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Adarsh Williams

Adarsh Williams

阿 大 Ashtanga Yoga [Breath | Movement | Meditation]

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Posted on January 8, 2020January 8, 2020

Advanced 300 Hour Yoga Teacher Training

Register Here: withinspace.com

Posted on May 1, 2018

Ashtanga Yoga: Strength Mobility Skill

Posted on January 19, 2017October 28, 2017

Full Body Dynamic Mobility [AIS], Now Available for Download!

adarshw

Yoga
Movement
Meditation

Happy CNY! #Ox For your IG posts, I’m thinking Happy CNY! #Ox

For your IG posts, I’m thinking that Gomukhasana is the way to go. I chose a selfie instead.
Happy and Practice-full New Year! Finished my dos Happy and Practice-full New Year!

Finished my dose of (approximately) 108 Sun Salutes...the perfect thing after staying up past my bedtime and carbo-loading last night 😋

Bonus, the training mask added resistance to my breath practice, while giving me the yoga-ninja-look that I’m going for this year🥷
We are humbled in the presence of the divine teach We are humbled in the presence of the divine teacher. The teacher has multiple faces and many personalities while walking the same path as us. 

We are the yoga practitioners - free of any binding or weird conditioning. Truly liberated because we follow The Path of Practice. 

Like a great artist once said, we flow together, we grow together. We are a family, a community, a team. #teamvinyasa

Thank you all for your practice and dedication. You are my people. I am humbled to be your spiritual friend. 

Om Tat Sat

(Please tag anyone that I missed🥸)

Quote by @rayliumusic
How do you know where to adjust Baddha Konasana? How do you know where to adjust Baddha Konasana?

Sound on to find out!🙃
Is there anything that you CAN’T do with a monst Is there anything that you CAN’T do with a monster band?

Nauli Kriya, which is yoga’s answer to belly dancing, requires a complete relaxation of the abdominal muscles. Normally, you would support yourself by placing the hands on the thighs, but when adding the monster band, you receive an additional support. 

Try it, you’ll like it. Besides, what else are you gonna do this weekend?
The Hollow Body Hold is a staple of gymnastics tra The Hollow Body Hold is a staple of gymnastics training, but I find that many yogis haven’t learned this essential position. 

First up, the HBH skill is transferable to many, many things that we do in yoga. Anything from Mountain to Plank, to headstand, just to name a few. The meta skill will give you a reference point for body stability and proper breathing mechanics when in asana. 

Follow the video clip for instructions, the basics include keeping the low back pressed into the floor while maintaining glute/ab engagement. Have fun, scale back where necessary, and don’t forget to breathe. Then, apply the lessons of HBH into your next asana practice. 

 📷 @vetmoda 

 🎥 @chiara_colognola
Internal Shoulder Rotation is a must. Here, I've t Internal Shoulder Rotation is a must. Here, I've taken the classic sleeper stretch and added a golf ball to sweeten the pain. Ah, #sweetpain

Do some Active Stretch, Contract/ Relax, whatever you like, and test the results after. 

Did that Marichiasana D improve?

For inspiration, look no farther than Maneki-neko. I'm pretty sure that this cat is lucky because of his healthy rotator cuff!
My Enlightenment and full loss of identity were ca My Enlightenment and full loss of identity were captured on video! 

Or, I had a brain fart.

Either way, happy weekend to ya!

 🎥 @vetmoda
My first ever attempt at the One Arm Peacock has e My first ever attempt at the One Arm Peacock has ended in failure. 😕Now dubbed the #lamepeacockchallenge and thrown down by  @markrobberds , this one is difficult...

Luckily, I like the taste of dirt because I bit it numerous times today. This challenge did get me thinking about failure, and the process of learning:

First up, the beauty of a fitness failure is that the stakes are really low. You try something, it doesn’t work out, no big deal. Of course, failure in business or relationship can have really big consequences, so fitness failure is kinda fun.

Unconsciously, I think that one of the reasons that we are hooked on Ashtanga (or whatever crazy thing you are into), is because it is impossible. Everything about the practice is there to humble you. From the early wake-up time, to the non-stop pace, you never stand a chance. And through that burning intensity, you are reborn. They even have a Sanskrit name for this - Tapas. 

