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(Return to
Mindfulness off the Mat list)
Your eyes don’t
betray you; both of those words are spelled and pronounced exactly the same.
The use of the words, “ashtanga yoga,” can be a point of confusion, because
it can refer to two entirely different things. The original ashtanga yoga
was and is an eight-step path structured towards helping to bring a
penultimate sense of inner peace. That “inner peace” can be interpreted more
philosophically—i.e., a life filled with the utmost of contentedness; or, it
can be interpreted more spiritually—i.e., a sense of union or connection
with the Divine (not specific to any religion). Either way, what we do when
we hold a pose is but one step in this eight-step path. Other steps—many of
which can also be seen in yoga class—include concentration of the mind,
breathwork, honoring your comfort zone (this is sometimes referred to as
“surrendering the ego”), and meditation. Not everyone chooses to practice
this more involved yoga format, but it does help provide a structured how-to
for those seeking to pursue the more spiritual aspects of yoga. This
ashtanga yoga was first devised by an Indian sage named Patanjali, in a
volume known as the Yoga Sutras.
Fast-forward at
least five hundred years to the 20th century: a popular yoga teacher from
the Indian city of Mysore has designed a style of hatha yoga centered around
the ancient Vedic (short definition: the Vedas are ancient writings that are
part of yoga’s long and complex history) ritual known as the sun salutation.
In this format, the sun salutation is used as the warm-up, and is performed
in extremely high repetition, encouraging the profusion of sweat. The
format’s creator, Patthabi Jois, confident that this rigorous form of yoga
by itself satisfied all eight steps towards inner peace, heretofore titles
his style of yoga “ashtanga yoga.” These days, the term is often
interchanged with “power yoga.” If you aren’t already confused, here’s one
more twist: not all forms of yoga that use the sun salutation are considered
“power” or “ashtanga”….the use of the sun salutation is universally seen
throughout many forms of hatha yoga.
I am often asked
about my assessment of the “power” ashtanga yoga. While I do believe that
for every person, there exists a style of yoga that can meet his/her needs
and preferences—power yoga included, the exercise physiologist in me
suspects that by and large, this style probably presents more risks than
benefits to most people. The more rapid, intense pace leaves precious little
time to assess your position, make any necessary modifications, and allow
the deep stretch benefits to occur. Also, the over-reliance on any one
posture or technique—in this case, the sun salutation, runs headlong into a
principle known as muscle adaptation…..meaning sooner or later, your body
will adapt to the same movements performed repeatedly, and progress will
slow while the risk of overuse injury goes up. For this reason, it is best
to include a wide variety of postures and techniques—certainly, the sun
salutation can be among them—to ensure the most complete training of the
body’s 600+ muscles. And if you do end up taking up power yoga, just be sure
to pace yourself; never let an instructor cajole you (either verbally or
physically) into a position or duration that exceeds your body’s comfort
zone. -ep
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