Jennifer Brilliant » Warm Up Practice

The Wave

jb — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:00:05 +0000

The powerful movement and sequence of a wave is used to create a rippling effect in the body by mimes, break dancers and even ballet dancers (think of the dying swan’s wings). It transfers energy from one point to another. A wave can also be used to clarify our neuromuscular patterning. We can feel for ourselves how the links in our chain of movement work together, or maybe how they don’t.

The joints of the arm – shoulder, elbow, wrist and fingers – move upward, one after the other, slowly at first. Later on in class I alternated the right arm wave with the left arm several times – faster and slower, bigger and smaller. Is yoga aerobic? In the case of this class and all that waving, it is.

After doing the warm up once through on each side through #13, try the second variation which adds some core work.

1. Sukhasana
2. Right Arm Wave: lift right shoulder, elbow, wrist and fingers in sequence one after the other.


	3. Side Bend: with right palm facing up.
4. Sit Vertical: right arm up.
	5. Smooth Forehead: place the heel of your right hand at your hair line.
6. No More Wrinkles: slide the right heel of your hand down your forehead to the space between your eyebrows. Relax the expression on your face.
	7. The Thinker: keeping your forehead cupped in the palm of your hand, place your right elbow on your left knee – or as close as you can get to it, for a relaxed and twisted forward bend. Let your shoulders drip away from your head.
8. Twist Left: sit vertically with back of right hand on outer left knee, right hand behind you on the floor.
	9. Bent Knee Boat: both hands behind on the floor with finger tips facing back.
10. Sukhasana: with prayer hands
	11. Sukhasana: interlace fingers
12. Bow Down: place palms down on ground.
	13. Sukhasana: to repeat.
Variation 2: begins after Bent Knee Boat – #9.
10a. Plant Feet: almost as wide as mat, hands in prayer.
	11a. Roll Down: interlace fingers, press palms forward while rolling down, placing one golden vertebra on the ground after the other.
12a. Lie Down: arms overhead.
	13a. Arms Open
14a. Roll To Side: to right.
	15a. Return to Sukhasana: to begin left side.

Thank you to Lululemon for the bright colors.

Sense Your Self

jb — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:36:29 +0000

The lesson of this warm up is to sense our self without trying to emulate someone else’s ’shape’. We go as far as we need to experience our sensation. At that point of senstion we integrate our awareness of what it feels like to be alive in our bodies and mind while consciously relaxing and breathing fully. There are some variations at #’s 12. 13. & 14. I recommend beginning with the simplest version (12.) and on consecutive repetitions of the warm up try the other variations depending on the level of the students.

	*1. Crossed Legs, Sukhasana:* right shin front.
2. Bow forward: feel the back of your neck as you lower your chin forward.

3. Bowing forward further: roll forward just enough to feel your upper back and middle back.
	4. Bow Deeper: just enough to feel your lower back and then your hips. Intergrate all of your sensation from the neck through the hips.
4. I Don’t Know: shrug your shoulders up high near your ears.
	5. Release Arms Out: to shoulder height.
6. Side Bend: right arm up.
	7. Sit vertically: right arm open.
8. Twist Right: right hand on left knee, left hand behind on floor.
	9. More Twist: bring right shoulder closer to left knee.
10. Deepen Twist.
	11. Christina’s World: turn right knee in for side saddle facing back left corner of mat (or however far you twist).
12. Christina’s World Variation One: left foot is just inside the right knee. Then lower your chest towards the floor.
	13. Christina’s World Variation Two: left foot is now in front of the right knee. Thread your right arm across your chest before lowering it to the floor.
14. Sit Up: walk hands closer to hips.
	15. Circle Right Arm: to floor behind you.
16. Boat: with bent knees.
	17. Boat: with left shin on top of right.
*18. Crossed Legs, Sukhasana:* left shin in front to begin second side.

