Day 41: solid

So I could go to dharma class last night, I went to the 4:00 class at the Fremont studio. It wasn't the instructor who usually teaches on Tuesday afternoon. It was someone with an Aussie/Kiwi accent. I think he may have been the studio owner. At first, I thought we'd get along great. After all, he has an accent. But he ended up rubbing me the wrong way, I mean, giving me a great opportunity to practice. In Standing Separate Leg Forehead to Knee, it's important to lock the knee, but I have always been taught to lock BY lifting the quadricep. This protects the knee and keeps you from hyperextending. This guy came right over and started pushing my knee back. "More, more. And lift the quad at the same time." He said. "That's actually painful," I responded. "Good, that's what you want." So my knee's hyperextended and I'm in pain. Well, honey, that ain't my yoga. I don't think you should ask your students to be in a position where they feel pain. They can injure themselves this way. Duh. Part of finding your inner teacher (phrase borrowed from sis' yoga teacher!) is finding that difference between discomfort, which can come from stretching or from fatigue (ie, my gluteus maximus is BURNING in Standing Separate Leg Forehead to Knee, but that's OK) and PAIN. And once you find that difference, you respect it. Besides which, if the strength to lock the knee (not hyperextend it, thanks) isn't coming FROM the quadricep muscle, you're not strengthening your muscles. I barely contained an eyeroll as he walked back up to the podium. I've heard that about super-Bikram Bikram teachers, that they're into really jamming the knee back. I'm a little torn, because I want to respect my teachers and try to learn from them, instead of resenting them and rejecting the new notions they bring to me. Trying things outside my comfort zone is one of the best way to learn. But hyperextension of the knee. It's bad news. Don't do it, folks.

And he had his knee WAY forward of his ankle when he demonstrated Triangle. Sniff.

In general, I had a pretty "solid" practice and didn't have to rest out poses.

Still haven't retried Purple VitaminWater!