Yoga for Climbers: How to Stretch, Strengthen and Climb Higher (2016)
CHAPTER 6
FINDING A YOGA CLASS
I WAS MINDING MY own practice in class. My sister was with me; we were there to move, breathe, and get a break from the family vacation we were on in Taiwan. I was content to be in a challenging yoga class under the watchful eye of Patrick Creelman, an experienced teacher for the Pure Yoga franchise in Asia.
The class was up in Wheel pose. Patrick came over to me as I was getting ready to take my Wheel. “Move your feet closer together,” he said. I felt a twinge of annoyance. I knew his instructions would make the pose harder. He used his feet to inch mine closer together. I went up. Yep, harder. I also felt the backbend go deeper. My legs were shaking from the intensity.
We came down, and he called for another. Out of habit or rebelliousness, I can’t say for sure, I inched my feet out wider. He came back to me and said, “Bring your feet closer together.” I got the message.You’re strong enough. You can do this.
You can learn many things in a home yoga practice; with breath, a focus on your feet and alignment, and a quiet space, you can move through a deeper understanding of your body, and shift your energy and mental space. It’s the same energy you feel when you are focused on a climb, easily making moves you have struggled with before. You focus, you breathe, and you move upward.
But at some point, everyone needs to get checked, as Patrick told the class that day. A teacher is like the hardcore friend who tells you that you’re capable of doing the next level of climb, or doesn’t tell you what the level is to begin with. You don’t think, you just go.
When I encounter a yoga teacher like Patrick, I remember why it’s so important to be held accountable. If I practice alone, I can’t always see the next step in my practice. Or, even if I do see it, I talk myself out of doing it. Without anyone there to keep an eye on me, I might give up on myself. Practicing with a great teacher is a way of giving back to yourself. You will learn new poses, see new possibilities in your practice, and become immersed in a new community—another impactful reason to take a class.
I have practiced with hundreds of people at trainings. The words of my teachers landed in my body and chest, and opened me up in ways I had never felt before, physically and energetically. I remember feeling at times in final rest a deep sense of freedom; contentment; and true, uplifted joy akin to being outside challenging my body on a cool, perfect day with the people I love most in the world.
A guided practice also offers a different kind of freedom: You don’t have to think about the next pose or where to move your feet or hands. A teacher leads the way.
As you take on these practices and get stronger, the next step will be finding a place to elevate your practice. While it is useful to understand the basics of the types of yoga available, it is more important to find a place that fits with your overall intention for your practice. With so many options available, the search can feel challenging. Start with the easy options, such as a nearby community center, your office, or the classes at your gym. If none of those feel quite right, take advantage of a yoga studio’s introductory offer, lasting from one week to one month, giving you a chance to take classes from multiple instructors and see if the studio community is a fit.
If one doesn’t work out, try another. It’s important to find the one that suits you. Follow the four steps below to define what you want to get from a yoga class. Stay open to the process!
STEP 1: CHOOSE AN ENVIRONMENT
Identify what kind of environment you want to practice in. For some people, the convenience of a workplace class trumps practicing in a conference room! For others, classes at the gym work well. For those of you looking for a deeper quiet with like-minded people, a yoga studio may be the best fit. No matter where you go, try more than one teacher at a location, particularly if the place offers different styles.
WORKPLACE
Some workplaces now offer their employees yoga classes. These classes are frequently subsidized and so may be offered at a lower drop-in rate than they would be at a yoga studio. You will also get to know your coworkers in a different space. I taught a corporate class where the CEO showed up every week. You never know who will be practicing next to you!
GYM
Most classes are included in your gym membership, so it’s a convenient, low-cost way to experience a guided class with a teacher who can check your form. Many climbing gyms are now offering regular yoga classes. Drawbacks may include a louder environment than you’d like, with people coming and going during the session. Take advantage of a class after an evening climb.
YOGA STUDIOS
Yoga studios offer more daily classes and likely more variety in style than the gym or your workplace, although some specialize. The environment is designed to be clear and calming with an intention to create community. The best yoga studios foster powerful communities where teachers and students know one another, connect on a personal level, and are part of each other’s daily lives. If you are looking to deepen your practice, a studio also generally offers workshops and trainings to give you more guidance.
STEP 2: IDENTIFY A STYLE THAT SPEAKS TO YOU
As yoga has exploded in popularity in the United States, the number of styles continues to expand. From a gentle yin practice to relax your body to flow practices where people pop upside down into handstands at every opportunity, the choices are vast. The following guidelines are broad, but will get you started. The following styles are listed roughly in order from more vigorous practices to more gentle, though that may vary depending on your idea of challenge!
