Cultivate a body that is healthy, strong and full of vitality.



#LiberateThyself - Today's Mantra is: I choose to cultivate a body that is healthy, strong and full of vitality. The pose is #Astavakrasana or#eightanglepose

I am thankful that Bendy Yoga Skelly pushed me into doing this Challenge. I am an Ashtanga Yogi. Or I used to be, until the word Ashtanga got to be associated with all that jumping around popularized by Sri Krishnamacharya Pattabhi Jois. Don't get me wrong. I have enormous respect for his style of yoga. I love @kinoyoga, Matthew Sweeney, Gregor Maehle and many beautiful Ashtangis, it is just that some of us who were following the eight limbs had to stop calling ourselves Ashtanga Yogis because the term now had a new meaning which was a bit more athletic. So, as and old Ashtanga Yogi I have had an emphasis, especially as I have gotten older, on self study, concentration, meditation and the like. The physical postures, not so much. I still teach once a week, so I can't go too long without busting a move or two, but this last few days has been very much like getting off the couch to do some yoga for me. And here is a magnificent sidebar to all this. I am finding that spending a couple or three hours practicing in the evenings to warm up and then do these advanced poses is having a wonderful effect on my attitude and sense of well being. I feel healthier, stronger and more full of vitality and not just that. My mind is clearer and more serene. I am having more success identifying with the observer and witnessing myself move through things. I am getting caught up less in all my usual worrying and fretting. One thing I was taught a long time ago is that the eight limbs are not like a ladder. You don't complete one and move on to the next but any one or more than one can be in play at any time. I see them layed out on a spiral or multiple spirals. I'm enjoying spiraling into the physical postures this week and I'm feeling like that is informing all the rest in a wonderful way.

Thanks again to Purple Skelly for motivating me and to our hosts and sponsors for creating this opportunity for growth. And thanks to the multitudes of yogis who meet out here and make this a fun an thriving place to connect and explore.

My friend Skelly did not want me to post this picture. She thought it was too humiliating. She can be very protective like that. It is one of the things I love about her. Still, when I saw this, I laughed out loud. It was some of the most fun I had had while doing this challenge. I showed this "outtake" to another friend and he laughed too. That clinched it. I needed to share this photo on my feed so hopefully hundreds more can laugh, smile and generally enjoy a light moment. Peace Out! Share the Love. and don't take things too seriously.... #LiberateThyself - Today's Mantra is: I choose to cultivate a body that is healthy, strong and full of vitality. The pose is #Astavakrasana or#eightanglepose
This post is part of a series! To learn more about this Yoga challenge and win great prizes, get the rules here: Instagram Yoga Challenge

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