Winter Prep

I know no one wants to hear that it's going to get cold and dark for the next 6 months, but sometimes the truth is hard to hear. Last Sunday, September 22nd marked the autumnal equinox. There are two equinoxes a year and they are determined by the Earth's angle to the sun, just as the solstices. The current, and ever shifting angle, is zero. The Earth's surface faces the sun's surface directly.

 

 

Therefore we experience 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night. Equal. Equinox. You get the idea.

 

This week's class came to me in a moment of silence. In an attempt to practice what I preach last week, the image of a pose I haven't practiced in a long time came to my mind. It's a modification. We will be trying it this week. It is a hip-py kind of pose which lead me to strive to develop a class which centers around hip work.

 

It was recently we worked to let go of baggage that prevents growth with a hip centered asana practice. Since we are headed into a season fraught with stagnation, we will practice once again to open the hips and release any emotional stagnation held there. It will not be a repeat of the last hip class, but a refinement. The hips not only are emotionally charged, they are physically challenging. A majority of people have jobs that require them to sit. If sitting for extended periods of time isn't in your job description, maybe standing is. Regardless, repetitive physical movements result in overuse in some muscles and weakness in others. This leads to stiffness. A lack of flexibility and habitual postures lead to chronic pain.

 

One of the things I like about the practice of yoga is that the body, mind (including emotions), and energetic components of an individual are considered inexorably linked. So, when I say a lack of flexibility leads to chronic pain, it exists on each level of person. When you utilize the same neural pathways you strengthen them, and reduce the chances you'll create or utilize new ones. This is lack of flexibility. This can lead to chronic choices which keep you stagnant. If you look at similar situations and react the same way each time, this leads to emotional stagnation.

 

This is why it is so important to acquire and maintain awareness. When we become aware of our habits we can then make gradual steps to change them; to increase our flexibility and become less susceptible to the kind of trouble that comes when we experience winter. It is easier to feel sad, unmotivated, discouraged, and any number of negative emotions when winter sets in, especially if you're not an outdoor winter activity kind of person. By practicing movement regularly now, you increase your chances of movement when you're lacking motivation to do so. Movement leads to motivation, increasingly positive moods, and, as you practice choosing actions that are healthy for you, you will increase the likelihood that you'll choose that way again.

 

Finally, winter and it's potential troubles are a result of a lack of light. What is important to remember is that you carry, create and emit your own light at all times. Just as the calm and spaciousness you experience after a yoga practice is yours to experience in times of stress, the light you are made of is yours to use even in the darkest of times, both literally and figuratively.

 

Namaste.