Backbends and Inversions this week at advanced practice

This one is  from Feb  gather.   Notes  courtesy  of  Karen  Phillips.

Patricia Walden

Intermediate Retreat – Covington, LA – Gather At The River

02/13/2013 Wednesday

AM – backbends – working on the udana vayu (throat/tongue) and prana vayu (upper chest)

Swastikasana  

Adho Mukha Svanasana

Supta Virasana (Supta Baddha Konasana if knees can’t do supta virasana)– bolster horizontal on side for taller height, rolled blanket under neck she want throat open curve to neck

Tadasana – do feet action from yesterday

Baddhanguliasana – arms forward intertwine hands, take up, held the longest time in the history of baddhanguliasana, arms forward other intertwine, another record

Tadasana – arms straight out to side palms up, rotate upper arms then rotate only forearms down, then hands perpendicular to forearms - held the longest time in the history of arms to side hands perpendicular

Adho Mukha Vrksasana – 3x – up with both legs

Pincha Mayurasana – 4x – if can balance in middle of room do, what would you do when you don’t have walls, 2x with heel of palm wrist facing block, little finger on floor, fingers straight, use the lift of the inner legs to lengthen spine; 2x hands classic flat on mat, balance

Sirsasana  => Parsva Sirsasana– didn’t keep us in parsva sirsasana because nobody was straight

Adho Mukha Virasana

Bhujangasana – 1x

Adho Mukha Svanasana => Urdhva Mukha Svanasana – 3x

Get chair

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – edge of seat just under bottom tip of shoulder blade, legs straight to wall toes uparms straight hands on back of chair, then take arms overhead palms up then take hands to chair side elbows below seat then take hands on navel band

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – go in chair backward from normal ducking head below back bar, , this is for the pelvis (previous for back/shoulders) take head to floor, knees bent, arms to chair

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – classic

Ustrasana Prep – kneel infront of chair seat with front edge of chair seat touching upper thighs/front groins, hold sides of chair seat and use that grasp to help coil upper back, should feel like shoulders lifting over foam square and coiling up/over it, don’t go back just work on coiling

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – classic, go a little further off, take arms overhead clasping elbows, pump elbows down toward floor, elbows should not get to floor, pump the coiling reaching elbows down, again: same pumping but this time press roots of thighs down strongly (her demo she had carrie sit on her upper thighs) and have opposing action from one of these grosser to more advanced navel (more gross action)/ziphoid process bottom sternum area/ ctr collarbone to sternum movement, this opposing action will give more backbend

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – long trifold blanket down ctr of chair seat and hanging off front to floor, walk hands up blanket and pull elbows down

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – use breath, inhale then action of pulling side of chair back with hands and coiling curving more on the exhale, use organs of action

Ustrasana – facing chair, pelvis stays touching front chair seat edge, coil (told me this is great for me cause I hold tension in front ribs, she had me strap torso just below bra strap band tight for rest of class to lift away from strap, hands to heels, again if can then take straight arms overhead and touch floor the pelvis can leave chair seat to do this

Urdhva Dhanurasana – 5x – toes up wall sole of ft on floor/knees touch wall, come up knees do not leave wall, walk hands in then move shins away from wall, back thighs lift, full straetch of arms, bring air to the buttocks, after few times start doing while bring mind to throat, then bring mind to tailbone and come up from there, then bring mind to spine and come up from there, head down mind up

Dhanurasana – top thighs belted

Urdhva Dhanurasana – 5x – away from wall

Tadasana – curve back coil again as if moving shoulder blades over foam block, mary demoed carrie held foam block on back, keep abdomen back, touch wall

Ustrasana – coil hands overhead touch wall

Dwi Pada Vipritta Dandasana – 4x on floor – come to urdhva dhanurasana, take left hand in take rt hand in (alternate which hand in 1^st), knees bent, walk feet in to bring shoulders deeper in, 1x straighten legs

Lay on back knees bent

Prasarita Padottanasana

Savasana