We‘re into the last 8 days of February‘s YWA BRIDGE calendar, not sure how that happened? Didn’t we just complete BREATH a few days ago?
Time flies when you’re having Yoga fun!
So how is everyone keeping up with their Yoga practice? I’m liking BRIDGE, but many prefer the January challenges. So what are your Yoga practice plans beyond February?
Calendar link for BRIDGE is here:
Day 21 PRAN#*#>€$ POTION: (see what I did there?) anyway, much easier practice than it’s pronunciation suggests. Lovely breathing practice. I had actually done this one before during Jan’s BREATH, as I think it was linked. And she filmed some years ago in a studio in London! So it was lovely to think she was in the country and doing this live.
Last week? Crikey I agree, it feels like we only just started this one ...
It took me a while to get into the slower pace of Bridge but I like it. I’ve noticed a lot of focus on planks/side planks etc and my upper arms are much more toned. Wondering if each of the months has a theme like this? Or maybe I’m only noticing them because I find side planks delightfully challenging. Plank starting to almost feel like a resting posture 😂
I’ll see what March looks like, but I’m leaning towards sticking with the monthly plans for now. This month I did sometimes hop around a bit (ie doing two on a day off, switching a short one for a day when I was working etc), and that seems to fit in nicely with my schedule
Day 22 - 10 min Yoga Care: ultra-short and easy. Too short for us, really. We used it as a prep and added another workout routine afterwards.
Yes Bridge has flown by. I’ve enjoyed it I must say. Ordinarily her calendars balance each other out. This month was gentle with a few fiery practices, next month might be the complete opposite and she might have us begging for mercy at the end! 😅 She’s good at mixing things up. 😀
😳
So glad you're enjoying the Bridge- injury interfered with my sporadic fun with breath, not to mention running, but I'll be back when recovered..... can't miss out on any more fun than necessary...... 😁
😅💪👍🏽 wishing you a speedy recovery! 💛
Day 23 - HEAD & HEART RESET: ... also called, “give your feet some love”! 💙Great practice. I’m getting there with planking but only when transitioning from down dog. The deadlift to plank from Cobra is still very far in the distance.
Day 24 - 6min YOGA FOR HIPS: a ultra quicky. But every little helps. We added the runner’s week exercises afterwards.
For a while I've had a suspicion that some of the postures were aggregating my knee. Last week the day after a run my knee was fine not really even any stiffness which had been the main post run feeling, and I deliberately I didn't do any yoga for a couple of days, knee is OK.
Then I did a couple of YWA shorter sessions and the knee complained a little. Mondays are my usual zoom yoga practice during a one legged standing posture another knee twinge even though all the movement was with the other leg. With the YWA I suspect the transitions from lunge to warrior where we twist the foot from facing forward to slide facing. Sorry its difficult to explain positions in words!
Anyway I'll pick and choose my sessions, I've been adding in a couple of different Pilates to strengthen glutes and knees instead of the yoga which I think is most important for me right now.
I'm hoping in time to get back to daily yoga as I was really enjoying it. I'll keep reading your reviews as it's useful to know what the practice involves makes it easier to pick what's right for me 😊👍
Namaste 🙏 🧘♂️
I think I’m about to drop a list of 5 exercises targeted at knees, and due to my knee niggles I do tend to go back to them repeatedly. But have you come across this exercise? youtu.be/1iODncOLJnk
Last week I finally systematically tried to figure out where my reoccurring knee niggles Came from, and I think I have identified these resulting from ITB issues, so started these exercises. And even already after 5 days or so, it feels as if they are making a difference.
But I also now realise the multitude of different sources for knee pain. But might be worth a try?
I've just watched it and its really interesting I like that he clearly explains the why rather than just saying how to fix it.
Interestingly on the first Runderwear Pilates session there were several similar exercises to first one he shows on the video and I could really feel that those glute muscles need strengthening it was hard and painful ! I've been trying to do the session several times a week, so I'll look forward to your knee post for more to add.
My knee pain is in the centre below the kneecap , from my phone physio appointment it was identified as Patella Tendinopathy. From what I've read it seems to match up with my issue so I'm fairly sure that the physio was right despite the rather weird way it had to be diagnosed. She thought that I had probably just done too much too quickly and looking back now I realised in November I went from 2 runs a week and started to up my distance on my long run. What was good was that when I described how I'd built up my runs up to November and the exercises I had been doing prior to the appointment she said that I had been doing everything right so I just want to say that a big THANKYOU to these forums as they have been my guide on this journey.
So now I am determined to build back up more slowly and have gone back to 2 runs a week and work on strengthening, gradually increasing back to where I was before Xmas.
