Sivananda.

Class: Sivananda Yoga

Date: October 20, 2010

Time & Location: In Class

On Wednesday, we had Arlene Vogt visit Yoga class. I found the practice very similar to what I've been experiencing the past few weeks, but with a little twist to it. It was much more relaxing. The fact that I was insanely tired that morning might have been a factor, but I found myself really dazing out during practice. One thing I noticed about Sivananda Yoga is the frequent savasana's that are practiced throughout. We would do one set of multiple postures three or four times, and then go into savasana. This really allowed the body to completely relax in between movements, so I never got too tired and overwhelmed. This had its positives and negatives. On the plus side- I got to dream for about two minutes every ten minutes, but I never got the physical satisfaction I normally get after practicing. I felt like it was a bit too mellow for me.

The one thing that frustrated me the most during practice was that I couldn't go into halasana (plow pose). I have done it before with little to no effort, but I just couldn't no matter how hard I pushed myself. There was also a point where we were doing a pranayama pose where we covered one nostril with one finger and left the other open. We then held our breath all together and let it out. I found this really relaxing. There were points where I forgot what I was doing and would completely let go of my nose in an awkward daze. Overall, I found Sivananda Yoga interesting. I also really enjoyed Arlene's ability to demonstrate her postures and really engage us in the practice.