classes. More clothes. Mats. Props. It's all happening.

Teachers are getting work. Students are getting practice. It's win win all the way.

Sometimes you hear gripes about the 'industry'. Or how 'authentic' yoga has been hijacked by Western consumerism. ...ism shcmism.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the commercialization of yoga.

At the end of the day you decide how far you are going to take this journey.

Not the person teaching you.

Not the people in class with you.

And not the shiny, totally feng shui, new yoga centre that's opened up, in the high class shopping centre, across from work, or down the road from home. In fact.

When you get serious about this practice, all the commercialization fades.

You become your own teacher.

That last sentence is so true. When it happens - and it will happen if you keep practicing - there's nothing anybody can say or do that will alter your path. Not only that.

You'll practice whether there're classes or not.

You'll progress even if the 'teacher' says the wrong thing.

In fact, you'll be able to tell if they are saying the wrong thing instinctively. AND you'll treat it as a distraction to be registered but not reacted to. Yoga is that awesome.

Now, if you are a teacher, and 'it's' happened and you are looking back at a class of high fashion, hipster wankers. Remember.

You might have been one of those wankers back in the day. So all is not lost.

Focus on giving quality instruction. And keep on giving it as long as people keep on coming.

Hipster students, nazi yoga teachers, centers everywhere. So much opportunity to practice physical and spiritual yoga.

Modern yoga is freakin' fantastic, J.

Can Yoga Change Your Personality?

There's a couple of different levels of yoga. This isn't level 1, 2 or primary, secondary, etc.

The levels I'm talkin' about go along these lines...

Asana

Asana with breath

Asana with breath and focus

Now, right about here, things start to get interesting. You see.

Yoga beyond this point doesn't just change you physically, from here onwards, yoga changes you as a person.

Think of yoga in terms of how much it has penetrated you. So maybe think in terms of layers.

Asana penetrates your skin and muscles. It's physical.

The breath penetrates deeper.

Beyond the breath, the penetration is at the emotional level.

So What Happens When Yoga Starts Changing You AS A PERSON?

The good news is that it's all win for you. You see

If yoga starts to change you and you are not living a destructive lifestyle, then it will enhance your existing relationships.

If yoga starts to change you and you are living a destructive lifestyle, then it will guide you away from destructive influences and it will replace them with constructive relationships.

Kinda gives new meaning to the word surrender doesn't it, J.

Who Wins Out Of An Argument Between Yoga Knowledge And Western Knowledge?

In the western world, knowledge is the accumulation of facts (roughly defined).

In the yoga world, knowledge is the accumulation of energy, purification, empowerment and uplifting.

So western knowledge is all about knowing external things. What is gravity? What does a skin cancer look like?

Yoga knowledge is all about knowing your physical and internal self. How well do I feel? Why do I get angry about that?

Western knowledge is an inactive knowledge, held in data and books. The more data and books, the more knowledge.

Yoga knowledge is an active knowledge, held within your body. The more energy and the more you know your physical and internal self, the more knowledge.

Western wisdom is the successful application of knowledge (facts to things).

Yoga wisdom is the application of things we know (knowledge) are good for us, and the avoidance of things we know (more knowledge) are bad for us.

We are on the same journey. This is just stuff to know along the way, J

Don't Be A Yoga DOUCHE

Woo hoo...just discovered photos.

Ok, is the dude in the pic a yoga douche? And yes, there is a right answer.

How'd you go?

Ok...here's the right answer... the guy is not a douche if he falls out of the pose. You see.

If he falls out of the pose, then he's practicing.

Now if he nails it, and he knows he's gonna nail it, then unfortunately, yes he is a douche.

Practicing hard stuff, so you will one day nail it, is legit. In fact.

You should be riding that edge with the majority of your practice.

Getting yourself all warmed up and loose, and then not using that to your advantage, to push an envelope somewhere, is just practicing mediocrity.

Of course, then there are those times where it's just fun to put on your fave playlist and rock to anything that comes up.

Doing hard stuff you know you're gonna nail though (esp in front of a class), is just showing off (douche).

Don't be a douche, J.

OMMG (OM My God) : Vibrating Your Way To A Better Practice

I just noticed that the title could be totally misinterpreted... bonus :)

This is gonna be trippy, so queue your fave Doors or Bob Marley jam...

You know how an orchestra conductor uses a tuning fork at the start of the symphony?

The fork produces a tone - a vibration. All the musos tune in, and away they go.

Well, the vibration of Om, well... it is yoga. Say what? True story, and no, I haven't been tokin' up.

Remember in a prev post how we determined that yoga is the stilling of the mind?

Well, what is the stilling of the mind exactly? Answer: it's a vibration. The vibration of Om.

Think of life as vibrations (you were warned that this was gonna be trippy).

In your hectic life, the vibrations are fast, high, low. They switch frequencies all the time. The more crazy your life, the more the vibrations swing about.

Now Om is a long, strong, low, deep, slow vibration. It is very calming (remember: yoga is the stilling of the mind).

So when you Om at the start of class, make it a vibration in your chest.

Tune into it and modulate you breath with the frequency. Also, focus your mind on the vibration. I know this sounds like a crock, but it actually works.

Now, remember this all starts as soon as the Om finishes. You should be tuned in and ready to roll.

Deep, modulated breath and focus at the frequency of Om will take you deeper into poses and you will hold harder poses longer.

It'll make your balances steadier and hair grow on your chest. Ok, not the last bit. That was a test to see if you're still awake.

Gimme a freakin' break...you try to make a post about Omming interesting. This shite is hard.

Om on, J.

Asanaddict: Houston, We Have A Problem (Not)

You can never have too much yoga.

Here's how you know when you're getting enough yoga in your life:

• Your pets are called Ganesh and Hanuman.

• You have more leggings than 'normal' clothes.

• Your 'normal' clothes went out of fashion ages ago. You know this, but it doesn't matter. You don't wear them.

• If you are single, when sizing up potential partners, whether they practice is on the list of top 10 attributes you look for.

• You'd rather muck around practicing than watch TV.

• When you do watch TV, it's in upavistha konasana.

• The place where you practice at home is commonly referred to a the yoga room.

• Your yoga space has blocks, bolsters, straps, wedges, back benders, handstand canes, chairs, mats, foam rollers, headstand yokes and a ton of other yoga paraphanalia.

• Your music playlists all have names like 'yogabeats', 'fastasana', 'slowNdeep', 'getmovin'

•  You start a yoga blog.

Stronger Arm Balances Faster

Here's a way of getting more strength out of each and every class you attend.

Get there a couple of minutes early.

Immediately do some pushups. Rest. Maybe do some more. Or...

Do some dolphin (forearm) pushups.

Dolphin position is just a downdog on your forearms with the hands clenched together.

Take your nose forward and down over your thumbs, then push back. When you tire. Move your feet back a step and do some more.

Ok, why are we doing all this? It's a common bodybuilding technique call pre-exhaustion. 

What we are looking to do is tire out our shoulders and arms before practice. Then, during practice, every down dog and chatarunga will be harder.

So we are purposely making the yoga session harder on our arms and shoulders. Result...stronger yogis. More bang for your yoga class buck.

This is practicing smarter. Use it, J.