Ooops sorry for such a long reply 😆
So interesting to read, and sending you recovery vibes! 💛
I just dropped the knee post at healthunlocked.com/strength... but it sounds like you’re on your way. And your experience confirms to me that sometimes we do all the right things and we have to just be more patient with ourselves.
The Runderwear Pilates was also a bit too much on some fronts and I reverted to my Yoga and other shorter workouts.
I've just found that there's an Athlean x video explaining all about patella tendinopathy its really aimed at people squatting to lift weight buts its fascinating as he explains the knee structure and reason for the pain with the aid of a skeleton .... made me wince ! It also confirms my theory about weak glutes.
So thanks for sharing his other video x
I’m with you on the knee front! I’m sure that too many years of hopping in and out of cars as a community midwife, plus ‘saving my back’ with squatting, and just generally kneeling on floors in weird positions, have not helped my knees!
I have real difficulty with the lunge/warrior moves...I can’t put all the pressure on the bent front knee, so have to put my back knee on the mat...but that hurts, so I have to use a pillow....which then gets in the way 😬😫
I’m going to take a look at the links above/below as well!
For me I think it's the twisting of the foot between lung and warrior that causes the problem.Like you I think my knees problems are partly caused by a working, in my case walking mainly on hard unyielding floors.
We'll just have to find adjustments or alternate poses I guess.
DAY 25 -YOGA FOR FINGERS, HANDS AND WRIST CARE: Just what it says. First time I ever did workouts for my fingers on the mat, but should have done these years (cough! decades) ago when I was still playing piano/keyboard regularly! 🎹🎶 (And was she confused when she mentioned we’ll go on to all fours after this?) 🤷🏽♀️
Day 26 - YOGA FOR WHEN YOU ARE STUCK: Hubby went volunteering at the vaccine centre and I indulged in a 7.5k this morning (took a day off) and it was a beauty of a snail run.
But by afternoon really needed something to stretch my legs. I wasn’t stuck but enjoyed it anyway.
And I just wanted to do a bit of down dog afterwards for my legs. (Wow, did I see that coming! I WANTED to do down dogs and they felt so so good!)
Happy yoga-ing everyone!
I've been doing a catch up today. I really like the hand and fingers practice, I've got the beginnings of arthritis in some finger joints so it's a good practice to have saved.Also did the 6 minutes for hips - so quick I now can't remember it 😂
I really like this last one, I was feeling a bit stuck (wanted to run but being sensible as my knee was niggling more than usual) and yes it did help 👍👍
DAY 27 - YOGA KISS: Hubby and I saving up this 40min practice for this evening as we’re (virtually) at a conference. But looking forward to a longer session and seeing how that feels.
I did the last one today instead (day 28, fill your cup), because I did a 7km run and my legs are jelly. I want to do the Yoga Kiss one tomorrow when I’ll have less muscle fatigue to really do it! Today my transitions from down dog to lunge was not happening so I don’t think I’d make the most of the long practice 😂
I’ve been mostly following along, mixing and matching...dropping ones on run days when I’ve been forewarned (knees!), and repeating some favourites.
Surprisingly (or not)...I find I have left out some of the longer ones...#14 (36 mins), and #23 (24 mins). I also had two training days this week, which totally threw me off my game, having been retired since August! So I haven’t done last night’s either.
Part of the problem is that it’s not possible for me to practice until after 10pm, so...
I will pick one for tonight though...promise!
I did #23 ☺️
Have you seen the March calendar? 🙌🏼 🧘🏻♀️
Ohhhh it’s out. Thank you, I wondered when it’d drop.
Not sure who is still doing daily YWA on the monthly calendar (I’m actually enjoying it and will continue) but will drop the monthly calendar as a post. And that will keep everyone who pops in and out of th calendar together.
FINAL DAY 28: FILL YOUR CUP: That’s it folks, final day of February’s BRIDGE! A nice intermediate (in my books) 20 min practice, a bit of planking, a bit of down dogging, cobra (I’m slowly getting the transition into a - for me - reasonably recognisable plank), and some lovely floor and mountain pose work. Interlocking hands that way was a new one!
A nice way to end this month! Saw that next months is full of medium length practices, so I have a feeling I’ll look back at Bridge as an easier month.
Hope everyone enjoyed sharing in the daily practice as much as I did!
And we’ll done everyone for showing up on the mat!
Can’t believe I’ve done 58 days straight of yoga! At the same time if I try to skip a day I feel like I’m missing something, so it’s become part of my daily routine. Loving this and grateful to this community for helping keep me accountable. Running 2x/week and daily yoga has become my drug. If I can get into adding a cycle once per week I think I’ll have achieved all my fitness goals.
