 Until now, we've focused on repetition, frequency and precision. The last aspect of practice we will add is appropriateness.
We must practice what is challenging but also approachable. If something is too easy, we don't make progress. If it is way too hard, it won't be possible to practice it. We have to find the sweet spot where it is challenging but within reach. This area changes as we progress. What was once out of reach becomes possible. We must always make sure that what we are practicing is challenging for us, but also possible for where we are at. If you struggle with a posture or practice, try a simpler version. This means, remove an element of complexity either depth, or an aspect of the pose. If you feel that something is not challenging, try a more complex version. The space for progress is endless. We must find where we are on the path.
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 We can't just show up, do whatever we feel like doing on any given day, and expect to make progress.
While usually doing something is better than nothing, we have to be precise if we want to make progress in specific areas. If we are practicing a certain posture for example, we need to carefully assess all the aspects of that specific posture that are barriers and practice each of them. Let's take full backbends as an example. We need to have strength in the spine, length in the quads and hip flexors and control over the relaxation of the front side body. Knowing that, we can practice those elements very precisely. If we break it down, incorporating precision, we will certainly make progress. If you are ever unclear about barriers you are pushing up against, sit and consider what they might be. Tackle the issue very deliberately. Once we gain the clarity in our practice, progress happens.  Last time we started to explore what it means to practice. We talked about repetition as a key element. This week we will incorporate the next part of practice which is frequency.
While repetition is really important, it must be paired with frequency. You can do 100 sets of Chair pose, then wait a month and do it again. Or, you can do several, each day. These approaches do not have the same effect. It's far better to do a little bit often, than a lot every once in awhile. Your body needs to be coaxed along gently, and your mind needs to make practice a habit. (Some experts say it takes about 3 weeks to form a habit.) Frequency is why doing just one posture at home by yourself can make a difference. Instead of days going by, your mind has the chance to build up the habit of practice. It's also important not to overload yourself all at once and risk injury or burnout.  Practice is a word that is used constantly. Everyone agrees it is a necessary part of progress. Rarely however, does practice get broken down and explained effectively. This results with many of us putting in immense amounts of time and not making the progress we think we should be making. Over the next few weeks we will explore the parts of practice.
The first part of practice is repetition. Repetition means that we have to do the things we want to get better at, more than one time. This is essentially doing second, third or forth sets when it comes to postures. We require muscle memory to carry out any skill, be it postures, artwork, cooking, etc. We must develop the right touch, right amount strength, right effort, and all of that takes muscle memory. Muscle memory develops with the use of repetition. After we can sufficiently do something (an asana, etc), one repetition can be enough for maintenance. A skilled artist can make their art at the drop of a hat, a skilled athlete can perform on command, but that's because they've already repeated the task (practiced it!) an immense amount of times. We won't get better doing something only one time.  Often in the yoga world, we talk about things like "going deeper". Many talk about the desire to take their practice to a deeper level. Yet, often this all translates into deepening the postures. With so much discussion about depth, we don't often take the time to ask: What does depth really mean?
When it comes to asana the obvious answer seems to be trying to get yourself into the "deepest," or most advanced expression of the pose. But is this actually depth? Could the deepest version of a pose mean the most correct engagement? If so, the visual aspect of a pose could have very little to do with depth. Does deepest mean the most muscular engagement at one time? If so, then the deepest poses could be Peacock or Palmstand. Is depth even about physical performance? Is it awareness, subtlety? What do we actually mean by depth? This is a big topic and likely the answer changes with time. It's worth considering, what does depth mean to you? If the answer that arises remains vague, consider that the answer to that might not be in the body or physical postures. Here is the panel that Ida participated in on "Foregotten Foremothers". She spoke about the Ghosh yogi Reba Rakshit. She spoke alongside historian and author Sudhir Chandra. The conversation was moderated by Vikram Iyengar.
