Sunday: Coffee and Abs

Just sat down on the floor next to The Cop and said "ow!" My abs, just under my lowest ribs, are killing. And then I figured out why--lolasana. I've been working lolasana as a precursor to jumpbacks from sitting poses (versus just putting my hands in front of my knees and jumping back from there). At this point, I can actually get my butt up pretty high from lolasana--just a teeny bit more practice, I think, before I have enough strength to kick my legs back with enough oomph to really get a proper jumpback. Right now I can pull straight up into lolasana, then get my hips back, but then I've pretty much used most of my strength. Just a little more practice...

So The Cop and I (well, mostly it was just me ;-) got to talking about how the practice brings people to the opposite end of where they start--for instance, I told him that Sanskrit Tattoo Guy can do pristine jumpbacks, and he can navasana-to-handstand and back again with incredible grace and power. The catch, though, is that he is less flexy than some of the superbendy practitioners. It seems like muscular types are good inverters, but challenged by the flexy stuff. And vice versa. So whether you start as a flexy noodle or a strongman, if you practice, practice, practice, eventually you will develop the other end of the spectrum: the flexy will grow strong and coordinated, and the strong will grow flexible.

And the implications, in terms of how one lives in the world, are quite interesting. Zen always talks about "the middle way." This practice is a terrific example of that, I think--both physically and spiritually.

And in other good news: We got the house! We'll be moving into our new home right after Christmas. One room, which is supposed to be the formal dining area, will be devoted to yoga and zazen. The Enlightenment Room. It's a bright room with huge windows and stone floors. I'll decorated it with plants, Buddhas and incense burners, a mat, a zafu and a zabuton. I've been doing home practice in the foyer of our current house. The rest of the house, except for the kitchen, is carpeted--so I have my little space in the tiled foyer, where I roll out my mat next to all the shoes that gather there when The Cop and My Gift from the Universe take their shoes off when they come into the house. It sounds kind of pathetic, I guess--but in fact, it is a rather charming space, and I like having their stuff around me when I practice.