Hey Gabrielle,
Firstly, I just wanted to say thank you for this website – it has become such a fascinating and vital resource for me and my yoga practice.
I began doing bikram two and a half months ago and go every day – I love how mentally and physically strong it has made me during a really low and defeated time in my life. On really bad days I sometimes go twice! That’s how besotted I am with bikram! But I am having a little difficulty…
I know it’s early days for me, but I’m still having trouble locking out my knee and getting my standing leg strong and lampost-like. I’ve kind of attributed this to a couple of things – while I have a very strong back, I had very little core strength when I began bikram, so I really have to remind myself to contract my stomach and my hips etc. I also have an old hip injury – a torn labrum in my right hip, that I don’t think helps matters.
But lately I’ve wondered whether my feet and ankles might be the biggest problem – my feet are very long for my height, I over-pronate, and I have very long toes that have a tendency to ‘claw’ unless I wear the right shoes. I also have plantar fasciitis in the middle of my right foot. I’ve watched your excellent ‘from the ground up’ video, which has been really helpful, and I’ve been walking around barefoot, trying to pull up out of the ankle, and practicing standing on tiptoe whenever I get chance… but I just wondered if you have any further tips for locking out the knee or for strengthening my weak feet?
Thank you!
Summer
x
