Spinal and Active movements.: After ten years, a moving away from Ashtanga Vinyasa somewhat?

Siva (Nataraja)

Makes me think of Simon Borg-Olivier's active movement.

Period:Chola period (880–1279)Date:ca. 11th centuryCulture:Indian (Tamil Nadu)Medium:Copper alloyDimensions:H. 26 7/8 in. (68.3 cm); Diam. 22 1/4 in. (56.5 cm)

Exploring 'active movement'. Inspired by Simon Borg-Olivier's spinal and active movement.

"By initiating all your practice (both in exercise and yoga) with active movements you elicit the reciprocal relaxation spinal reflex that allows you to develop strength without becoming tense, develop flexibility without feeling like you’re stretching, increase blood flow without needing to make your heart beat faster and staying relaxed and stress free while still doing something."
Simon Borg-Olivier

I'm having the best time trying to get my head around Simon Borg-Olivier's 'active movement' approach to practice (still very much work in progress as I begin to become more acquainted - after ten years of practice- with my spine), a kind of... weaving your way, from the spine, into and out of (or through) a posture rather than pulling, levering..., relying on gravity or an assist.

I've been a fan of Simon's for years of course but have tended to sift through his work to see what I can mine and bring back to my Ashtanga and Vinyasa Krama practice, I tended to fast forward through the arm waving and spinal 'undulation', finally the penny seems to have dropped and I7m 'all in'.

I really still don't know what the hell I'm talking about or doing, think of this as somewhat akin to those first ( and let's face it, up to the most recent) Ashtanga blog posts ten years ago (or later, Vinyasa Krama posts) as I sought to try and make sense of (the) practice.

Sifting back thorough Simon and Bianca's Yoga Fundamentals course notes from Yogasynergy.com as well as those for their Anatomy and Physiology course, their book..., videos scattered all over YouTube, to try and get a better grasp of what's going on (or could be) and how one might take advantage of the possibilities.

Thinking vertebrae by vertebrae, reciprocal relaxation back and forth, relaxed breathing 'through' the movements...., oh brave new world.

Is this still Ashtanga vinyasa (the order of postures is or can still be similar at least and Simon does have an Online Ashtanga course in the works, Vinyasa Krama (feels closer), Siva's 'original dance' or something else altogether. I cease to care about labels my spine (...body) feels fantastic, I feel calm, somewhat serene throughout and am taking new joy in my practice.....,

I'm smiling on the inside.

Simon seems to suggest that this is more of an approach we can take to the practice we have rather than a different practice altogether, see this post

How to Practice Any Yoga Style and What Makes a Good Teacher

Perhaps it reminds me somewhat of the old solo Aikido kata I used to practice decades ago or Iaido more recently but it feels a little like going home.

See perhaps this post from Simon

Moving Actively into Postures Can give Strength and Flexibility Without Tension or Stretching


and my previous post...

Simon Borg-Olivier made me fall in love with my spine all over again.

Here's Simon...

from the video notes

"Coming into the twist turn actively from the navel and sure you can breathe into your abdomen".
"If you need to use your hands to get to get into lotus posture then you are (probably) better off doing cross-legged posture". Active movements such as these are at the base of natural traditional yoga but are often ignored in modern yoga.
Many people force themselves into positions using forces external to their body such as gravity, momentum or one limb pulling on another. If you over-stretch in this way and don't tighten your muscles you risk damaging your joints. And if you over-tense your muscles in order to protect your joints you can block the flow of energy and information in your body. If you over-tense and harden the abdomen in a way that prevents natural diaphragmatic breathing then you can also enter a state of 'flight or fight' and no matter how much you 'open your heart centre' the body will be giving you nerve signals that are often interpreted as fear, anger and aggression.
And that doesn't sound too much like yoga to me!

The video above video comes from the online course 'Teacher Training Essentials: Yoga Fundamentals' by physiotherapists and co-directors of Yoga Synergy Simon Borg-Olivier and Bianca Machliss.

*

What is an original movement? Here Simon Borg-Olivier replies to this simple question. 

More about Simon: http://simonborgolivier.com/ and https://yogasynergy.com/

Clearly I need to go to one of Simon's long courses, his month long TT perhaps in Goa, this video is from my dear friend Chris (http://www.yogaconcris.com/) based in Madrid who recently got back from Simon's TT course, an active movement approach?

But see what I mean about rediscovering the sheer joy of practice, whatever form your practice may take.





Appendix


Iaido





Aikido