Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)

Hi decatur1945

Yes I think you are right! Here’s an article for you and some ideas: Core Strength (in another recent post!)

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

PS thanks

Hello

Although the end point is to tuck the foot behind the ankle it’s not as important as good alignment. For some to get their foot in they will straighten the grounded leg and as a result their whole body contorts into a twisted shape.

I am sure you can find some useful pointers in the “Eagle Pose” forum postings. Try here first: Trouble With Legs.

Hanging your foot on the side is fine. Here’s something you can do to help: Lie on your back sometimes – maybe even after class, or just at home on the floor – and wrap your legs without the need to create balance. You could benefit from opening up your hips so take a look at 3 Hip Openers That I Just Love.

Oh, and don’t be in such a hurry! 😉 Have the goal, but then let the attainment of it go as you work towards it. It simply doesn’t matter. There is a ton more stuff you can work on rather than unnecessarily taking your conscious attention up… work on balance, the position of your hips and body, spine arch etc …

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Ashley

It sounds as if you have been practicing either the original Bikram series or something remarkably close. Still I think that is not the real issue in your question – it is more about the repetitive nature, or practicing the same set of poses without alteration (whatever series).

I am concerned about the link between your lordosis and yoga asana and also with the teaching of your instructor. I would like to break these things down and separate them and I would love more information in order to comment on them.

Firstly you mention that you have lordosis which seems to be longstanding. Are you suggesting that it is because of practicing yoga that you have this? Or is this something you had before you started yoga?

Why these 26 poses? I guess someone placed these poses together and they became popular. No one can deny that there are things that could make this set of poses include other benefits to the body, but the particular sequence of which you speak seems anecdotally (and maybe even otherwise) to create a wonderful sense of wellbeing and even healing in the many varied yogis and yoginis who practice it around the world. And herein lies a big key to its success: The pure accessibility of the series to a wider range of students.

I don’t agree with the notion about the diminishing returns as it relates to the series itself. Let me explain:

>> In my mind diminishing returns would be if the same exercise was performed over and over again. For example working on the same machine at the gym or say, continuous biceps curls.
>> I think you may be considering the set of poses. Yes the whole set is done each class but they are wildly different in their approach and in the parts of the body that they work.
>> The poses themselves are practiced on different sides of the body.
>> A backbend will often be followed by a forward bend.
>> Balance of systems and not just physical balance often results.
>> You are not doing 90 minutes of the same exercise.
>> There is work of the muscles in a way that will allow the body to develop strength, flexibility and stamina etc through different timings and intensities, and also different pose mechanisms using different natural reflexes in the body.
>> The same poses allow people to have more awareness around their practice and allows them importantly, to ritualize their practice for greater gain and incorporation into their lifestyle.

Yes, it is possible that some folk find it boring after a while. But MOSTLY these people have just stopped being curious and are just going through the motions. That is a question of their own motivation as well as quality of instruction and is easily fixed 99% of the time.

I definitely agree that focusing as you do on anatomy and alignment is the best way to go!

As for why ONLY these poses: One is not bound to perform any action in the same way forever. You can change what you like. Or in another sense you can practice other styles of exercise to complement what you are repetitively doing. There are many people who have this style of yoga as one single part of a suite of things that they do. There are still benefits. And there are not just confined to the body. Of course there are whole organism effects on the mind, emotions, spirit.

I wonder whether there is a mixing up 2 different levels of understanding of the concept of diminishing returns.

The greatest benefits are seen from doing the same thing by those who are sedentary or low activity levels. Over time, physical benefits are minimal each day that one continues to do the same thing.

As a general principle most people who start out really out of shape and overweight will experience more change in the beginning than after they have created their ideal shape. They can’t keep on losing shape then can they? They will still greatly benefit physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually… Additionally, a person with less shape to change may change at a completely different rate to the previous example (whether faster or slower).

Let’s take a different example that will seem rather silly. We go to sleep at night. It is an activity that we do over and over and over again. I am not getting less benefit than I received when I was 20.

OK: Here’s the summary!
… The poses are varied enough in and of themselves that they are not repetitive to the body.
… The series as a whole is a repetition but is a holistic system that challenges the practitioner more than just physically.
… No one can ever continue getting the same high rate of benefits in probably ANYTHING that they do.
… The series works in challenge and recovery and healing to a great degree.
… One is not tied to just perform those poses. They can go and swim, run, bike, walk or … the sky’s the limit!

And finally I would welcome discussing/exploring the imbalance in your torso and hips/legs that expresses itself as a lordosis (I asked some questions above). Looking forward to hearing everyone’s opinions!

