Energy levels were low on this rainy Sunday afternoon so I decided to head over to Be. Yoga Studio in Union Square for some Yin Flow action with Frances Harper. Yin yoga is a natural accompaniment to the vinyasa practice. In yin yoga, the practitioner holds poses for longer periods of time, releasing the muscles so that the deeper connective tissue is working, stretching and opening. Vinyasa is a meditation through movement in which you link poses to the rhythm of your breath. It is much more vigorous and active compared to yin, but I find that stilling the mind in yin poses is the real challenge. The yin practice teaches you to let go and to surrender - a very foreign and scary thing to many of us.
The class was dimly lit and the sounds of women chanting emanated from the mounted ipod on the side of the room (e.g. Donna Delory and others of the like). We moved slowly and methodically through Moon salutations - opening the hips through horse pose, 'kung fu' lunges, triangle, and low lunge. Building on the hip opening action, we sank deeply into frog and pigeon (i.e. sleeping swan in the yin practice). As my mind raced and fidgety feelings took hold, Frances was there to remind us to bring our awareness back to the breath. She spoke about the elemental nature of our hips - water. A paradox she points out, since so many of us hold our emotions, stress, pain, etc. in this space. It is often a place of tightness and I know the feeling all too well of being stuck or stagnant in the hips. It is only when we let go, will we find the fluid movement that is the true nature of this region.
Day 6 overall: Peaceful, calming. My mind was my worst enemy today and it took some time to be able to slow my thoughts/movements and just be in the poses.
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