Sequence for Practice on Friday

Joan White’s class, Austin, 2005

NB: poses in brackets are not in the original sequence Joan offered us.]

Supta padangusthasana I, 2x

SPG II

First , side leg at 90 deg angle, then up toward ear, foot level with floor

SPG III, 3x each side

SPG II, now leg even higher to ear level

AMS

Upavistha konasana

Move toward samakonasana

Baddha konasana

Bharadvajasana I, 2x

[Bharadvajasana II]

Upright eka pada virasana at wall

Ardha baddha padmottanasana, by stages:

Bring foot up and hold; press padma foot on standing thigh; then facing wall, ardha uttanasana concave back; then going down to full pose facing wall; then full pose facing into room . Standing leg straight always, always.

AMVrks 2x

Sirsasana I and any variations we want

Supine prep for Akarna dhanurasana I

Eka pada sirsasana

Akarna dhanurasana I

Akarna dhanurasana II

Janu sirsasana, urdhva mukha and adhomukha, 2x each

Upavistha konasana to all sides: r, l, center

Parivrtta upavistha konasana

Prvt. Janu Sirsasana variant: from upavistha konasana, bend torso straight forward into the angle between thighs and then walk it around to bent leg side; then roll the chest open as you move to the straight leg side: Parivrtta janu sirsasana.

Parivrtta janu sirsasana classical

Kurmasana and variations

[Marichyasana I and III, Ardha Matsyendrasana I and II, Bharadvajasana II, Pasasana, any and all of these we like]

[Urdhva dhanurasana, 5 x, to clear the spine]

[Sarvangasana and variations]

New Iyengar Class Saturdays 12:30 Starts Nov 8

Yoga Yoga is opening a new location. Actually, they are taking over where Joy Moves is. It will be called YogaYoga 360.

I'll be teaching an all levels Hatha class there Saturdays at 12:30.


Very Exciting.

Advanced Practice Session Starting Friday Oct 31 3:30

Starting on Friday Oct 31 3:30 to 5:45 Devon and Anne will be co- hosting an advanced practice at Clear Spring Studio. This Advanced Practice is open to advanced students of any tradition, though the sequences we will practice are from the Iyengar tradition.

This is not a class or an open practice in the sense that you just come and do what you want in the studio. It is open in the sense that everyone is welcome and no registration or reservation is necessary. Just show up and do yoga every Friday afternoon.

How does the advanced practice work? Each week, Devon or Anne or another regular participant, will select a sequence from Pune or from a recent workshop or make a sequence and we will all do the sequence together. We are there to help each other and to motivate each other to work hard and to keep a sense of humor while working on difficult poses. We'll post the sequences here.


What does advanced mean? You should have a regular inversion practice, be able to do padmasana or be working toward it and be able to do Urdhva Dharusana and other unsupported backbends, and be interested in working on arm balances.

There is no cost for the practice, though Devon would gratefully accept any donation you cared to make to defray the cost of reserving the studio space.

Some Upcoming Events at the Austin Yoga School

October 25-27, Iyengar Yoga Assessment at Austin Yoga Institute

We need volunteers! Our National Iyengar Association conducts assessments at centers like ours during assessment season, approximately August through November. We are the lucky ones in Austin this year. As a volunteer in 40 minute classes, you will receive excellent instruction from teachers from far and near who have been teaching for at least 3 years. They have been preparing diligently for a long time for this test. Also, you will have an opportunity to snack on organic fruit, nuts and juice. We like for volunteers to do TWO of the forty minute classes, and not to do two SESSIONS in a row, so you are fresh for the teachers. You may, however, volunteer for Saturday morning AND afternoon, or for a session Saturday and Sunday both. Please contact Peggy to sign up:
info@austinyoga.org or 512-440-1269.