On the bright side, I kept noticing little ways to improve my position. I kept seeing that little glimmer of hope that, “hey, maybe I’ll get this” and with each attempt, it seemed like it were getting a little more doable. 

I’m not done with this one. I’ll keep ya posted on my progress. In the meantime, I’ll dare to fail greatly!
So then @theluminescent_ says, “try entering fr So then @theluminescent_  says, “try entering from kukkutasana...”

😵

The first clip is rolling into the lame cock. The second clip is my failed attempt at entering lame cock from regular cock.

I’ve concluded 3 things:

1. Left hand is easier than right hand.
2. Rolling into Lame Cock is easier than entering from kukkutasana.
3. I need a new hobby.

@markrobberds 

#lamecockchallenge 
#pangukukkutasana
I like to split my feet in handstand to make a let I like to split my feet in handstand to make a letter “Y” because, you know, yoga...

Why do you like to do weird stuff? 🙃
I tried the @markrobberds Lame Cock Challenge (and I tried the @markrobberds Lame Cock Challenge (and he got the bad idea from @theluminescent_ ), so you can tag them both if you try...

#lamecockchallenge
Hey, I noticed that your little paws are sad this Hey, I noticed that your little paws are sad this week. Maybe too much yoga? Too many handstands? Or just too much working with your hands? 

I’ve got a simple treatment for you this weekend. It’s simple, but not easy. 

Welcome to the wonderful world of hydrotherapy. This is gonna suck for about 20 minutes, but you are gonna feel 100% better after.

Step 1: Get you some ice. A lot of ice. And fill up a bucket with the ice. If you can get a big enough bucket that you can submerge your arms up to the elbow.

Step 2: Submerge your arms for 20 minutes. Not so bad at first, a little cold, but you got this…

Step 3: Pins & Needles. Now you begin a conversation with yourself, “is this a good idea?” “Maybe I should stop?” “My Chinese medicine doctor told me that cold is not good…”
Suck it up, buttercup. You got this.

Step 4: Acceptance, and general numbness. After a few minutes, the hands will go numb and you won’t even notice anymore…

Step 5: After 20 minutes, remove your hands and rejoice. You’re done. And your little paws are gonna feel so much better.

Step 6: Double Tap this post and add your comments of gratitude below.

Sometimes Tapas is cold….
Don’t cha wish somebody would give you a great a Don’t cha wish somebody would give you a great adjustment?
Samskara is the Word of The Day. We can loosely Samskara is the Word of The Day. 

We can loosely translate the Sanskrit “Samskara” as the “same scars” that  we meet again and again. Like physical scar tissue, this psychic scar tissue can cause stiffness or weakness. Often when we use the word “karma” to describe the stuff that we have to deal with, what we actually mean is Samskara - our individual patterns, ideas, and actions that seem to resurface again and again. 

Not to be a Negative Nancy over here, Samskaras also represent positive tendencies, such as empathy, selfless service, compassion, and the urge to enlightenment. 

While not as glamorous as the yoga postures, the inner work of yoga is what persists throughout our lives. This can be accomplished through physical postures & exercise, through meditation & self reflection, through journaling, psychotherapy, or good old fashioned mindfulness. 

IMO, it’s a good idea to take the abundant energy that you build with your practice and direct that toward cleaning up some of those weak links. For example, if there is a person that you are having friction with, try meditating on that person at the end of your practice. See if you can resolve some of the tensions and perhaps even feel good about that person again.

I wish you well💚
I find that cities are particularly good places fo I find that cities are particularly good places for meditation. The cacophony of sounds and human busyness create a white noise that I find reassuring. It’s my own little ASMR. 

Not that I’m a native urbanite, quite the opposite actually, but somehow I resonate with the vibration of the millions upon millions of my fellow humans going about their day.

What about you? Is the city a good place for your practice?

And, in reference to the second clip, if you walk your dog while riding a bike, is it still considered “walking the dog” or would it be “taking the dog for a bike ride?”

I have a cat, so I’ve never dealt with this.
Scapular push-ups are essential for strengthening Scapular push-ups are essential for strengthening the muscles of the shoulder girdle especially serratus anterior, but more importantly is that you will learn how to find neutral position which unlocks a world of possibility!