Clearing A Path

jb — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:13:33 +0000

To begin our practice we must carve out time for ourselves in our schedule. We arrive in the space where we’ll lay out our mat. The space you choose should be somewhat clear. For me that means swiffing the floor before each practice. The process of opening our bodies so that internally we can begin to feel spacious, less tight and crowded within our own skin begins in a clear space. With all of this clearing out we have the possibility to open our minds, like the big sky.

	1. Sukhasana
2. Interlace Fingers: press palms forward.
	3. Lift Arms Overhead
4. Arrow: palms toward each other, index finger pointing up.
	5. Side Bend: to right
6. Side Bend Again: place right hand down.
	7. Twist Right: clasp hands at shoulder height.
8. Shoulder Stretch: bend right elbow, pulling left arm across chest.
	9. Still Twisting: bend both elbows, with hands still connected and palms down.
10. Clear A Path: press both palms away from you, clearing the space around you, face forward.
	11. Open Chest: interlace fingers behind back.
12. Fold Forward
13. Sit Upright: to begin again.

Anchoring A Buoy

jb — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 17:08:30 +0000

When we anchor ourselves firmly into ground, we can allow our heart a feeling of buoyancy. This warm up begins with releasing the inner legs downward, all the way. If you could get your inner legs to touch the ground, it might feel quite reassuring. When our inner legs grip, our hearts and brains grip too. Letting the inner groins go down, down, anchoring down helps us move more freely in the hips. But, it might also provide us with emotional and mental health.


1. & 2. Sukhasana: internally rotate both inner thighs in and down. First right, then left.
	3. Descend Inner Groins: Point fingers downward to where you are anchoring your inner thighs, all the way down.
4. Cross Hands: palms down to begin braiding your arms.
	5. Turn Palms Up
6. Continue Weaving Hands: back out & up, with finger tips leading.
	7. Finger Tips Behind Head: elbows open, maintaining external rotation of arms and arch to the sky (which I forgot in the photo).
8. Cat
	9. Reverse Curl: walk feet forward & roll half way down balancing on the back of your pelvis.
10. Half Boat: which can be done with bent knees as well.
	11. Sukhasana: twisting right
12. Sukhasana: arms up and still twisting
	13. Sukhasana: side bend left
14. Sukhasana Bowing Forward: roll front, hands walk forward.
	15. Sukhasana: to start again.

Sun Salutes… Some Standard and Some Not

jb — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 01:33:50 +0000

This article originally appeared on YogaCityNYC.

As central as the Sun Salute is to so many practices, it seems as if each yoga school, or tradition, teaches its own brand. With so many subtle differences between them you could become a collector… So we did! Some jump, others step. Some include Warrior Poses, others don’t. All of them include a wonderful balance of up and down, in and out, flexion and extension movements to wake up the body, like the sun of a new day.

The series is also a feat of coordination whereby all of the body parts and the breath are meant to begin and end together. It takes a lot of practice and study to make it all happen together.

Although Sun Salutes have so many amazing actions, they still do not cover all the bases; there is no side bending action, and although we extend and flex the hips quite a lot during a Sun Salute, but there is no external rotation at the hip. While we cannot possibly do everything at once, we still want to maximize our time. Underneath this series of movements lays the possibility of creating your own Ultimate Sun Salute.

Your own Ultimate Sun Salute can incorporate new actions that may not be traditional but still connect you to your inner intention. Whether you invent your own Ultimate Sun Salute or practice a more familiar version of this noble movement, remember that in the buzz of our busy lives, we stand on Mother Earth and for a few moments connect to the great gift of life. Through this ancient practice we are connecting with a long line of yogis who have been doing Sun Salutations for generations. — JB

IYENGAR VARIATION
Inhale: Urdhva Hastasana
Exhale: Uttanasana [Separate and lift the sit bones to get more stretch. Unless you’re already stretchy, in which case a stronger action is to draw the sit bones together and down.]
In: Raise Head, Uttanasana with long spine
Ex: Jump to Down Dog
In: Jump lightly onto the tops of feet into Up Dog
Ex: Flick toes under, Chaturanga
In: Up Dog [shoulders above your wrists to keep from sinking your weight into the lower back]
Ex: Down Dog
In: Jump forward, Uttanasana head up
Ex: Uttanasana
In: Urdhva Hastasana
Ex: Tadasana