HEATED VERSUS NOT HEATED
Heated yoga rooms are fairly common, particularly in yoga studios. There’s a wide variety in approach. Bikram or Hot Hatha practices generally reach temperatures of at least 100 degrees. Most power or vinyasa flow practices, such as the ones you have learned in this book, are taught with some heat, generally in the mid-80s to mid-90s. Unheated classes are taught at room temperature.
The idea behind heat is that it opens your body and helps you sweat to detoxify. Some people love the intense rinse of a heated class. Others prefer to build heat internally through the practice. You may discover you love a big, sweaty practice. Or, you may find you need a balance between the two. Keep in mind some people find their bodies do not tolerate heated practices well.
FLOW
Ashtanga is the original flow practice. Sun Salutation A and B as you have learned in this book are rooted in this style, as is vinyasa flow, or connecting poses with breath. Many teachers credit Ashtanga for teaching them discipline and flow—it is considered an extremely rigorous practice.
Many different types of descriptions of practices will use the word “flow,” but they all are likely to rely on a connection of breath and poses moving together. Some focus on one breath per movement through the practice, while other practices allow more time for holding poses, more common in “power yoga” classes. Some types of practices work with a set sequence, such as Ashtanga and Baptiste Power Yoga, while others will sequence to work different areas of the body or build to a particular pose.
HATHA
All yoga is a hatha practice, but these days hatha usually indicates a nonflow practice; the best known of these, Bikram, founded by Bikram Choudhury, features classes held in intense heat. The studios use mirrors for you to focus your gaze, and the Bikram sequence is a set series of twenty-six poses that stays the same regardless of the teacher.
Iyengar, created by yoga master B. K. S. Iyengar, is another nonflow practice that moves from pose to pose, working deeply and precisely into alignment with a focus on healing the body and mind through poses. An Iyengar practice uses many props and fine-tunes alignment with long holds.
KUNDALINI
Kundalini means “serpent power” and is an energetic practice that might include waving your hands or closing and opening your hands over and over. It also includes meditation, poses, mantra, and breathing techniques.
GENTLE OR YIN
Also known as restorative yoga, this style is geared toward restoring your body from intense athletic days, or for people with injuries or other physical challenges who want to breathe and move at a slower, modified pace. A yin practice will take you through long deep holds, while a gentle class could show up as a modified flow practice or moving from pose to pose. If you climb intensely almost every day, consider taking a restorative practice once a week.
STEP 3: IDENTIFY TEACHERS WHO ELEVATE YOU
When a teacher is great, he inspires me to hold a pose longer or take the extra Wheel, especially when I don’t want to. If a teacher is great and funny, he can make me laugh. I love those classes. When it comes to your yoga practice, a great teacher can be the difference between staying committed and giving up.
The first step to looking for a teacher is looking at her credentials. Make sure she comes from an established yoga training program. In addition to training, experience is a helpful indicator. The more time a teacher has spent understanding the body, how to read a class of different body types and experiences, and how to speak to the body in a way that makes sense to you, the more impact she will have on you and your practice. Most yoga teachers also assist in poses to support your alignment, and a great assist can make the difference between struggle and freedom in a pose.
Beyond that, a great teacher resonates with you personally. You may find you prefer the sequences taught by a particular teacher. You may find you need a funny teacher to get through a challenging class. You may be drawn to a gentle teacher who gives you space to grow, or you may find yourself going back to a teacher who has heart and passion to challenge you to new depth in your poses.
Lastly, find more than one teacher. Every teacher, whether at a community center near your home or at a yoga studio, has something to share. You may be surprised when a teacher you initially didn’t like grows on you. Listen and learn along the way, and you will not only find new teachers to support you, you’ll learn something about yourself.
STEP 4: CREATE YOUR YOGA COMMUNITY
Like a climbing buddy who encourages you to sport climb on a day you considered staying in bed, a community can help you stick with your yoga practice. As you search for a place to practice, observe the community. Do people chat before and after class? Does the person at the front desk know your name? Does the teacher ask people to introduce themselves to each other?
You may be tempted to isolate yourself in practice, particularly when you are new. But practicing with a teacher also means practicing with other people, and community is a powerful element of yoga. Like the other climbers who became instant friends because you shared the same route, a class full of like-minded people may be just what you need to thrive.
