Kyrsten's Page

So the day after New Year's I gave a pretty tough vinyasa class at 5:45am. It is at a health club where they like you to "perform" and you're not supposed to physically adjust anyone. Some people dig it, some don't - I enjoy being able to get my practice in and work on my verbal cuing - I'm still a new enough teacher that if I'm experiencing it in the moment, I'm better able to describe what sensations and bones, muscles, ligaments should be where and I can look in the mirror if I'm not directly… Continue

Practiced with my hubby today. I was supposed to get up and go to a big class at my studio for the New Year, but I overslept - up late last night watching movies.
I didn't realize that I haven't been as devoted to the primary series as I should be. I teach a lot and have been teaching full time since May. Recently I started becoming burnt out on yoga altogether - teaching, practice, everything. It seemed like everyday I was getting some sort of practice in, but a friend of mine always reminds me… Continue

I read recently in Matthew Sweeney's "Astanga Yoga As It Is" that, "Once while using the term Savasana in Guruji's presence I was told off. 'Not Savasana! No. Corpse pose advaced practice you take rest.'" (pg7) Since I have read this I have always encouraged my students to take rest at the end of their practice and I have explained why - that Savasana implies the suspension of the breath and even the beating of the heart and is indeed a very advanced pose - the most advanced pose. What we do at… Continue

So I asked a friend to help me with my "Prasarita" issues. But first I had used one of those foam roller thingys on my hamstrings for a good 10-15 minutes. I don't usually have the time, or take the time to do that. I noticed instantly that my forward bends were coming much more easily and much deeper. When it came time to do the prasarita series, my friend came into the yoga room and looked at my pose in A. Surprisingly enough, it didn't look that bad that day (Monday 3/31 I think). She reminde… Continue

So, I suppose that my most difficult pose in the primary series - well, it's sort of a series in and of itself - is the prasarita padataonasana. I took about a month off from primary and everything else has come back. My forward bends were hideous at first, but, especially after I took an Ashtanga workshop, I felt like I was back "home." Except for prasarita. It's never been my favorite, although I was really starting to get deep into the poses and almost not dread them. Now it's just a struggle… Continue