Tag Archive for: Teacher Training

It seems there are many factors influencing the frequency and severity of this seasonal pitta rash. I have been able to control/mitigate it using newly found techniques and knowledge; therefor my results support the original hypothesis. However, throughout the duration of this experiment I tried to focus on eating properly, drinking detox CCF tea, and minimizing the consumption of alcohol. There were a few instances during the experiment where a combination of stress, eating too much meat/gluten containing products, and drinking a few too many glasses of wine or beer caused inflammation of the rash. I know now that this seasonal rash is very influenced by what goes into my body, not just on it. I’ve always presumed this to be true and this experiment has confirmed this to be true. Going forward, I will practice a self-care routine that fits my doshic constitution and addresses any imbalances I may be having at that specific time.

My son, who is 24, and an extremely active person, has had a disturbed sleep pattern all his life. He is physically and mentally very active, very bright and sensitive, and extremely creative. As an extension of my own initial success with the above measures, I have encouraged him to try some of the same measures. He reports that the Yoga Nidra tapes, going to bed at the same time every night, lavender on his pillow and warm milk with nutmeg have also helped him improve his sleep. I suspect he will have more of a challenge healing his sleep, because this has dogged him since childhood. While we are constitutionally similar in many ways, I am not nearly as active as he is, he develops respiratory illness from over activity far more easily than I do, and struggles with maintaining enough weight whereas I have to watch that I do not become overweight.

I am looking forward to developing a more in depth understanding of Ayurvedic remedies when I complete this Yoga Teacher program and have a little more time. Overall, I am encouraged to incorporate this approach in my clinical practice and in response to the various struggles and imbalances that arise in my own life.

I noted that when I indulged in my creature comfort of snacking on cheese late at night for example, it did make it harder than normal to get up the next morning, in addition I would have more congestion and allergy symptoms. Also when I checked my tongue the following morning it did have residue indicating it wasn’t digested completely. I took note that when I ate spicy foods, my congestion and allergy symptoms were alleviated, or when I didn’t eat late at night it was easier to get up in the morning and my allergy symptoms would be better. I checked my tongue periodically and noticed that I could indeed see a correlation between Kapha reducing foods and Kapha increasing foods. I tried various times to reframe the food types I should moderate or avoid by looking at the chart in the book and only reading the things that were Kapha reducing and thinking “Okay I can have all this great food!” for future reference to give my brain some good associations with foods that are good for my Dosha. I also determined during this observation time that a Kapha reducing flow in the morning would really serve me well. I tried it at night and found it to be too energizing but it would be a great way to start my day. I have not implemented that yet on a regular basis, but I plan to try.

I really enjoyed the oil pulling, and though I was suspicious of it at first, my curiosity got the better of me. I quickly saw the benefits to my teeth and gums. It was a great success for me in that it was the one consistent part of my experiment and routine that had only positive associations and something I will carry forward. It felt like such a nice intentional form of self-care. I also loved the foot massage at night. I did it probably a couple of times a week and used almond oil, sometimes with a few drops of lavender essential oil. I find my mind is usually racing before bed and keeps me up quite late (which is usually when I want a snack), the foot massage really helped to calm that down and bring me into a sweet relaxation. It is something I will definitely use again in the future. Drinking water first thing in the morning was very helpful and something that started my days off on a better wavelength than having coffee the first thing.

 

Overall I learned so much from observing my mind’s struggle with the mere idea of implementing more Kapha reducing practices in my diet and lifestyle. I came to appreciate in a whole new way my struggles with body image and how that is connected to feeding myself. I don’t think I have ever given space to that topic to air those complexities and so I am very grateful for the new awareness and for my intuitive wisdom to take it easy and observe. From that departure I learned so much about how judgment, shame and perfectionism are wrapped up in my struggles with food and body image. I truly believe in the beneficial effects of mindful eating and I know that approaching it from a non-judgemental framework would benefit me in the future. In the future I would like to implement a morning routine for myself that includes a Kapha reducing flow, and to try adding some Kapha reducing foods in my diet.

 

Who doesn’t have road rage from time to time? This Axis Yoga Teacher Training student noticed anger on the road was becoming just too common and decided to use lessons from the Ayurveda segment of the training to reduce these negative feelings. Read how changes in daily habits helped this yogi find some zen on the road!