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi abelanger

I respectfully disagree with you about the chest being parallel to the floor. Actually I worry that if I disagree with you that you may take offense which is not my intention! The whole idea of a standing backbend is to keep the back in a backbend. I would willingly hear more about that pain you are experiencing.

I do invite you to do an online search of all the standing bow pose pictures you can find. Except for small percentage of people where the pose is being badly performed I cannot find one example where the chest is parallel to the floor. I also looked at a few examples of winners of Bikram yoga championships too. 😉

The poorer online examples are ones where the body (and often the arm) comes down too far instead of a good solid kick up and back. In other words the poorer examples do not demonstrate the mechanics of a ‘bow’ at all.

Mostly, if you are even quite inflexible and your kicking leg hip is in alignment (and not flaring out) part of the abdomen ends up being parallel to the floor.

The problem for students comes when they think their chest has to be parallel to the floor. It’s not really a problem for you because you have magnificent flexibility and no doubt a beautiful practice. But a very large proportion of people who come here daily are looking for the key to understanding their poses. I want to make sure that they have their attention on the right things.

For best results work on the kick, try to keep your chest as upright as you can, surrender your back arm to the kick, and resist the front arm coming down. The nuances of an advanced student appear different to a beginner because of the shape you can attain. The beginner will never ‘get there’ if they believe they have to lower their body. Their body may appear to come down but that is not involved in the pose mechanism. The movement is the result of doing the pose!

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hello

One should never really wipe sweat because it helps cool the body and the wiping itself is a real distraction to your practice. The one exception to this is … you guessed it … when the sweat stings your eyes.

Just wipe it. Not your whole face, just the areas that are affected! For you if it happens in your semi-inverted poses then try wiping your eyes and the top of your cheeks. It is true that after you develop your practice that the sweat stings less and less. I can’t agree with the toxins theory but I do know that it is rare for a regular student to have to wipe because of stinging.

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hello wabbit

Regarding arms by ears, there are differences in flexibility but you are right generally speaking you want the arms at the side of the head. I think this helps you enter and exit far more easily and keeping to the principles of the pose.

Regarding shoulders: It is a real paradox that extending the shoulders out of the body actually doesn’t make the body longer. It actually sets up a whole lot of tension and strain that is absolutely not useful. Your job is to drop the shoulders while extending the body and the arms. 😉

Sounds weird but it works so much better. It will mean that you can keep that chin away from the chest and it will make it easier to do the last part of the pose which is lifting through wrists and elbows.

Please do keep me posted on how your core strength develops.

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Nynn

The likelihood is that you are very flexible so going into the ‘full’ pose is quite easy for you. So the difficulty for you will be one of recognizing when your body is not in alignment and backing off (or indeed only proceeding) to the point where your alignment is precise.

Shifting one’s foot even 16ths of an inch is often an unconscious ‘cheat’. It is the body saying “I now that I can find my balance here” and “it’s safe and I don’t have to work for it”. It’s finding the path of least resistance. 😉 Up until now you have been turning out both hips. So …

Slow down your pose for a while. Be super-conscious. Stand with your foot directly onto the mirror. Your job is to now kick back and up and at the very same time that you to drop the hip into best position on that side. You are basically resisting the hips turning out on both sides.

What’s going to be ‘hard’ for you and possibly for others who teach you in the room is to accept that you will not be going as deeply into the pose. You will have to resist the temptation to “bring your body down parallel to the floor”. Just kick back and up, resist moving your torso or your front arm at all consciously. Just allow the kick to drive the pose and that’s it. Keep energy in your front arm and keep it high too. You will know where you have to stop.

You will most likely feel more sensation and resistance on your inner part of your upper leg and your hip and through your quadriceps as you engage differently. You are trying to correct an imbalance. There is a particular sensation in your hips which you can key into as you set up. Try to preserve that. Be happy to be standing up tall and arm up high and literally be almost standing straight up with that kick beautifully activating your body from your up-stretched arm through your torso, through your hip and down your kicking leg.

If you really are still falling out all the time then, out of the studio, you can practice your pose facing a wall. You push your front arm against the wall which provides resistance and balance against which to activate your body while creating and preserving best bilateral hip position. Remember for you it is not at all about depth.

Let me know how you go, please

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Rhiain

Thanks for the descriptions. So let me confirm: You are OK with your arms outstretched in Camel but it hurts when you have your hands on your feet.

You did mention that you lean and this is when you feel the pain. Would you please try something for me? Grab onto your heels and then PULL on them instead. This should be a relief for your elbows plus you would be practicing correct technique because in this pose you are not supposed to put your weight through your arms onto your feet.

Let me know how you go and if I can help with anything else

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Micherie

Just a thought: Since you started your yoga what changes have you made to your shampooing regime. For example I know a lot of people wash their hair more often – even every time they practice (instead of just rinsing or even just putting in conditioner). How often did you wash it before and how often do you wash it now?