SUN SALUTE WITH STEP BACK
Tadasana
Inhale: Arms up
Exhale: Swan Dive, Uttanasana
In: Right leg lunge back
Ex: Down Dog
In: Plank
Ex: Knees, Chest, Chin
In: Baby cobra
Ex: Down Dog
In: Down Dog
Ex: Right leg lunges
In: Lengthen and expand lunge
Ex: Uttanasana
In: Reverse swan dive
Ex: Tadasana

SURYA NAMASKAR (A) à la OM YOGA
Tadasana
Inhale: Urdhva Hastasana
Exhale: Swan dive to Uttanasana
In: Uttanasana 2 – Forward bend with long spine
Ex: Jump to Chaturanga
In: Up Dog
Ex: Down Dog
In: Down Dog
Ex: Jump to front of mat
In: Uttanasana 2 — long spine
Ex: Uttanasana
In: Urdhva Hastasana
Ex: Tadasana

SURYA NAMASKAR (B) à la OM YOGA
Tadasana
Inhale: Utkatasana
Exhale: Swan dive to Uttanasana
In: Uttanasana 2 [forward bend with long spine]
Ex: Jump to Chaturanga [use your legs a lot]
In: Up Dog
Ex: Down Dog, place left foot on floor at back of mat, step right foot forward
In: Open arms to side and up for Warrior 1
Ex: Warrior 2
In: Cartwheel hands to floor on either side of front foot
Ex: Chaturanga
In: Up Dog
Ex: Down Dog, place right foot on floor at back of mat, step left foot forward
In: Open arms to side and up for Warrior 1
Ex: Warrior 2
In: Cartwheel hands to floor on either side of front foot
Ex: Chaturanga
In: Up Dog
Ex: Down Dog
In: Down Dog
Ex: Jump to front of mat
In: Uttanasana with long spin
Ex: Uttanasana
In: Utkatasana
Ex: Tadasana

JENNIFER BRILLIANT’S SUN SALUTE
February 2, 2009

Circle your shoulders 2x
Lift your forearms together at shoulder height
Open elbows and place fingertips behind head. Feel a stretch across your chest.
Melt your arms down sequentially – shoulders, elbows, wrists, knuckles, fingertips. Bend knees and continue to feel a stretch across your chest. Peel the banana.
Uttanasana
Right leg lunges
Down Dog
Plank
Up Dog
Vashistasana standing on right foot
Lunge left foot forward
Uttanasana
Utkatasana
Tadasana

JENNIFER BRILLIANT’S SUN SALUTE
February 23, 2009

Urdhva Hastasana
Fold forward, prayer hands down through center to Uttanasana
Right leg lunge
Down Dog
Plank
Chaturanga [keep your chest open and your shoulders level with your elbows]
Baby cobra
Extend right arm forward, palm flat on floor, lift legs
Keeping right palm grounded, roll onto right side, legs slightly up, head up, arms overhead.
Ardha navasana
Roll onto your right side again, with legs, head and arms up.
Shalabhasana
Baby cobra
Down Dog
Right leg lunge, lower back knee to floor
Straighten back leg, step forward to Uttanasana
Urdva hastasana
Tadasana

Getting Creative

Add some elements: a side bend, or Uttanasana with a walk to the side for your hands, Child’s pose just because it can be relaxing.

Take out some elements… like, Chaturanga!

Face the sun… a window or the east.

