YJ Conference Day 1

I made it through the first day and had a blast but am definitely feeling it this morning. The day started with the Mysore style class which I was nervous about. Luckily when I got there and started to talk to the folks on the mats around me I learned that I was not the only one who was new to Ashtanga and not the only one who might have trouble remembering the poses in the Primary Series. Just as I feared, when they started the class there was no explanation or caveats for beginners. Richard Freeman lead us in the opening chant and then everybody started doing their practice at their own pace. FortunatelyI know the first part of the series very well because I have been practicing the A and B series salutations for years. It was amazing to be in a room with 150 people doing yoga together and to see some really advanced students doing their beautiful practice.

After I got through those and the first several standing poses, though I began to look to the cheat sheet I had written up earlier in the morning. The anxiety started when I got through the abbreviated list of poses I had written down and I had an hour left. I finally waved down Maty Eszraty and asked her what I should do at that point. I admitted to having my cheat sheet and skipping a few poses and she gave me a half-joking scolding for breaking the rules. She suggested that I just start over at the beginning. So there I was, feeling like the only person doing A series salutations while the rest of the crowd was working on the advanced balances. Truth is there were plenty of beginners, but I was self-conscious.

And that was wonderful! Going to this class reminded me how intimidating a yoga class of any sort can be to a beginner. I tell my students all of the time that they should not be self conscious and not worry about what the other students around them are doing and stay in their own practice, but I was having a very hard time doing it. As a teacher I also strive to remember that a lot of the ritual associated with a yoga clas can seem a little odd to someone who walks into their first yoga class after years of aerobics at the gym. Not ever having done a Mysore style practice before I was definitely uncomfortable about "not knowing the rules."

Later in the day I took a class called Preparation for Ashtanga Yoga from Nicki Doane and Eddie Modestini. They started the class by asking what folks thought of the Mysore class, since it was the first time they have done this at a conference and it is a sort of experiment. After a few "it was great" comments and some uncomfortable silence I raised my hand and told them that I thought it was little initmidating for beginners like me. I suggested that maybe they create a special zone where beginners can congregate and get a little extra help and not feel awkward about using cheat sheets or asking more basic questions than the rest of the crowd. At that point many others chimed in about their anxiety as well and the teachers told us that they might rearrange the class for the next morning. I'll let you kow what they do since I've got tow more mornings of Mysore class on my schedule.
The photo at the left is of some students asking Nicki and Eddie questions after the class. I guess I should mention that their class was really great. They spent the two hours working us through the A and B series salutations and a few of the standing poses. There was not enough time to get through all of the standing poases as I had hoped (and as the class decsription said) but what I will definitely incorprate a lot of the details they taught into my practice. My shoulders were shaking through the class from the workout in Maty's class, but it was great to be doing yoga at that level again.

Backing up a little, after the Mysore class and a short break I took a really informative shoulder alignment class from Maty. She is a tough teacher as I witnessed in the first practice, but she has an incredible depth of knowledge and patience when teaching teachers about the minutiae of reading and adjusting students' bodies. My shouldres were very tired after the class, but I learned some new techniques that I will definitely incorporate into my practice and teaching. The biggest eye opener was that we should not be squaring our shoulders in many poses, but rather finding the place betwen hunched and squared, where the arms rest in the shoulder sockets and create a stroger base for supporting down dog, handstand, etc. The photo above was taken as students were assembling for her class. The hall was the same as the one we practiced Mysore in and can hold about 200-250 students. Not sure if you can tell, but they put painters tape on the floor to show folks here to place their mats. Great idea and makes sure people don't waste space in limited studio area.

The final event of the day was a panel discussion of whether a student should pick one style of yoga or practice many. The moderator jokingly described this as "should I date around or be monogamous in my practice." The discussion started out pretty reserved but got very lively at the end when other topics like the 200 hour RYT teaching certification came up. Some of the members of the panel expressed a dislike for the "fad yoga" which is popping up and allowing teachers to be certfied to teach very quickly. They claimed they worry about injuries to students, but there was definitely a sense I got that many of the current teachers had to study for many years to get where they are, often with a "real guru," and the new crop of teachers do not "get it". Some folks in the audience pointed out that for many it is hard to get access where they live to "real" yoga teachers, and that even a Yoga for Fitness class can open the door to the rest of Yoga. In the end, the main message from the panel was that if we plan to teach yoga, we need to go deeper into our studies (in whatever manner we can) and that we need to teach authentically based on what we know...and not pretend to be something we are not.

I am planning a trip to India to study at the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in November and December and am really glad for this after listening to the discussion. While I am proud of what I have done and what I am doing with my instructing, I am looking forward to going deeper.