Inner strength

OUTER STRENGTH
After a busy September I’m focusing on finding my inner strength for the month of October. I’ve noticed I’ve been ignoring a few snags and tight spots in my hips, so I’m consciously working on staying out these areas and finding ways to strengthen them in my practice. The body is in perpetual healing till the day you die. Even though you may not be able to see it, it’s constantly busy mending, repairing and removing the natural byproducts of the metabolic actions in the body and external environmental toxins.

There is a common misconception in yoga and the fitness industry that flexibility means weak muscles, and inflexibility means strong muscles. Both principles crossover – you can maintain flexible, strong muscles by including equal amounts of mobility and strength work, and you can also have tight, weak muscles too which is what I’m currently working on in my right glute and sacroiliac joint.

To access your inner strength you must find your outer strength first. You’ll notice after a yoga class that has lots of standing poses, you leave your class feeling stronger, taller, and more confident. In yoga what we practice in the physical body trigger the same response in the emotional body. Outer strength naturally leads to inner strength.

FINDING STRENGTH IN YOUR PRACTICE
The muscles of the legs are the biggest muscles of the body. This sequence has lots of standing poses to get straight into these muscles. The core muscles wrap around to contain the organs of the body, support the spine and are the important structure that connect upper and lower body. Igniting these muscles will help you feel stronger and move more confidently with the 360 column you have created. Arm balances like plank and Bakasana/Crow build heat and require core activation to lift the hips into the required position.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Through this sequence look for the heat and strength in the big muscles of the body. Enjoy finding your inner strength and know that you are much stronger than you think you are:

• Take your time with the first section of the sequence and work on keeping the back of the pelvis pressed into the ground, and the hips stable, while you warm up the core area.

• From Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Facing Dog to Phlakasana/Plank Pose leg curls, move slowly and use your whole core to control the movement. Lift you pelvic floor to give the core a base to work from.

• In Utkatasana/Chair stay here for at least five breaths before you move on to the Parivrtta Utkatasana/Revolved Chair.

• Take Balasana/Child’s Pose after the plank sequence to rest your core.

• When you are in Anjaneyasana/Low Lunge push the floor away with your feet, lift your ribs and hip bones up, and strongly squeeze the glute of the front leg. Keep this connection as you move into the variations.

• When you’re in half boat play around with hands forward first then both hands to the right of your right leg followed by the both to left to get your muscles ready for Bakasana/Crow and Parsva Bakasana/Side Crow.

• In Setu Bandha Sarvangasana/Bridge bend your elbows and place your fingertips on your hip bones to get feedback on where you hips are. Try to keep the hips perfectly level in both of these poses.

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Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

Life balance

TIPPING POINTS
Keeping everything balanced in life can be quite the balancing act, pardon the pun. Life is like a seesaw with lots of ups and downs. There is always going to be degrees of tipping one way or the other and we have to consciously work on bringing it back to level. When you find you have slipped down to one end of the seesaw it can be quite challenging to get back to the fulcrum point. Which, after a busy period in September where I lost sight of balance, is where I find myself at the moment looking up the incline of the slide!

FINDING BALANCE IN YOUR PRACTICE
When the world around me is spinning I find comfort in simple, familiar poses during my practice – poses that I know feel safe, secure, and even conjure up a bit of inner strength to help me feel strong again. This sequence includes lots of twists to balance out the nervous system and hormone levels; some standing balances to find physical balance and carve out a groove for mental balance; and core activation to stabilise the whole body. Most of us hold more tension in one side of the body than the other. As you run through the sequence look for symmetry left and right. Actively soften both shoulders in poses where the arms are arised. Look for equal press down and effort in both legs for the standing poses.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Through this sequence look for signals as to how the poses make you feel and what you need from your time on the mat. Tune into your practice and let it support you physically and mentally:

• Before you start you Marjaryasana/Cat Bitilasana/Cow flow take a few breaths in tabletop position and find equal weight through all four points in contact with the ground.

• Come back to Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Facing Dog in between flows to consciously look for your symmetry again.

• In Utkatasana/Chair stay more upright and lengthen through the crown, take your twists in this position with the hands in prayer position at your heart.

• When you are in Anjaneyasana/Low Lunge with the knee on the ground, and off the ground, contain and support the stretch of the inner groin and hip flexor by lightly pressing your feet/knee into the ground and scissoring them together. Lift you pelvic floor here.

• In Virabhadrasana II/Warrior II press strongly into your front heel and keep this connection as you move into Reverse Warrior.

• Explore a wide legged Virabhadrasana I/Warrior I with the feet mat distance apart. Notice if this makes a difference to you hip bone position.

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Ruth Delahunty Yogaru

A simple home practice

LOOKING FOR CALM
The kiddies are all back to school and so far so good! I have learnt from previous years that I am inclined to turn 'headless chicken' in September, and have planned and prepped to within an inch of my life! Without consciously choosing to, I’m also finding myself shifting towards calming and supportive poses in my yoga practice – such as forward folding poses. Forward folds don’t come naturally to me, they challenge my ego and patience, but they are deeply therapeutic and soothing, and my intuition brings me to them when I need them. I’m also finding comfort in familiarity by spending extra time in some of the basic poses of yoga. When the world around you is spinning fast, it feels lovely to do the complete opposite on your mat and simplify your practice to its utmost essence.

FIND YOUR HAPPY POSE
This sequence focuses on keeping it simple and playing around with as many of the familiar poses of yoga as possible. When you encounter a pose that feels perfect to you, either in finding your strength or finding ease, pause for some extra breaths and enjoy the sensations that arise. Scan through your body from your toes to the tips of your crown and look for feedback.

EXPLORING SIMPLICITY IN YOUR PRACTICE
Notice the effects different types of movements have on you. When you flow you will notice a calming, meditative trance, as you link movement with breath. In deep stretching poses you will feel a calm introspective quietning of the mind. Alternatively the more muscular strengthening poses will bring you into the body, and the present moment, with nowhere to hide! In order to feel the cumulative benefits of this sequence, and get a sense of serenity in familiarity, practice this same sequence for 2-3 weeks. If practicing everyday is daunting for you, start with aiming for a 2-3 days a week, for 10-15 mins, and let it naturally build it up from there.

ALIGNMENT CUES
Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Dogs is probably one of the more widely known yoga poses. But we often use it as a transition and not give it enough time to explore. Relook at how you approach your Adho Mukha Svanasana/Downward Dogs and see is it one, or can it become one, of your familiar comforting poses.

The following are some alignment cues that you might hear in class. Print them out, along with the sequence, and play around with what makes sense to you:

• Hands shoulder width apart, feet hip width apart, press into all five knuckles of your hands and lightly though the pads of your fingers, fingers spread.

• Roll your biceps forward, broaden the collarbones, back of the neck long, firm your shoulder blades against your back, head in line with your ears.

• Pelvis tips forward, lift your sit bones up, stretch your heels towards the ground, draw your hips up and back.

• Top of the thighs pressing back, roll your inner thighs back. Hug your outer hips to the midline, gaze to the ground under your pelvis.

• Draw your navel towards your spine to support the internal organs.

• Look for symmetry of the whole body between right and left side joining at the midline.

To save the images for personal use click and hold down the image until the ‘save image’ option appears; on Mac hold down ‘control’ and click the image to get the option box; on PC right click on the image to get the option box. Scroll down in the ‘option box’ and click ‘save image’.

Ruth Delahunty Yogaru