This November, we have now the enjoyment of studying from Annie Carpenter at our Impartial Bay and Bondi studios. Discover out about Annie’s upcoming packages right here.
Annie created her faculty, SmartFlow Yoga, over 15 years in the past and is lovingly often known as ‘The Trainer’s Trainer’. Having spent lengthy durations of time practising and learning Integral, Iyengar and Ashtanga Yoga, Annie believes that there are various great approaches to the apply and that we are going to all discover precisely what we’d like as our lives and our bodies evolve.
The dedication to apply is the essence. What we apply will develop and mature.
One lesson from Annie’s coaching significantly drove this dwelling for me when she had us think about the chances that come up after we keep nonetheless for a bit longer.
We’ve all been there. Holding Warrior 2, quad trembling, breath heavy, sweat dripping. “Yet one more spherical of breath…!” the trainer directs, and the tip of that final exhale can’t come quickly sufficient. As a lot as we love a flowing, dynamic Vinyasa class, there are items in these moments after we keep in longer holds. Once we stay within the pose for longer than we might need to, giving the form the prospect to disclose its classes to us.
Generally the lesson might be so simple as realising you might be stronger than you assume. On different days, the lesson might be to take heed to your physique and relaxation. If you happen to can not maintain a clean, regular cadence of breath, are you able to enable your self to take a step again so you may return to a spot of equanimity and calm? Or are you all the time pushing for extra?
Remaining in poses for longer holds helps us really feel that dance of steadiness and ease, or what yogis check with as sthira sukha. The place is that fringe of discovering our energy, whereas not over-efforting in methods we don’t have to?
Discovering sthira sukha, discovering steadiness, adjustments from everyday, class to class, pose to pose.
In practising staying a bit longer, you may think about among the following:
- Can I keep when issues get arduous?
- Can I take heed to myself in deeper and extra delicate methods? What do I would like as we speak?
- Can I discover the quiet even in intense poses?
- Can I stay regular and calm by way of the poses I like and the poses I discover troublesome?
In our trendy world, we’re so typically frequently on the go, overworking ourselves and shifting from one factor to the subsequent with out pause. Yoga presents us a welcome distinction to the remainder of our lives. Repeatedly shifting on too rapidly to the subsequent factor can maintain us from experiencing true pleasure, true peace, and true presence. Once we enable ourselves to remain in stillness, keep within the pose maybe a bit longer than we’re habitually snug with, that’s when the magic of yoga can unfold. If we keep nonetheless lengthy sufficient, we’d additionally uncover extra about ourselves. That is one other deeper apply of yoga – self-study, or svadhyaya.
Earlier than speeding into the brand new yr with all the brand new belongings you need to begin doing immediately, think about slowing down, pausing, and asking your self:
- What’s right here proper now?
- What am I grateful for proper now?
- What’s already unfolding in entrance of me?
Yoga presents us these practices that convey us again to the current second again and again. If we need to discover the road of sthira sukha, all that’s required is that we maintain unrolling our yoga mats and discovering ease within the uneasy.
Annie’s SmartFlow coaching was an exquisite reminder that oftentimes advancing our apply doesn’t imply mastering handstands or pincha mayurasana (forearm stand)!
“Whereas we could also be practising extra ‘superior’ asana, the advancing of our apply is definitely revealed by sustained delicate focus and the inclusion of extra limbs of yoga,” says Annie.
Advancing our apply may imply softening within the occasions after we’d often maintain pushing. It might imply including pranayama to the tip of our yoga lessons. It might imply utilizing the questions above as journaling prompts, working towards svadhyaya. Or, it would imply merely staying nonetheless for longer and making it to our mats extra constantly.
We hope you’ll be a part of us in 2024 (or proceed to hitch us!), deepening your understanding of this stunning apply along with us.
You’ll be able to be a part of our Head of Schooling and Lead Trainer Coach, Gina Brescianini, for an additional Annie Carpenter Motion Masterclass coaching utilising SmartFlow Rules in 2024! You can even discover her instructing SmartFlow-themed lessons in our Bondi & Manly studios.
Written by Katie Tetz
Studio Enterprise Supervisor | Ever Inspiring Author & Yoga Trainer for Energy Residing Australia
