Yoga life hack: forcing vs. letting go
“Don’t force it: when the body is ready, it will lift up with ease”
I can’t tell you how much the above sentence pissed me off in a yoga class. I’ve never been a patient person. I just wanted my body do what I wanted it to do.
It didn’t seem hard. Lift my legs higher and balance better.
I shared this fleet about my crow pose practice the other evening. Crow pose is this arm balance where the only part of your body touching the mat is your palms and fingers… Let me tell you what happened that evening.
Preparation:
Surya Namaskar (aka sun salutation). Modified version — lots of breaths in downward facing dog, checking in with the body.
Quick assessment with every breath.
There is strength.
There is openness.
Added bonus, the mind is calm and focused.
Action:
Spreading the fingers wide. Focusing on foundations. Bringing the knees close to the armpits, resting them on the shelf formed by the arms.
Focus.
Lift.
Fly.
Stay floating for as long as the body feels comfortable.
I imagined I became a bird. The body lifted up with ease, no effort at all.
Rest:
Move wrists and back.
Tend to the proud ego, which wants this filmed now.
The moment is already gone, but let’s go, give this a quick video.
At this point worry switched on — what if I can’t hold it again?
Reflection:
This is why I don’t have many yoga videos. When these moments happen, they are magical and they are hard to capture.
Those yogis, who are successful on Instagram, I have no idea how they do it. Respect to them for sure.
What the short video doesn’t tell you that there was at least 6 years’ worth of practice behind it.
And still, it only “works” when there is no forcing. Being with is the key.
If you wanted a recipe for what to do if you don’t want to go down the ‘force it’ route, then I’m afraid I can’t give you one that will work for your particular situation.
But if you :
- listen
- practice
- prepare
- take action based on your truth
- rest
- reflect
then you can’t go wrong.
Working with the body and mind, as opposed to working against them. And when you are ready, things will come together, and you will fly.
