tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post8430675172350565740..comments2023-09-30T07:02:42.218-05:00Comments on Grounding Thru The Sit Bones: Some more thoughts on the Headstand...Brenda P.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15706976926804565629noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-7219320936937423192009-06-02T05:41:46.440-05:002009-06-02T05:41:46.440-05:00Hi There
Here are my two cents on building confi...Hi There <br /><br />Here are my two cents on building confidence in headstand...<br /><br />I have found that the more I concentrate on the base of the pose BEFORE they kick up, the easier the pose comes.<br /><br />In my my class I continually repeat these three instructions just before they kick up:<br />1) Press the outter wrists down and lift the trapezius muscles away from the ears.<br />2) keep the shoulder blades in towards the chest.<br />3) (...and most importantly!) Lift the anterior spine towards the hips.<br /><br />The benefits of this approach appear to be many fold as:<br />-It straightens the spine, and prevents the compression in the shoulders and neck that I commonly see in first timers<br />-It reduces the work the abdomen is required to do when they do kick up. (not in a bad way since by redistributing <br />the work over the arms, the shoulders and the legs it becomes more of a whole body experience)<br />-It reduces the amount of pressure felt on the top of the head<br />-It gets rid of discomfort in the shouder area.<br />-It develops their confidence.<br /><br />With this knowledge I was able to help several of my students face their fears in headstand. Whether they were in the corner of two walls, against one wall or a little away from the wall, or in the middle of the room.thewellnessdistrict.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03047501024010419129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-80006579326529363422009-05-09T08:22:00.000-05:002009-05-09T08:22:00.000-05:00I recently started teaching yoga and that made me ...I recently started teaching yoga and that made me think about my philosophy. I generally teach techniques that i have experience with. So i start with pranayama and asanas.Yoga Reporthttp://yogareport.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-20143695811600177152009-04-10T00:08:00.000-05:002009-04-10T00:08:00.000-05:00I just had a private master class with Yolanda Pet...I just had a private master class with Yolanda Pettinato in Australia and she had such a unique way of teaching headstand and dolphin. She actually teaches dolphin with legs towards the wall and then up the wall into a 90 degree angle so that the body can begin developing strength for a truly stable tripod headstand. Very very cool.Jan Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13590966226858325295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-63344962208077547612009-04-06T13:15:00.000-05:002009-04-06T13:15:00.000-05:00I typically don't teach headstands in class but yo...I typically don't teach headstands in class but your post inspired me the other day when I had all regulars in class. Thank you!A Yoga Mama is a Rama Mamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00023887204672001977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-36379381571134619412009-04-02T21:39:00.000-05:002009-04-02T21:39:00.000-05:00I takes forever to get away from the wall in an Iy...I takes forever to get away from the wall in an Iyengar class (I still do my headstands nearby), so the kicking up is an easy option. That tripod "stage" is a nice idea, too. I'm thinking of doing headstands at the end of my current session, so I might add that as a modification. Thanks for the thoughts.Brenda P.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15706976926804565629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28555295.post-90764930725470606432009-04-02T09:01:00.000-05:002009-04-02T09:01:00.000-05:00I've been working on headstands with my classes th...I've been working on headstands with my classes this winter and I have to say one of the more difficult aspects is encouraging them to move *slowly* into the pose. Part of the difficulty is we're all A-type's doing Ashtanga and Vinyasa... ;)<BR/><BR/>You mentioned something that I've been contemplating - having people kick up. I've had so many instructors discourage that method because it can lead to 'flinging' and doesn't encourage utilizing the core. Again, I'm coming from that Ashtanga tradition where we really don't use props so we are working in the center of the room. <BR/><BR/>I like to encourage my students to come to the dolphin-like stance, with head tucked into hands, then move into that modified down dog. From there we walk our toes in and remain there or start to start to let the toes float up. The option also being to walk the toes in then tuck the legs against the body with the heels by the tush. <BR/><BR/>Something else I've started playing around with - tripod headstand (with blankets under the head). I am AMAZED at the positive response from the students! So many find tripod to be easier to approach (once we get where those arms and hands are supposed to be) because they can rest their knees on their elbows and gain confidence being inverted that way. <BR/><BR/>Thanks for posting on headstand - it's a facinating pose.Kristinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03357694767883126311noreply@blogger.com