There is a key to unlocking every asana.

I’m close to touching the ground in a pose I was convinced I would never have the grace of experiencing…the infamous, Hanumanasana.

I never judged my inability to do Hanumanasana, also known as asymmetric splits.  I was comfortable associating myself as an inflexible athlete and would joke that I was several lifetimes away from doing this pose.

That was until I took Shiva Rea’s teacher training and learned how to open my hip flexor muscles. (See http://shivarea.com/teacher-training-welcome).

Shiva is all about opening the hip flexors.  Taking a look at the cover of her DVDs or pictures from her website, can give you a taste of what I’m talking about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prior to Shiva’s training, I spent years in a pose that resembled the picture below:

Everything was tight! My hamstrings, quads, and hip flexors felt like rope rather than flexible human tissue, and I felt stuck.

Asana Practice: Over the last four months I’ve focused on opening my hip flexors and bringing awareness to my inner thighs and quads.  As I’ve begun to open up these muscle groups I’ve come to realize that it isn’t my hamstrings that are holding me back, it is these other muscle groups that are impeding my ability to access my hamstrings properly.

Therefore, I make sure to do low lunge, low lunge backbend variation, and low lunge with quad stretch, in every practice.  In addition, I continue to do a long hamstring sequence in every session, so that I will continue to bring awareness to forward bends as my body opens and changes.

Lesson Learned: Don’t make assumption about what’s holding you back in a pose.  Continue to explore all the asanas and be open to new teachers teaching you new things.  You might find that an unexpected pose unlocks the key to something once thought unattainable.