{"id":152,"date":"2020-11-22T22:37:41","date_gmt":"2020-11-23T06:37:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/?p=152"},"modified":"2020-11-22T22:38:52","modified_gmt":"2020-11-23T06:38:52","slug":"anatomy-of-a-yoga-routine-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/2020\/11\/22\/anatomy-of-a-yoga-routine-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Anatomy of a Yoga Routine, Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In Anatomy of a Yoga Routine, Part 1<\/a> I covered the general architecture (gentle warmup, additional warmup, what I\u2019ll call \u201cflow,\u201d counter-poses, and Savasana) and the warmup. In this second part of the series I\u2019ll cover the flow, the collection of asanas that flow one into the other, with a reasonable, comfortable, natural progression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flow is the bulk of the routine. It\u2019s here that I\u2019ll build the asanas and vinyasas to accomplish my goals for the routine. Am I looking to work a certain set of muscles (the abdominal core, for example, or a particular myofascial line)? Do I want to work on shoulder or hip flexibility? Do I just want a general all around routine to start the day?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How long do I have for the practice? Sometimes, I only have thirty minutes, so I\u2019ll need a short flow; other times, I want to spend over an hour on the mat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Am I looking for something vigorous or relaxing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I always like to include the classic Sun Salutations, Surya Namaskaras A and B. They help connect me to the tradition, a tradition that I surely do not even begin to understand, but I want that connection anyway. I almost always go through Surya Namaskara A before B, and I find it a nice transition between the warm-up and the flow. Even if I\u2019ve done several forward bends and stretches, that first time through Surya Namaskara A finishes the limbering up work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I tend to think of the flow as a series of segments or sections. A collection of Sun Salutations A, for example, is the bulk of one section; another might be a series of Sun Salutations B; a third might be a collection of connected asanas on the floor. I like to finish each section with a sequence of balance poses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Balance Poses<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Balance poses present lots of opportunity for variety, or for consistency for comparison day-by-day or week-by-week. Within a given routine, I like a variety, and I like to have more than one sequence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tree (Vrksasana) is among my favorites, and I particularly like being able to look at trees when I plant myself in this asana. After holding Tree for a few breaths, I like to extend my arms up above my head (channeling the redwoods and firs). If I want to work more on side stretching, I\u2019ll bend to one side, then the other\u2014like a palm in the breeze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depending on just what\u2019s preceded the balance sequence, I like Figure Four (Eka Pada Utkatasana), also called One Legged Chair. For nice spinal twist while balancing, I can twist and (try to!) place my elbow on the sole of my foot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a class from Asheville Community Yoga<\/a> over the summer I learned a nice balance sequence. Start with Eagle (Garudasana) and hold that for two breaths. Extend your arms and unrooted leg out into a one-legged star pose while continuing to balance on your rooted foot\u2014Shooting Star. Hold this for a breath or two. Return to Eagle for a breath or two, then back to Shooting Star for a breath or two, back to Eagle for a breath or two, back to Shooting Star for a breath or two. Return to Mountain, and repeat on the other side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Counter Poses<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve learned that it\u2019s important to balance the body. When I construct a yoga routine, I want to balance side-to-side and front-to-back. I want the side-to-side balance to be identical\u2014if I do two of a certain one-sided asana on the left, I want to do two on the right. Take Eagle, for example: I\u2019ll be sure to come into Eagle on each side, and for the same amount of time on each side. (If I fall out of a one-sided asana\u2014let\u2019s say Lord of the Dance (Natarajasana)\u2014then I fall out. I might re-attempt the asana, but I won\u2019t skip the other side just because I fell out of the first side.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The opposite side of a one-sided pose it its own counter pose. Twist to the right? Twist to the left. Balance on the left foot? Balance on the right foot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As to front-to-back, this applies to back bends, and, to a lesser extent, to my wrists and my neck. Neck? After a Headstand (Sirsasana), I like to come into Rabbit (Sasangasana) for a breath or two to stretch out my neck. If I\u2019ve stretched my wrists back hard, such as in Wheel (Urdhva Dhanurasana), I\u2019ll probably flex them forward gently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of Wheel, for that, for Bridge (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana), for a standing backbend (Utthita Bhujangasana, e.g.), a forward bend serves as the counter pose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inversions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I like to have an inversion or two or three near the end of my routine. Usually, it\u2019s a Shoulder Stand (Salamba Sarvangasana) probably followed by Plough (Halasana), and then a Headstand of some variety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not all of my routines include inversions, but I sure enjoy them. Sometimes I challenge myself and close my eyes once I\u2019m settle in a Headstand. Sometimes I\u2019ll play with different leg positions and shapes (Eagle legs or Frog legs). Sometimes, I\u2019ll just be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Up in the air, junior yogi indeed!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Savasana<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve learned that I want to end with Corpse (Savasana). Even in a short routine I like the rest at the end. It\u2019s a nice way to transition from the mat to the rest of the world. A 4-5 minute savasana after an hour\u2019s practice sure feels good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Anatomy of a Yoga Routine, Part 1 I covered the general architecture (gentle warmup, additional warmup, what I\u2019ll call \u201cflow,\u201d counter-poses, and Savasana) and the warmup. In this second part of the series I\u2019ll cover the flow, the collection of asanas that flow one into the other, with a reasonable, comfortable, natural progression. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[5],"class_list":["post-152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-yoga","tag-yoga"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":6}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/IMG_2323-t.jpg?fit=256%2C237&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":165,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152\/revisions\/165"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jryogi.rhinoaviation.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}