More dropback's, normal speed this time so going to be like watching grass grow. If you jump about a bit you'll see I'm trying slightly different styles and rhythms.
This set was done after a full morning practice of Vinyasa Krama Bow and Meditative sequences sandwiched between some Standing and Inversion etc, rather than Friday evening's ten minutes prep. To be honest it didn't seem to make much difference, I didn't feel particularly stiff Saturday morning although my legs ached a bit, probably from the heel lift approach and my stomach muscles felt like they'd had quite a work out.
SUGGESTION; If you want to work on drop backs and coming up perhaps some work on strengthening the legs, a deeper Utkatasana andVirabhadrasana perhaps and your stomach muscles, no cheating on Navasana. Not the postures we usually associate with dropback prep.
Still trying to find the best approach.
I start off trying to get the arm movement Iyengar used in yesterday's video below
(see post for the full video) then switch back to raising the heels and my namaste approach before switching to feet turned out again.
Posts
Ok, an update the dropbacks.
ReplyDeleteI only did 27 but they were absolutely kak. There was absolutely no rhythm to them, the breath was not right and that made them harder than what they should have been.
Get the breathing right, ensure the body is relaxed and 108 dropbacks should not be a big deal, right??
AC
At the moment I don't believe 108/50 dropbacks would count as varjayet practice purely because when we get it 'right' there is absolutely no strain/pain, it really is effortless and pure joy.
ReplyDeleteAC
Hi AC. I agree, when you get it right it's effortless, I've had batches of five,maybe ten where it's flowing nicely, a good rhythm, on the breath.... the trick it to sustain that for the 108, like Iyengar in the video. Wasn't there something though about some of those Iyengar people doing them in batches of ten.
ReplyDeleteI really do think it's an interesting experiment, different from the 108 Sury's, I'm curious about the action on the spine, the stimulation....
Love how you talk about them.
I dare not ask Iyengar teacher about doing dropbacks - he'll probably ask me to show him one and order me NEVER to do them again!! If I recall correctly he talks about backbends as being lengthening of the front body and it should be relaxed.
ReplyDeleteI'm doing the dropbacks in batches of 9s so it's easy to keep count. Going to get 3 rocks so I can move them back and forth across the mat with my foot.
I'm not so concerned about the strength of my legs or stomach muscles (not yet anyway), just an absolute obsession on the breath. I need my body/mind to be relaxed, in zen like state and 108 must be possible.
It's definitely an interesting experiment.
AC