After taking the Ayurvedic quiz and speaking with Susan, I determined my prakruti to be V3P3K2. Recently I’ve been experiencing symptoms of excess pitta: frustration, and anger-specifically when I’m driving. I explained to class that I feel quite happy and peaceful for the most part, but when I step behind the wheel I develop quite a short fuse. In addition, I’ve been struggling to manage my daily stressors since I started my own business. The inability to manage my stress response in a healthy way has definitely affected my attitude and it seems to all come out when I’m driving!!

In an effort to manage my stress and become a more peaceful driver, I have implemented a number of practices designed to balance/reduce my excess pitta. Because I have many food sensitivities, I chose not to change my diet. Instead, I adopted personal care rituals each morning including: oil pulling, massaging pre-shower with almond oil and tongue scraping. I also wanted to implement a yoga routine in the morning including: specific asana, pranayama and meditation. Susan also suggested I practice deep belly breathing while driving to calm myself down and get centered.

People find their way to Yoga through many avenues. Some through meditation. Some through breath work. Some through spiritual study. And many, like the student in this account, through a physical asana practice. The posts below describe an experiment to deepen a physical Yoga practice to include more of Pantajali’s eight limbs of Yoga.

In the West, most people equate “doing yoga” with asana practice.  However, yoga as a system encompasses much beyond this.   As Patanjali outlines in the Yoga Sutras, the Ashtanga-based system of yoga is comprised of eight limbs, with asana being one.   When combined together, these eight limbs are primarily designed not to enhance physical strength, flexibility and endurance, as many Westerners who “practice yoga” believe, but rather to provide a pathway to spiritual enlightenment by facilitating connection with the divine.

Prior to the teacher training, I like many in the West, experienced yoga primarily through studio-based asana classes.  Because such classes tend to focus on the physical aspects of yoga, and minimize, or many times completely ignore, yoga’s spiritual aspects, I was surprised to learn through the teacher training that “doing yoga” is actually mainly a spiritual venture.  You don’t even have to sweat!

As I have progressed through the Axis training, I have become more and more interested in the idea of teaching yoga to others.  I view the lack of emphasis on spirituality in studio-based classes a potential need in the local yoga community that would be satisfying as teacher to provide, and hopefully also useful to students.  Thus, one of my aspirations as a yoga teacher is find ways to bring the spiritual experience of yoga to people “doing yoga” in studio-type settings.  Similarly, as a yoga student I aspire to find ways to personally experience greater spiritual connectedness when participating in a studio-based yoga class, no matter how much or little the teacher emphasizes this aspect of yoga practice.

Given this, the goal of my experiment was to test the effect of introducing different actions, practices or thoughts during studio classes to see how they impacted my spiritual experience of yoga.

Hypothesis: Some actions, practices or thoughts will enhance my spiritual experience of yoga more than others during studio-based classes.

At the beginning of the experiment I brainstormed a list of different activities (see Table below) that I could try in order to enhance the spiritual connectedness I felt during a typical studio-based yoga class. My usual asana class schedule is three times a week (outside of Axis training times), split between Core Power Yoga and Advanced Asana classes at Samadhi. I systematically went through the activities listed in the Table during the asana classes I participated in throughout the weeks of the experiment (including both at Axis training and studio classes). Following each session I journaled about how the various activities affected me spiritually.

The Table below lists the different activities that were tried during the experiment period and their results.  NE = not effective, SE = somewhat effective, VE = very effective.

 

Table.  Spiritual Activities Tried During the Experiment, and Their Impact

Activity

Where   Tried

Results

Bringing   “prayer hands” to third eye instead of heart

Samadhi

Axis

VE

Devotional   focused practice

Axis

VE

Prone   supplication during practice

Core Power

VE

Doing   asana practice with eyes closed

Core Power

Axis

VE

Using   Anjali mudra during practices as much as possible, even if not cued by   instructor

Samadhi

VE

Meditating   after asana practice

Core Power

SE

Setting an   intention to honor God during practice

Core Power

SE

Picture of   religious icon next to mat during practice

Samadhi

SE

Saying a short   prayer with each down dog hold

Samadhi

NE

Meditating   before asana practice

Core Power

NE