Part 3/3

Downward Facing Dog is a challenging pose to learn for new students because you basically can’t see what’s going on in the room. Most other poses at least you can see what is happening around you. In Downward Dog you’re looking backwards and partially upside down so it’s disorienting. When you’re a little more challenged flexibility- wise, the pose can take on odd shapes.

I remembering looking out over the room and just being at a loss for what was happening. Whatever I said in teaching or demonstrating the pose a minute ago was clearly not communicated well or understood. “What pose did I just say we should try?” I wondered. Then I realized I just had to start running around the room to the ones in the most critical shape first.

“Hold on, come down for a second, try lifting your.., left, yep left, other left, this hand here. No the other way, is it a sharp pain? let’s get some ice…”

There was just so much grunting, groaning and straining. Guys were collapsing around me. I wanted to run out of
the room and go hide behind the plant. And just when I almost lost complete control, I saw a vision of one of my teacher’s, Max Strom in the form of a giant Yoga Guy angel, saying; “backbends can be calming.”

That’s it. Bridge pose. I was going to wait until almost the end of class when we’d normally do it, but this was THE END, about 20 minutes in, one pose disastrously down. “Ok, every body let’s come back down on our back on our mats” They looked like they might attack me if I made them do the relaxing on our back breathing thing again.

“Ok, this time bend your knees, place your feet on the mat hip distance apart and lift your hips and lower back off the floor and your chest up to your chin.” When they came down, the tension of the room lifted like nothing else I had experienced before. After just one backbend, the room shifted from the competitive cauldron of masculine territorial fear and uncertainty to a room full of peaceful lions basking next to each other in the summer sun.

Over the years and each time I teach the series I really do enjoy the male camaraderie. It’s something very unique in my experience in the world of yoga. Most of the time I see myself many years ago when I first started taking yoga. It has helped me become a more patient teacher. It has allowed for special circumstances like a few weeks ago when I announced the Xavier vs. West Virginia and Kentucky vs. Cornell 2nd half March Madness scores between poses. You just wouldn’t think –ok, I would think to check, pretending to change a playlist– but not announce a score normally, in a yoga class. It would be completely out of place and awkward. But in Yoga For Guys, intentions of shining our hearts open to align our chakras with the seasonal changes of sports makes perfect sense.

End-

New Beginning: Yoga For Guys meets every Thursday – 7:30-8:45pm. Intro to Level 2