Hips Square, again

jb — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:17:18 +0000

Many yoga poses require us to keep our hips squarely facing front. This direction is something that we have all heard so many times and have done so many times that we assume we have mastered it. But, it is surprising how often our hips are not yet squared off. This inquiry about the facing of our hips helps us to develop awareness of our physical alignment in space as well as our inner ability to feel our breath evenly on a subtle level. If the hips are not square, then the waist is uneven and the ribs and lungs will be more open on one side. We are challenged with each pose to increase our awareness and make adjustments so that we can be as symmetrical as possible. This Warm up teaches us that in order to keep our hips square different adjustments are required depending on the pose. If you are not sure if your hips are even, just look. Keeping our hips square is a meditation of movement and requires a sharp focus.

	1. Cat
2. Cow (3X)
	3. ½ way down to Knee, Chest, Chin
4. Press back to all fours
	5. Thread the needle: right arm slides down.
6. Stabilization exercise: right arm up at shoulder height, left leg up at hip height. Keep your hips square by lowering your left hip so that it is level with right hip.
	7. Lower Left Leg:. place ball of left foot down behind you, left leg straight. 8. Twist: Circle right arm forward and up to sky, opening chest towards right. Keep hips square here by lifting left hip while turning to right.
9. Knees Together: Keeping right arm up and the twisting action, lower left knee next to right knee.
	10. Sit: lower both heels onto sit bones while twisting right, right arm back behind, left arm to right knee.
11. Return to all fours.
12. Repeat.

Feel Your Prana

jb — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 16:55:46 +0000

This warm up begins lying prone, on my belly. I lay down and relax in a prone Savasana. My head is turned to one side; my shoulders slump comfortably, my arms bend with my hands somewhere around my head. I begin my letting go process and to sense my breath. On the inhale, I feel my belly as it presses into the floor. I adjust to make myself even more comfortable. I relax my jaw, face, throat and shoulders – all the things that might get in the way of feeling my breath roll through me. It is this breath, this Prana that will carry me through my practice, my entire life. If I gain any strength, flexibility or wisdom in my yoga practice, it is through my life force, Prana that it will come. I feel the force underneath it all and take the time at the start of my practice to honor it.

	1. Prone Savasana
2. Shoulder Circles: with forehead down.
	3. Baby Cobra
4. All Fours
	5. Child’s Pose: with back of hands resting on sacrum.
6. Roll Up: to stand on shins.
	7. Shift Feet and Shins: to left
8. Sit Hips: lower hips to the right of your feet, keeping arms up for the more challenging version or lowering your hands to the floor in front of you for support.
	9. Side Bend: right arm up.
*10. Twist/Bharadvajasana:* to right.
	11. Equal Grounding: placing left hand on left ankle, bring top leg forward. Place foot flat, knee up and adjust so that your weight is equal on both sides of the pelvis.

12. Crouching Eagle and Prep: shift weight forward by pressing on the floor behind your hips. Adjust your right shin so that you are sitting on your right heel. Reach your left arm out at shoulder height above your left knee. With the armpit above the knee, as best you can, bring your right arm across on top of your left arm and cross for Eagle arms.
	13. All Fours
14. Knee, Chest, Chin/Ashtang Pranam
	15. Baby Cobra
16. Shoulder Circles: to begin again.

Locking Not Leaking

jb — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 16:03:20 +0000

In this warm up, the wall is your partner. The idea is to prevent energy from leaking through our own physical patterns and misalignments. We use Jalandhara Bandha (Chin Lock) to ‘lock’ our Upward Moving Wind out of our head and move it down towards our heart. This will preserve our energy and direct our focus. The meeting of our winds at our heart gives us the opportunity to become full of compassion.

Watch for ‘leaking’ in Mr. Peanut (image #5 below). Students either unknowingly drop the chin down onto their chest even though this one isn’t Jalandhara Bandha or tend to push the ribs forward into a backbend. I get good mileage out of the image of an Empty Canoe here, which works well for Boat Pose too.

