My favorite Test
Want to know what is a great way to test if you are breathing during a difficult pose? Read on and I’ll tell you soon.
One of the best perspectives that was shared with me was “it’s not yoga if you aren’t breathing”. This is so true. The difference between a full blown exercise class and a more authentic yoga class is the breath. Don’t get me wrong, there are many people that don’t breathe in a “yoga” class. This happens all the time, which is why you will often hear a teacher talking about when to breathe during a pose or movement, as well as, constantly reminding you to breathe over and over again throughout the class.
When you first start practicing yoga, this can be one of the hardest parts of the practice. Accomplish the class? Yes! Accomplish a class which also paying attention to your boundaries, take breaks even when others are still in motion, or simply listen to your breath to guide your movement? No. That doesn’t happen that often in the beginning because students are too scared to look different than anyone else around them. The thing is, you didn’t walk into that room for everyone else. You walked into that room for you. We forget what is most important and why we are there.
Back to the breath. Here is the thing, when you are practicing a yoga pose, the focus is to maintain the pose while breathing normally. Of course classes can be challenging, which can be for a variety of reasons. I personally am not a fan of mixing pilates with yoga. I don’t get upset when it happens, but there is a notable difference and it often is taken as a common practice in yoga classes. Put that aside, if a class or pose is challenging then our growth comes from equating this our lives. How can we accomplish this pose even if it is challenging or can we open our minds up to its possibilities without pushing it aside or ignoring it? Here is where my little trick comes into play. I love to do this test when I’m in workshops because it isn’t something I recommend for a regular class. When someone is in a challenging pose or sequence, I ask them to talk to me. Simple, right? We can hold our breath and perform a pose for quite a long time, but when you talk then your breath is necessary in order to respond. This encourages each practitioner to understand the importance of breath during a pose. If you can’t breathe then it is a sign that you are too deep into a pose and should come to a point you can maintain. This exercise is very effective when learning your own boundaries of a pose while practicing, either as a beginner or to advanced practitioner.
This is why you can see teachers being able to practice and teach. I witnessed teachers putting students through rigorous classes that they themselves couldn’t accomplish, so why should they be teaching that class? I don’t mind if a teacher teaches a pose they can’t do themselves, but usually this comes with lots of teaching under their belt; mainly time.
If you are like me and love to learn everything that is related to yoga, whether that is asana related or more, then don’t worry if the teacher knows the information or not. Don’t worry is the teacher guides you deeper or not. If you want to learn that information, then you will. You must become your greatest teacher. No one will hold your hand, no one will guide the way to a clear path. The clear path will open up to you, you will know what is the next thing, the best thing for you to do and there will be no doubt. You will be ready to learn, you won’t be fooled by anyone else trying to distract you from what yoga really is. Keep practicing, either at home or in a studio. Keep practicing. Don’t let your ego sneak up on you to tell you that you’re better than anyone else. Keep practicing, breathe, and hopefully one day you will also find little tips or tricks that you can share with the practitioners around you.