Enjoy!  When we deepen our physical practice there's a weird wall that appears in front of us. We spend time learning how the postures work and we get it. We know what we're doing and what part of our body is doing it. But then it seems like nothing is happening! Our body just doesn't make the position that is in our mind. Even though we understand it, our body needs time to put it together.
While this seems frustrating and is definitely a test of patience, it's also a really thrilling part of the practice. This is the time where we work the postures into our body. When we know them on a mental level, but can't yet execute them on the physical level, we get to build this deep and complex relationship with the postures. We learn what the process is, not just what the posture is. When we put in the time, we develop faith in the posture, our body and the practice as a whole. When we take the time to really work though the postures, the experience stays with us. While the postures may come and go as our bodies change, our time and effort is never lost. We always have the experience that our practice provides us. This is priceless.  Occasionally we will hear that people feel worse after taking class than before. Maybe the body hurts, there's tension or there are negative mental reactions to what the body did or didn't do. It is so important that we don't ignore these signals.
When the body hurts we must listen. The simplest reason for this is that we will inevitably get more seriously injured if we push into what hurts. (At that point we will be forced to listen.) However, the deeper reason from a yogic perspective is that we are trying to deepen our connection with truth and understanding. When we ignore something on the physical level, we shut down our curiosity and openness. The action of ignoring pain suggests that we (or our ego!) already knows where we are going, how to get there and what is and isn't part of our journey. This is the opposite of yoga. In yoga, we should work to remain open to the path as it unfolds in front of us. We should remain humble and open to new information. If we ignore the signals in our practice on a physical level, we will have a very difficult time sorting through them on a mental or spiritual level. This is not to say it's easy or we will always be successful. We don't always know or feel pain accurately and sometimes we don't know how far is too far until we find too far. The only option we have is to do our best and then adjust as we have more information. If we have pain in our practice and we also have the desire to push through it, we really need to ask ourselves: What goal is worth harming our body? Most people today practice for reasons related to feeling better or better health, so the answer has to then be NO goal is worth doing harm. This leads to the next point which is: Don't beat yourself up! Regardless of where you are right now, it's where you are. All practice is part of the learning process. The body and the practice are both resilient.  This year, Ida will be speaking at the Kolkata Lit Meet. She is part of a panel talking about "Forgotten Foremothers" including Reba Rakshit.
If you haven't read Strong Woman Reba Rakshit yet, you can get your copy here. It's the story of a star, a yogi, a circus performer and stunt woman from the mid-twentieth century. Reba Rakshit was a student of Bishnu Charan Ghosh and Ghosh's Yoga College. She was one of the early female, physical yogis in India. For more details on the panel and the whole literature festival, visit this link: kolkatalitmeet.in/2025/  Are we doing the postures or are they doing us?
When we practice physical postures, it's easy to think that we are trying to accomplish a certain look. Even subconsciously, we practice in a way that is trying to get our body in a certain shape. We think (and have often been told) that if we are trying to find some perfect expression of the posture. However, practicing in this way means the postures are doing us. A posture is a set of benefits. Each posture is a set of contractions and relaxations that manipulate the body in a unique way. If we use the muscles correctly, we get benefits specific to that posture. Depth and perceived "expression" have very little to do with it. Let's take the example of running a marathon. Would we think that we had failed and received no benefit at all because we didn't run 5 minute miles like the winner? Probably not. We would still have run a tremendous distance, have used our cardiovascular system, found mental focus and accomplished a huge feat. When we practice postures, it's so very important to ask ourselves "Am I getting the benefits?" If we are practicing in a way that is using the body correctly, we are doing the postures. This means of course, we must know what we are doing in each posture! This requires that we ask ourselves, What is the purpose of the posture? That is a great way to get clear on the postures, the practice and allow for the benefits to arise. |
AUTHORS
Scott & Ida are Yoga Acharyas (Masters of Yoga). They are scholars as well as practitioners of yogic postures, breath control and meditation. They are the head teachers of Ghosh Yoga.
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