	1. Chaturanga: standing at wall.
2. Down Dog at wall.
	3. Parsvottanasana at wall: stretching arms up.
4. Shoulder Stretch: Turn to right, right hand stays on wall at shoulder height.
	5. Mr. Peanut: Cross left foot (inside foot, closest to wall) in front of right foot, lean away from wall and stretch right arm up to touch wall with fingertips. Press away from wall with right fingertips to open right side.
6. Elbows at wall: turn to face away from wall, placing hands on back like shoulderstand.
	7. Jalandhara Bandha at wall: Inhale. Exhale to lower chin towards chest, Repeat * 3X. Finish with Inhale.
8. Wall Squat
	9. Wall Squat: arms up.
10. Uttanasana: at wall
	11. Uttanasana: pushing away from wall.
12. Uttanasana
	13. Jalandhara Bandha: roll up
14. Tadasana
15. Repeat: second side.

Twist and Shout

jb — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 17:33:42 +0000

This warm up begins standing so that we are up and ready to go. It is also a change from how many yoga classes begin – with sitting or lying down. We twist to cleanse. The arm movements wake up and circulate the shoulders.

1. Right Arm Up
	2. Twist: Circle right arm back at shoulder height, bend knees.
3. I Dream Of Jeannie: Reach left hand to right elbow, right hand to left elbow, still twisting.
	4. Face Forward arms up, holding elbows.
5. Side Bend: Left arm down.
	6. Side Bend: right hand on left ear.
7. Roll half way down: interlace fingers behind back.
	8. Uttanasana: with arms reaching overhead.
9. Roll up: keeping hands high behind you until vertical.
10. Release arms
11. Repeat left side

Follow the Flow, even if you’re not there yet

jb — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 20:16:53 +0000

In this Warm Up, I was working with two ideas. The first idea is about being fully committed, even if what we are doing isn’t exactly ‘right’ yet. When we are on our way to a pose, we can make a full commitment to it, even before we get there. That is what it is to be Following the Flow. This sequence has some postures that require several extra adjustments to arrive into (6. Child’s Pose). And a pose that isn’t really a Full Pose, rather an in-between almost pose (9. Almost Table). I have always enjoyed being as efficient as possible about my movements. It is like a game. But, if I have to make extra movements, then I make no apology for it. I just do it. Students sometimes believe that they should miraculously be perfect, with all their parts in place. This Warm Up is a lesson in being content to make all the necessary adjustments to get where we are going, in a fully committed way.

The second idea is being clear about spatial orientation. When I taught this Warm Up for the first time, I reviewed the ‘names’ for the different facings so that the students and I would have a common language and understanding. For example: the front of the mat, the back of the mat, the long, right edge and the long, left edge. I also talked about the different diagonal directions.

1. Sukhasana: Sit with your legs crossed, right shin forward.
	2. Arms Up: Reach your arms out to the side and up overhead into a big prayer pose.
3. Lazy Jane: Unfold your right leg slightly out to the side so that your right inner thigh nestles against the sole of your left foot. Bow forward.
	4. Side Saddle Side Bend: Bend your right leg and turn it inward so that you are sitting side saddle facing the left edge of your mat. Lift your left arm up for a side bend toward your right, which is now the front of your mat.
5. Twist to Back: Sit upright and lower your left arm. Twist to your left so that your right hand comes just past or onto your left knee, while your left hand reaches behind you on the floor. Your hips face the long left edge of your mat and your chest is turning towards the back edge of your mat.
	6. Child’s Pose: Bring both legs underneath you for Child’s Pose facing profile to the left with your hands on the floor just in front of your knees.
7. Cow: Lift your face, then your throat, your chest and navel into an arch. Straighten your arms and lift onto your fingertips.
	8. Cat: Curl your spine round bringing your tail towards your head.
9. Almost Table: Sit to the left of your legs, place your right foot flat on the floor and your hands flat down behind you with your fingertips facing forward. Lift your hips, while your left leg is still turned outward and is resting down.
	10. Table: Place your left foot flat now as you continue to lift your hips and chest high.
11. Table with Leg: Lift your left leg straight up.
	12. Sukhasana: Lower your buttocks to the floor to sit with crossed legs, placing the left leg in last. Repeat from 2. starting with left Lazy Jane and turning to the right for the Side Saddle Side Bend.