November 8, Texas Yoga Retreat at Barsana Dham

Peggy will teach on Sunday, two sessions
Early?10:30 to noon, Applying Ayurveda and Ecology to Yoga Practice, a combination of lecture, demonstration and practice (Yoga, Pranayama and Meditation), open to all levels.
Later?2-4 pm, Advanced arm balances and back bends. Experienced students only. No wrist, elbow, shoulder or low back problems, please!
For more information, see http://www.texasyoga.com

Saturday, December 13?Iyengar?s Birthday and
Austin Yoga Institute Re-naming Party

Come celebrate B.K.S. Iyengar?s birthday a day early, but not early according to international time! He will be 90, a very auspicious year for yogis. Most importantly, he is still practicing yoga! We will do 108 sun salutations in his honor and view the film ?Ultimate Freedom?.
Also, we will be re-naming our Institute the Austin Iyengar Yoga Institute. For decades our teachers have been devoted to his teaching, and it is time to let our name reflect that devotion. Please join us anytime between 3 and 7 pm. Sun salutations at 4.

Ongoing Events:

Two Beginners Series in November!

Patti Gagne on Saturdays 10:15-11:45. November 1 through December 13, no class on Thanksgiving weekend.
If you are new to yoga, this is a perfect series for you, and if you have let your practice lapse, please bring a friend and you BOTH get 10% off the fee.
Call Patti for more information?415-0743.

Beth Heffernan on Mondays, 6 ? 7:30 pm, November 3 through December 8.
If you are new to yoga, this is a perfect series for you, and if you have let your practice lapse, please bring a friend and you BOTH get 10% off the fee.
Call Beth for more information?563-4439.

Restorative Yoga on Thursdays from 4 to 5:30 pm by donation

Peggy has re-dedicated herself to a weekly restorative class on Thursdays. Pay is by donation. Restorative yoga is essential to a balanced practice, especially at this time of year, when life can become so frenzied!

Devon is teaching a backbend workshop tomorrow

Hi Everyone, Devon is teaching a two hour backward bending class tomorrow, Saturday October 18th from 1-3 at Clear Spring Studio.

It will be tons of fun!

Check it out.

Lift the Contents of Your Brain!

Lift the Contents of Your Brain!

Special Inversion Workshop Suitable for All Levels.

I'll be teaching a 2 hour workshop on INVERSIONS at Clear Spring Studio.

Saturday November 1, 2008 2-4 PM.

$25.00


To register Contact Anne at AnneBowery@yahoo.com or 254.744-7157

A Week of Iyengar Yoga in Austin

Monday afternoon, Christina and I went to Peggy's advanced class at AYS. We worked on restoratives and pranayama. Peggy was working from a sequence that BKS Iyengar had given at the 1993 convention in Ann Arbor. That's really one of the things I love about Iyengar Yoga. Having access to that kind of history/continuity about practice. This was my first time taking Peggy's class. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. Peggy started the class reading from BKS's commentary about the sutras relating to Pranayama. We spent a nice amount of time upside down and a heck of a lot of time in kapotasana, supported in various ways by various chairs. Peggy is a dedicated long term practicioner and it is clear she is very dedicated to bringing her students to deeper levels in their own practice. It was also nice because so many people in the class had been at the Lois Steinberg workshop, there was a bit of a group share about various salient points in the poses we looked at.

Wednesday Afternoon I went to Devon's Hard Work class at Clear Spring. I normally go to this class, though lately since I've been doing Christina's Anusara Class at Seventh Street and going to the Happiness Class on Mondays. The hard work class is just that, two hours of hard work in yoga. We did a few standing poses utilizing the ropes, really working on getting openness in the chest. and some inversions, full arm balance, sirsansa (where we reinforced some of Lois' points about the actions of the fingers). Then we had a very long foray into the vasisthasana group of arm balances. (HARD WORK) and ended with a lovely sarvangasana.

Thursday and Friday Morning I went to Heide's class at Castle Hill. She taught pretty much the same sequence both days. Standing forward bend work really working on the concave back extension of the front body and then carrying that action into the seated forward bends. An added bonus of taking classes there, the great prop wall. We used all sorts of belts and bars which greatly facilitated the necessary upward extensions.
I really liked the repeated sequence, another chance at cultivating the various actions in the poses. I kind of liked knowing what was coming up. Heide has excellent pacing. There's enough time to have your own experience with the pose, but not so much time that you feel bogged down with mastering every extruciating detail.

I also subbed Christina's class Thursday afternoon and we worked on inversions (see teaching philosophy and yoga blog for a description).

And still the weekend coming up. I'm teaching at YY South Saturday at 9 and I plan to make Heide's advanced class on Sunday.