Gaiam Yoga Club

So I’m using the trial membership (which by all accounts means I’m probably in for a month) and thus far I’m… undecided. I think Colleen does good description and then randomly throws in some bullshit woo-woo terms (“curl the tailbone”? What the blue fuck does THAT mean? Your tailbone is ALREADY CURVED motherfucker!). I’ve listened to most of the standing pose stuff and will check out the audio for mountain/triangle this afternoon.

Okay- another peeve maybe. In talking about Down Dog, Yee is all about legs and ignoring the arms. I’ve found if you engage your shoulders, you’re less likely to get arm fatigue and more easily can keep weight out of the wrists. You do that by sliding your shoulder blades down your back (imagine dragging the tips of your scapulas toward your hipbones) as well as imagining you’re holding a golf ball in each armpit. That causes external rotation of the biceps/triceps and pulls the arm into the shoulder socket. There’s more muscle support for the INCREDIBLY DELICATE shoulder joint which helps to prevent injury. It’s also great upper body strength building but FEELS far more solid when you’re lurking in Down Dog. Also, very little emphasis pushing down through the fingers and fingertips rather than letting the weight sit in the base of the palm (bad for the wrist).

Last nit: Dear Colleen, it’s STANCE not STRIDE. Stride means that you’re MOVING rather than STANDING STILL. Thanks. Yg