Kapha is usually associated with cool damp weather, lethargy, and heaviness. I tend towards an imbalance in Kapha. Spring is an especially sensitive time for me, when the tendency is to want to hide out and sleep. This spring in Philadelphia has been very pleasant and warm, so I haven't been hit too hard with a Kapha build up.
But I am feeling it a bit. There's been some celebrating. The husband is getting a paycheck. I just graduated from my 500 teacher training (woo hoo!). And thus there have been some poor choices in food and...ahem...beverages. These choices have led to some mental and physical heaviness. There have also been some grasping behaviors typical of a Kapha imbalance, particularly, the accumulation of items that I don't need.
What's the best way to shake off the Kapha? In my experience, move! Accept invitations! Do new things! This weekend was full of that. Yesterday I attended Tim Miller's led primary. I don't know the last time I sweat so much. The husband helped me carry my bag afterwards and couldn't believe the weight. It was 80% due to my wet yoga clothes! Then we went to see the Avengers. And this morning we had friends over for brunch for the first time since moving in last year.
Of course, there was a good amount of eating involved in all of this (popcorn, dinner at an Indian restaurant, divine 100% butter pastries). So tonight I cooked up a nice batch of kitchari with the Kapha spice mix that I use. I'll take it for the next few days to try to get a little more balanced.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Friday, May 18, 2012
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Tim Miller this Weekend!
In 2004 (I only remember because the Red Sox won the World Series that year), just before Columbus Day, I took my first Mysore style class. The teacher was traditional and had students watch the first time they came. I was mad, because for the previous year, I had learned the practice by heart up to Marichyasana D and was doing it at home (as a grad student, I had been too poor to take classes with a teacher). I was ready to show off my moves.
But I didn't let that first day deter me. She told me to come back after the holiday (there was some kind of moon day and maybe something about not giving poses on Tuesdays). I wasn't going to quit. I was going to show this woman that I was telling the truth. I knew the practice! And dammit, I did. She let me go up to Mari D. I screwed up the arms in parsarita padotanasana. But otherwise, I did ok. I was thrilled. To practice in a room with other people, carried by the sound of their breath was an unbelievable sensation. I came back again and again that week.
Then at the end of the week, the teacher said to me that there was this really important teacher coming in for a weekend workshop. I should sign up. High as I was on the thrill of a regular practice with an actual qualified teacher, I did as I was told.
Until then, I had never heard of Tim Miller. Showing up at the center in Cambridge where space was being rented for the event was so impressive. There were maybe 100 yogis there. Maybe more. And this guy, so sweet, so accessible, so funny, was talking about asana and sutras and things that I had never heard of. I was physically, spiritually, and mentally challenged that weekend in an intense way.
Since then, I've been to Tim's shala and practiced next to him (another teacher was teaching - that was a totally different intensity of experience) but not with him. I had to make some choices this year about where to spend my yoga dollar, so I won't be participating in the full weekend workshop. But 8 years later, my practice has evolved so much. I am eager to see how much more I take from the Saturday morning session now that I have a more profound understanding of the practice.
But I didn't let that first day deter me. She told me to come back after the holiday (there was some kind of moon day and maybe something about not giving poses on Tuesdays). I wasn't going to quit. I was going to show this woman that I was telling the truth. I knew the practice! And dammit, I did. She let me go up to Mari D. I screwed up the arms in parsarita padotanasana. But otherwise, I did ok. I was thrilled. To practice in a room with other people, carried by the sound of their breath was an unbelievable sensation. I came back again and again that week.
Then at the end of the week, the teacher said to me that there was this really important teacher coming in for a weekend workshop. I should sign up. High as I was on the thrill of a regular practice with an actual qualified teacher, I did as I was told.
Until then, I had never heard of Tim Miller. Showing up at the center in Cambridge where space was being rented for the event was so impressive. There were maybe 100 yogis there. Maybe more. And this guy, so sweet, so accessible, so funny, was talking about asana and sutras and things that I had never heard of. I was physically, spiritually, and mentally challenged that weekend in an intense way.
Since then, I've been to Tim's shala and practiced next to him (another teacher was teaching - that was a totally different intensity of experience) but not with him. I had to make some choices this year about where to spend my yoga dollar, so I won't be participating in the full weekend workshop. But 8 years later, my practice has evolved so much. I am eager to see how much more I take from the Saturday morning session now that I have a more profound understanding of the practice.
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