Help of Ojai, Wednesday 1:30 at the Little House

i had the opportunity to assist tucker adams this afternoon at the little house. tucker has been practicing and teaching yoga forever. she is such an incredible resource here in this valley. i consider her an "expert" when it comes to working with the elderly population and taking appropriate precaution.

i will do my best to map out her class sequence. here's a general summary of what she taught...i am recording from memory so the order might be slightly out of sync, etc.

opener: lie on your back and breath into the belly. bring your hands to the belly. she emphasized letting the belly fill up on the inhale, and release on the exhale. on the exhale, gently press the navel towards the spine to slightly engage the abdominals. she talked about the importance of core strength and stability.

bend knees: foot work- rocking on to the balls of the feet and back on the heels. she had them bring their weight to the outer edges of the feet, lifting the inner arches, and switch by shifting the weight towards the inner arches and lifting the outer edges of the feet.

collar bone lesson. shoulder opening with the strap in the supine position, legs extended. inhale arms to the sky, exhale arms over the top of the head. inhale arms to the sky, exhale arms back by your side. approx. 8 times moving with the breath.

bend one knee (apanasana) and bring it into chest. extend the other toward straight. alternate sides with breath.

windshield wipers with the knees bent.

extend legs and bring block in between the ankle bones. find the internal rotation of the thighs in "supine tadasana".

leg and arm reach- she broke this down into steps, eventually having them alternate sides (i think). this is sooooo cool to watch the coordination.

baddha konasana with arms over the head.

find your way to standing and grab a chair.

feet hip distance- shoulder opening with strap over head and behind (if appropriate). she broke this part down into bite size pieces with an emphasis on moving the entire shoulder girdle and rib cage.

shoulder rolls

take a seat in the chair. extend arms like a bird. eagle wrap. she had them do this about 6 to 8 times alternating sides.

pelvis/tailbone awareness in the chair.
seated "tadasana" alignment cues in the chair.
interlace fingers behind the head at the base of the skull. left chest towards a slight backbend.
she had them practice "getting out of the chair" and stand in tadasana. this is always fascinating to watch.

balance/foot work in the center of the room.
pick up on knee and balance on one leg (like she taught on the floor). alternate sides with the breath.

wide leg forward fold with the chair for support.
sit in the chair. hip opener and self foot massage.
spinal twist in the chair on both sides.

savasana
sit