In the first clip, I demo the Scapular Push-up: shoulders over hands, tight body line. Basically, you move between protraction, retraction, and neutral scapula without bending the elbows or changing the spine position.

The second clip presents a scaled back version on the knees. For newbies, this will give a better sense of the three scapular positions.

The third clip is the least exciting, but nonetheless demonstrates protracted (forward) shoulders, neutral, and retracted (pulled back) shoulders.

Collect at least 10 reps in each set, with the goal of clearly identifying each scapular position. Then, whenever you set up for a plank, push-up, or chatarunga, you’ll know exactly where you are.

Give me a double tap and a 💪🏿 down below if you are willing to try! 

#scapularpushups
One of the many lessons from the weight room that One of the many lessons from the weight room that we can apply to yoga practice is Time Under Tension (TUT).

TUT is basically how long you are in a position while managing a load. Although the science is a little fuzzy, many strength coaches suggest that spending 60-90 seconds under load will give you the maximum muscle growth and improvement in strength. Also, it’s advised to go through the full joint Range of Motion focusing on the muscle stretch and flex.

In this video, I’m applying TUT to a classic Ashtanga backbend sequence. After the full wheel, I’m “resting” on my head, recovering my arms, but maintaining tension in the body. I’ll repeat the backbend 5 times which lasts about 90 seconds. Repeat this sequence 3x.

To review:
3 sets of 5 backbends (each 5 breaths) = 15 backbends in 4.5 minutes.

This sequence is much easier than it initially seems. If you try, give me a holler and let me know how it works!
Relationship is simple: Be a giver, not a taker. Relationship is simple: Be a giver, not a taker. 

Relationship is complicated: “I have my needs and you have yours.”

Our relationship to children and animals is simple, we love them, care for, and nurture them, watching them grow and become. We never feel slighted or betrayed by them. We trust their actions, and forgive their mistakes. 

Our relationships with adults is complicated. We expect another to make us happy, to meet our needs, to be responsive to our messages. Without fail, they will let us down. It will never be enough. 

As usual, there is a yoga for this. This is the path of action. To give without expectation. To do the work because it’s what we do. 

When I was a wannabe monk, life was easy. Meditate high on my mountain top, never distracted by the actions of the world down below. Then, I decided to follow the path of Zarathustra, to come down off my mountaintop and mix it up in the real world. You know what happened? That shit got complicated. Fast. 

And like our boy Z, that mountaintop enlightenment doesn’t always translate…That’s why the wise, the humble, the knowing, they have a simple message:

You want to love god? Love others.

You want to serve god? Serve others.

I’m rededicating myself to this path of karma. 

Btw, isn’t that a cute little chicken?  Give me a ❤️ if you agree!
Relationship is challenging, and I’m not sure th Relationship is challenging, and I’m not sure that relationship between conscious people makes it any easier, perhaps the opposite...Read on:

Back when I was a wannabe monk in south India, the guru said that the ashram brought people together like “stones in a tumbler” all bumping and grinding against each other to become smooth. 

This is the process, this is the Maya.

I used to think that relationship between conscious people would be easier, but it turns out to be just as tricky…it seems that the game only gets more subtle because the players are more advanced. 

With the people in our lives that are a little less enlightened, it’s a little easier. We forgive them because we know that they are….well….less enlightened. It’s similar to the unconditional feeling that we have toward children or pets. We know that their misgivings are based on incompetence rather than bad intentions. 

With our conscious friends, the expectations are raised. We think they should be better, but they are not. They still possess a human side. We are all subject to the same needs, desires, fears, emotions, and ignorances, even the advanced yogi. I’m pretty sure that the advanced yogi is even worse because it’s all so subtle. The self-awareness means that these lessor parts can be concealed. 

I’m pretty sure that I don’t have an answer to all of this, but I will repeat the best relationship advice that I ever heard. When describing his parent's 50+ years marriage, my friend said that the secret was that “my parents always covered each other's asses. They didn’t tear each other down. They covered for the weaknesses, and built them up.”

They were a team, not competitors. 

I think that is why the Buddhists are always reminding us of compassion. Without compassion for the frailties of others, we become cynical, jaded, and jagged, like a stone that has never met another.
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