Vinyasa preparation, February 2024
The vinyasas are probably the most strenuous part of the 1st Ashtanga Yoga series. At some point I gave up jumping through after each pose. But I want to slowly build up the strength to do the vinyasas again.
I will use the method of small steps. On Friday I realized that I can hold the vinyasas well during the first four poses. It's more or less cheating through, but still. Who can swing through well? Even at my best, I wasn't really doing it perfectly.
Now I'm working on lifting off the floor. I want to keep my knees together and as close to my shoulders as possible. That takes arm muscles, abs and hip muscles.
Even small victories are motivating. This morning I saw on the scale that the percentage of my muscle mass had increased slightly. I am now at 29.5% muscle mass. My first goal is to reach 30%, then 35%. I don't know if the weight machines are targeting exactly the muscles I need for yoga. But I can feel that I'm getting stronger in general. I have also been advised to do callisthenics. There is a large area in the gym where you can exercise freely. I like the wall bars there. After working out on the machines, I can also work out freely there and do planks, for example, or do the exact exercises I need to master the vinyasas.
The conditions are ideal.
There is enough knowledge of what to do.
Now it just needs to be done.
Knowing callisthenics exercises is useful because you don't always have a gym nearby. Sometimes you can't get out of the house. Squats, pushups, planks and other simple but challenging exercises can be done anywhere.
Saturday is my Ashtanga day off.
Sunday I start again with the 2nd series. I'm looking forward to it.
At a certain age you have to do some strength training. Yoga is not a fitness program, even though yoga aims to keep the mind, body and soul healthy.