Cow Face Pose will get deep into your hips, ankles, thighs, shoulders, and chest. Be gentle with both the hip and shoulder sockets, especially if you have a tendency to be tight up top or bottom or both! Sometimes, you’ll find yourself in class in the full posture, or just focusing on the leg or the arm expression. Let go of the physical tension your body may be holding, and just work with the leg version and focus on lengthening from tailbone up to the crown of your head…don’t cheat and really enjoy this opening in the hips. Can’t clasp your hands? Use a strap, a towel or your ponytail to hold onto and focus on opening the chest and triceps. Please note, this photo is of gomukhasana arms, legs coming in another post this month.

Saturday, February 18 at 12:30 PM a Riskless, Wristless Yoga Workshop

Did you find yoga or yoga find you? I remember that first yoga class.  It was my wife’s birthday some ten years ago.  She said she didn’t want any presents.  I asked if she wanted to go out to dinner or anything else and she said no.  I knew I was in trouble.  Later she said “there is just one thing I want”, oh no here it comes I thought, “I just want you to go to a yoga class with me”.  “WHAT” I replied “no way, yoga is for girls, there is no way I’m going to a yoga class!”

After a while as I thought about it I figured “hum, $100 to go out to dinner or $13 to go to yoga class”.  I made that decision and told her that yes I’d go with her.  I was very reluctant, she dragged me screaming and kicking to class (not really).  We got in, I found a corner and we began.  We did a number of sun salutations.  Worried, my wife looked at me from under her down dog and asked “how are you doing?”  Enthralled with movement I replied “I’m going to do this for the rest of my life”.  I was hooked and in love with yoga.

Now yoga has been a constant source of growth and inspiration for both me and my wife.  We have each found our separate but intertwining yoga paths and I look forward to the possibilities of the future.

What do you do before teaching? I put a lot of effort into teaching.  I spend about two hours of actual planning and writing out the class but I already have spent countless time coming up with ideas on themes, pose combinations and alternative ways of expression.  It’s important to me that each class be a unique experience.  Generally I plan one major flow class a week.  Then within the class I make room for each class to grow and change.  The first class of the week is usually a challenge for me in that though I have blocked out the movements it’s the first time watching the class practice it.  I have to watch and learn from the students what works or not and more importantly what they want.  I find by watching the flow the participants naturally “tell” me what pose should come next by expressing it in their subtle bodies.

My inspiration comes from my regular practice, taking class from other teachers, reading and internet research.  I get a lot of ideas from visiting teachers and intensive yoga workshops.  I often find ideas from more unusual places and events like watching my dog play or people watching.  I am inspired by anatomy books which allow me to focus on a part of the body and group poses around that area.  Sometimes there is a philosophic idea I want to express through the practice, or maybe I’ll attempt to illustrate some of the more ethereal aspects of yoga.

My most successful classes and the ones that I can’t duplicate but aspire to, are those filled with laughter and group participation.  I love it when there are quips and jokes within the class.  There is a sense of community and shared experience with conversations well after class.

Lately I have been fascinated with yoga and movement. I don’t believe that we are yoga statues.  I strive to evolve my vinyasa or flow classes into something more.  My idea is to find a balance between yoga and dance with continuous movements of energy through the body and mind and maybe ending up someplace else.  It’s fun to imagine the possibilities.

A Riskless, Wristless Yoga? How is such possible? Tell us more: An active life style has its risks and one of these is accidental injury.  One of the many beauties of yoga is that no matter what the injury you still can develop a full and enriching practicing despite the injury by varying the poses.  With help the practice can be healing and restorative for the injury.  I know because in the years I have been practicing I have had many injuries from outside and inside the studio.  I have always been able to work around them and come up with a practice which helps recovery.  My wrist is a prime example.

Even before I knew it I was predisposed to wrist injury due to a genetic condition affecting circulation to the bones in my wrist.  Yoga and in particular down dog pose exacerbated the condition.  I was in pain, sometimes a great deal before I learned of the disease.  After several years of practice I consulted with some medical experts and was discouraged.  One doctor even recommended that I give up yoga.  Well, that wasn’t happening.  Through physical therapy and precise yoga instruction I developed a practice which avoids or gives alternatives to all the wrist weight bearing poses in hatha yoga.

I have learned that wrist discomfort and injury is pretty common among students and I am excited to share what I have learned in the upcoming Riskless, Wrist less Yoga Workshop.  I say “riskless” because for years I lived with the risk of further injury to my wrist which would seriously limit any activity.  And I have included the term “wrist less” to show how you can have a full vigorous practice without overusing the wrist at all.  In fact I was able to do this class while wearing an immobilization cast on my right wrist.

In the seminar we will discuss wrist anatomy and common injuries to it from outside of the studio as well as during the practice.  I will show some common techniques of stretching and warming up the wrists as well as alternative poses one can do in class while the rest of the class is doing, say, handstand.  There will be a hand out of the poses done in the class so it can be duplicated at home.

In the meantime come to my class even if you don’t have wrist injuries to discover a creative approach to yoga limiting the effort of the hands and wrists. ~ Bill

It just takes a little practice to distribute the weight evenly across your arms and head, but once you get it, you’ll say “Oh, this is just like Bound Headstand!”

Continue reading or join me Sundays at 4:30pm!

The wrist is a relatively small and complex joint which can be prone to injury during hatha yoga.  Some of the more challenging poses like Downward facing dog, hand stand and other weight bearing poses to the hands can stress the wrist as well as the surrounding muscles, tendons and ligaments create discomfort and even acute, lingering pain. The injury can be yoga related or it can be an unrelated injury from some other sports or work activity or accidental fall.  In this workshop we will discuss preventative techniques to both deal with previous injuries and avoid yoga related injuries.  We will focus on alternative or modified positions to help the wrist sensitive student realize a full yoga practice.

Join me, Bill O’Connor RYT for a discussion of major and some minor wrist injuries and how to deal with and prevent them.  This will be followed by a special vigorous “wristless” yoga practice which you can take home with you as well as use the modifications in your regular practice.

As a long time evolution teacher who has been teaching and practicing for 10 years with Keinbox disease, a genetic condition that causes disintegration of the central wrist bone.   I have studied the use of the wrist in daily life as well as in yoga practice and developed a yoga practice which de-emphasizes the use of the wrist.  Consulted with and been diagnosed by some of the leading wrist experts in the US, and I am happy to share my experience with others who are dealing with wrist pain. ~ Bill