Lets Talk about Postures Shall We? Part 2-Floor Series

Savasana-one of the most challenging postures even though it appears so simple but it is quite amazing that most of us cannot lay still even for the briefest of moments. It has taken skill to lay there for two minutes while my heart is racing and my sweat is pouring and my mind starts to wander...

Wind removing pose- there is no doubt this posture has aided my digestive system however I do notice it is hard to focus in this posture since my heart is still trying to slow down, sometimes I think savasana should be a minute or two longer.

Sit up- apparently they are suppose to be beneficial in boosting energy (if you take a couple of quick exhales once you are up) but I notice I gain energy from the sit ups towards camel and rabbit, this first sit up is usually the toughest for me.

Cobra pose- besides standing bow, another posture I feel is beautiful to watch. I do have trouble lifting my body up with my legs in the first set but my back quickly warms up in the second and I find I arch my lumbar region more and more each time.

Half lotus- Not an easy posture for me, as I try to stretch my arms as far down as I can but my hips are boney and so when both legs go up, I have to balance my forearms on my hips which can cause me to fall out of alignment. Since this posture opens up the ribcage, I find that my lungs want to push toxins out.

Full lotus- Like the awkward, I find I have good and bad days whereas my body is willing to push up and out and other days where I feel like I have an anchor on my back, unwilling to give me strength to push up. I also find that my forehead scrunches which can cause tension headaches with me later.

Bow- Perhaps it will take years of practise but I am not sure how others can kick their legs up without having to rock forward first, rocking onto my chest helps give me that push I need to stretch my arms up and kick at the same time. I feel this posture requires the most strength from me and I usually come out of it breathing the hardest.

Fixed Firm- I can honestly say without a doubt, this is the easiest posture for me, never had troubles with my knees and throughout my practise my chest has risen higher, creating more of an arch (bridge).

Half tortoise- To this day I still cannot fully figure out the purpose of this posture, sure I know the health purposes (creating blood flow to the brain) but the ability to keep my arms and head parallel while just my pinky fingers on the ground and my hips back onto my heels. Another posture that looks simple but is quite tricky!

Camel- I try to do my strongest sit ups before this posture so I can have more energy but there is no way to predict how you will feel once you come up on your knees and hold your hips; sometimes I feel dizzy, sometimes nauseous, sometimes I start to cry, but for whatever reason I feel so much better by the time we get back into savasana.

Rabbit- It took me quite a while to understand this posture and how to stretch my lower back and properly hold my heels tight. The key is to holding your heels as tightly as possible and to fix my ponytail since it can fall out, leaving my head in an awkward position (which has hurt my neck in the past).

Stretching series- Another posture that has taken me months to figure out; flex my toes back, hold my feet tightly so my hands don't slip, flex my other foot out, not in, suck the stomach in and bring the elbows down. Apparently this posture is similar to the standing head to knee, but honestly I prefer standing up and flexing than this awkwardness lol. I remember the last part of the series I thought for sure my head would touch my feet when I first started this yoga, and with the years of dance and gymnastics this would be easy. I am just starting to bring my elbows down to my shins and my head is maybe just passed my knees but I don't worry about it.

Final Spinal- My bent leg never lays flat the moment I put my opposite arm around my back but this posture feels so good, another favorite of mine.

Blowing in Firm-When I first started I thought I would pass out from having to exhale so much but I love it now, brings my heart rate down so I can transition to the floor for a couple minutes of savasana/cooling down.