Bikram Yoga: "This Shit Works."

I know, I was quiet all day yesterday. That's because I was at an all-day Bikram Yoga posture clinic.

The clinic was held in Harvard Square and led by Craig Villani, Bikram's Director of Teacher Education at Bikram's Yoga College of India. And for about six hours, we listened to Craig lecture on the 26 postures we do in Bikram. We also did some of the poses so that he could help critique us.

Here are some of things we learned from Craig about a few poses...

• Pranayama: This should be a continuous breath. You breathe in through your nose for six counts, then out through your mouth for six counts. But the flow of the breath should never stop. He called is "circular breathing." So, no holding your breath!
• Half-Moon: Proper form is more important than depth. Shoulders and back should not be further back than your hips. Things should be in a straight line from the side. And you should not bend yourself to the side. As you push your hips out in on direction, your upper body should stretch in the opposite direction, and will naturally bend deeper. Craig said we should focus on the outer arc to deepen the inner arc.
• Awkward Pose: Like many people, my arms get tired quickly. Craig said the trick here is to focus on stretching your arms out, and that will ease the exhaustion. Also, he said that by keeping tension in your arms, you take tension out of what your legs are doing, which allows you to go deeper.
• Balancing Stick: Craig admitted that even though Balancing Stick is verbalized as being a "10-second posture", it is not. "They are lying when they say it's only 10 seconds." Then he gave an imaginary teacher two middle fingers. (It was hilarious!) He said that every teacher is different, but that the pose is held much longer than 10 seconds... Which, if you've practiced Bikram, you know. He said to block out of your mind the 10 second bit. And just focus on keeping your body tight, and your heart slightly below your hips. He mentioned that this posture is called the "mini heart attack" because it works the horseshoe artery in your heart. When you work your heart in this posture, your heart rate shoots up. This is your cardio.
• Triangle: He said the important thing to remember in this posture is to stretch your arms in opposite directions. "Stretch up to touch your toes," he said. Which, he admitted, doesn't make sense when you hear it verbalized. But when you do the posture, it does. As you stretch your arms in opposite directions, your body starts to stretch out, bringing you down to touch your toes with the proper arm. "If you can, you must touch your toes," he commanded.
• Full Locust: Craig's advice here was "stretch your arms out to lift yourself up." I think I am odd though... Most people seem to dread Full Locust most. Where as I dread Locust the most. Having my elbows under my stomach makes me want to vomit. And when we get to Full locust, I am like, "Yay!!!!"

Overall, it was a fantastic experience. Craig had great advice, and his delivery was coupled a really funny sense of humor. Here are some pieces of advice and quotes Craig gave us throughout the class (some were quotes he credited to others, but thought we would find useful as well)...

• "Eyes are your primary motivator. Where your eyes go, your body follows."
• "Fearlessness versus Recklessness... Be fearless, not reckless."
• "Yoga isn't easy. It should feel easy and good when you are done."
• "Which sounds better, 90 years of pain, or 90 minutes of pain?"
• "This shit works."