Heaters at home have a reputation for drying out the environment and hence why humidification is the answer. The studio environment on the other hand is usually far from dry.

Wondering what you think! One, the other or a combination perhaps?

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Melissa

It is funny how people get a little persnickety about certain details. We all do! It sometimes is even worth it. Other times it is wasted energy.

I want to give you a different spin on it. If you were at a regular class of yoga you would turn your body to the side and step out along the length of your mat whenever you did a warrior pose. In fact you would step out so that at all times your base would be your mat.

If you have a knee problem or a hip problem then a slippery floor could be so dangerous. It seems you are aware of the danger.

It could be fixed by a technique modification. I would have to drill down a little more to work out the best out of the few approaches I could offer you.

By the way I don’t consider you to be cheating. When you do step out along your mat instead of across it, you are actually invited to explore your relationship with the mat. Here’s something else, at my home studio we actually perform the whole standing series with the towel across the mat. We have carpet and we find that the room will positively stink if we sweat on the floor, but with the towel cross ways the carpet stays fresh and clean and we take our sweat away from the room and we wash it away soon after. I am not against using a towel the other way. I am against towel adjusting for particular poses, or fixing or smoothing out a towel because it bunches up.

Your teacher’s admonishments are not appropriate especially since you slip on the rubbery floor. I could ask you whether others have a problem slipping as well. Your state being ruined is your own responsibility however and as hard as it is to totally ignore that, you really have to. You are not being disrespectful, I should think it is the other way around. In my opinion if she can’t offer you the tools to fix that (technical points, modifications to your own technique or even using a prop) then she should leave you alone.

It could be that she is noticing you changing your towel just before triangle. Why don’t you start and then keep your towel that way from the beginning of class and only change it when you get to the floor? There are no rules about having to do it a certain way.

Please go and look at all the other tips on triangle because there are some valuable tips on how not to slip. One of those is here: Slipping and Sliding Feet and another is here: What Should I Try To Be Accomplishing In This Pose. It is possible that I can give you another tip but I want you to see if these (and those in the other threads) work first.

It is possible that for the moment you could benefit from not lunging so far down (see second link for details) by not stepping out as far which means thigh not quite parallel to ground. Keep the shin vertical. If this still doesn’t give you a feeling of safety then get back to me. I have other great tips to share.

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Adanma

Yes, thank you for your question and for your feedback. Robert and I will soon release a recording with answers to the many unanswered webinar questions.

You mention that your discomfort is really after your backbends which I assume are Fixed Firm and Camel. It is often the case that students find it hard to get down into their Savasana after these particular poses. The intensity of the backbends and sometimes due to the long holding sometimes has students flopping into a forward bend. It feels good but this is really not a good thing to do. It goes against the idea of re-establishing blood flow and simply going to a spine-neutral position to fully benefit.

What usually happens is they have great trouble getting out of the bend and getting to lie on their backs. It can take a long time and they feel rushed because after all they don’t have much time to benefit. So the movements end up not being economical and then the rest for the back is not long enough because the student feels compelled to join in the sit-up.

There are 2 things I can suggest you experiment with. One is to check into your arms when you lie down. Roll your shoulder blades underneath you – shimmy then under you so that they are flat on the ground. This will externally rotate the arms and lift your chest and naturally allow more ease of breathing. This may help you transform your breathing in this pose. Check out my video on Effective Breathing In Hot Yoga in the free videos section for more hints.

Here’s the other idea: I have had this exact problem surface a couple of times in my own practice and in many students. This works wonders for students with acute back pain and those for whom a sit-up is impossible (even if the inability to do the sit-up is just after those 2 poses). So it helps them avoid the fumbling around getting to the floor and then off the floor. It is a nice controlled movement that is very satisfying, restorative and nurturing.

So try this. Come out of your pose correctly, avoid a forward slump. Now you are sitting up bring your toes together and your knees widely apart. Bring your your hands in front of you palms on the floor shoulder width apart and lower your straight back down so that your torso is now between your knees and your forehead is on the floor. Now bring your arms in a curve outside of your knees trailing on the floor hands behind you, palms up. If you are able to, get your ear to the floor (alternate for the sides) but it’s fine to keep your neck in a neutral position if you have to.

You will have MAXIMUM time resting your back and not introducing any unnecessary movement to get yourself to the floor. At the end of the Savasana, bring your forehead to the floor, hands under the shoulders and push yourself up. Only do this when you feel it absolutely necessary. In all other cases join everyone else on the floor on your back as usual.

Let me know if that answers your question.

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

I am officially in awe! :coolsmile:

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