At @dcashtanga we've been taking pics of our mats when we practice away from the Shala. I have a week off from practice with my teacher, Rolf, so now I get to play along, too. #dcashtanga #kapotasana #ashtangay #ashtanga #kpjayi

Today's check-in is from Ashtanga's advanced a section.

#Vishvamitrasana was so challenging to me that I didn't think I was ready to be working on it. it seemed so hard. I was left with a whole new world to research, explore, and discover.
Thank god for teachers like David and Rolf who encourage autonomy and agency... They reminded me that there is no room for shame or guilt in this kind of endeavor, while giving me the tools to practice lovingly and intelligently.
They trusted that I'd get my shit together.... And they didn't mind that it took a few years.
I am so grateful for the privilege of getting to be a student. Oh, I love Rolf, and oh I love Goa.

Practicing dynamism -- working each vinyasa as a part of a whole.
Each dynamic position, each"count" in the vinyasa krama, has an infinite number of breaths that can be explored. But much like garment construction, you have to eventually piece it back together and hope it wears well. @rupaulofficial and @michellevisage would read you to filth if you came out on the runway in just a sleeve, but a well constructed frock gives you a polished look. Oh, sure, the dristhi might be off, or the hem of the skirt, but so long as you're keeping that waist cinched... Sorry. You know I get distracted by drag queens. Anyway.
Rolf told me to go practice in the afternoons on the beach. "Keep your back to the ocean, and work on your ticktacks. Many people learned that way." Playfulness is so important to me, and dynamism sparks just that.

Sunday's are often my rest day (heh: Saturday's, too) -- but when you're feeling like a pretty peacock on the beach, maybe you just gotta shake yo' tailfeather.
I saw @harmony_ashtanga and @waldenjessica talking about "being curious about what is possible" -- and ohhhh man-- doesn't the potential of limitless potential just make you wide-eyed, giddy, and wonderful? Doesn't the curiosity tickle your heart strings?

Tomorrow it's back to practice with community, so maybe I'll slow down on the beach videos.
The truth is, I rarely see my postures this way. At #DCAshtanga we have a "no cameras in the Shala" rule that has exceptions for kids & animals... and occasionally as a learning tool. I stick to it pretty strongly personally, too. Heck, Rolf doesn't even want us to bring our phone to the shala (and probably doesn't like that I've been talking about him on here...). Thanks for sharing some play time on the beach with me. Maybe I'll share more?

Fun fact: I packed everything for this trip into a carry-on. 🏊👙(count the short-shorts)

Me, on a night off from practice.

Ah! From the shala in Mysore!

Lady Gagasana: when your snacks somehow ended up on the roof. Where are my keys/ I lost my phone.

Me and the little bear getting back to our bliss at #dcashtanga 😉

How did I get on this mailing list? #wastedstamp #mulabandha

Workshops & Teaching!

March 26:
Kali Yoga
8-9: Intro to Mysore ($45)
9-10: Pranayama ($20)
10-11: Bandha ($20)
11-12: Led Intermediate and Ashtanga Pranayama ($20)

April 8:
Mind the Mat
1-3p: Tour of Primary Series ($45)

April 9:
Kali Yoga
8-9: Intro to Mysore ($45)
9-10: Pranayama ($20)
10-11 Bandha ($20)
11-1:00: Led Intermediate and Ashtanga Pranayama ($20)

April 22:
Ashtanga Nation
11:15am-12:45am: Intro to Pranayama Techniques
1:00-2:30: Deconstructed Vinyasa Patterns: The Psoas

May 6:
Mind the Mat
1-3: Tour of Intermediate Series ($45)

May 7:
Kali Yoga
Intro to Mysore 8:00-9:00
Bandha Workshop 9:00-10:00
Pranayama Workshop 10:00-11:00
Led Intermediate and Ashtanga Pranayama: 11-1:00

Workshops & Teaching! March 26: Kali Yoga 8-9: Intro to Mysore ($45) 9-10: Pranayama ($2…

Go deeper into your practice!

http://Michaeljoelhall.com/workshops

Britney's "Glory" (deluxe-- with Mood Ring!) is a perfect companion for a speedy 70 minute primary.... But please, turn that racket OFF for sivasana.

Another day, another surya a.
We are expanding our hours at D.C. Ashtanga! 9-11, open practice. T & Th 11-1, assisted 🙂

Such a wonderful way to spend a Saturday-- mysore style ashtanga yoga with a rich and diverse community of kindhearted practitioners! @livelyogini and @mhendric1 at @ashtanganation do such a wonderful job of teaching and holding space. I encourage all of my @dcashtanga brethren who are looking to practice in community on Saturdays to check them out, 8:30-11.

In the practice of Ashtanga yoga, concentration on the subtle perceptions of the body leads to stability and tranquility. We get better over time at managing the teeny tiny shifts that keep us calm and collected... Which doesn't mean things dont go off balance. They do-- we just dont panic, stay cool, and do our best to get back to the sweet spot. A really useful skill.
Come practice with me at @dcashtanga
3423 14th St NW (hosted by @kaliyogadc )

Wed 6:30-9:30,
Thurs 6:30-1
Fri 6:15-7:45 (led primary)

What do you do when it starts to rain after sun salutations? Do you curse the salutations for not delivering on their promise?
At @dcashtanga -- we laugh a lot. It's all such serious business this yoga stuff, it's good to develop a predilection for good humor. After all, the universe has a sense of one, and it's often a bit dark.
Practice and all is coming 😉 We're open on:
Thursday 'till 1, and
Friday is led primary at 6:15

You can break down this stuff three ways: work, play, and deliberate practice. For my dear friend @livelyogini & I, we wanted to take some of the time we've spent with deliberate practice of the Ashtanga methods D.C. and utilize its skills differently, in a form of play.
@antoninaletunovskaya gave us a contortion/acrobatic private, and we got to P L A Y-- and it was SO MUCH FUN. As a student of integrative studies at George Mason, I developed a taste for knitting together and leaning into different and often disparate fields of study and especially their experts.
It was such a great experience-- Antonia is an absolute gem. At 29 and 34, Maggie and I get to say we did something we've never done. Luckily, as teachers of Ashtanga Yoga, we're in the business of believing the impossible is possible.
Fun is fun, and play is play. Good practice requires deliberate attention.
Let your practice let you play!

The Ashtanga Yoga practice, as taught to me by my teachers in the tradition of Sri K Pattabhi Jois, is incredibly powerful.
It is a spiritual practice, in so far as it helps you find the best of what's inside of you... and brings it out. Your spirit. Who you are on the inside-- your natural, beautiful self. Your god stuff.
Are you interested in - developing physical fitness: strength, flexibility, and grace?
-Establishing mental and emotional fortitude, leading to: resilience, distress tolerance, and general stability of attitude - healthy relationships-- with others as well as with yourself. - brining clarity to your natural rhythms and cycles.
Taught one one one in a group setting, students are free to come and go at their leisure.
Join us M-Thurs, 6-9:30 at @kaliyogadc
Fridays, 6:15-7:45 (led primary)
Sunday 8-10a (open practice)
I'm also available for private sessions. -- Here I am with Whitney Paterson @yogawhitney -- a phenomenal student and trusted apprentice/assistant. She's made two trips to Mysore to study with one of my teachers, Sharath Jois (the director of the ashtanga yoga institute). She's a kind hearted woman, a gifted ayuevrdic consultant/practitioner, and has dutifully co-taught with me.
Next month, she'll be starting the @dcashtanga afternoon sessions. M-W, 4:30-630!

WHAT MAKES A GOOD MANTRA?

One that works!

I often sing "When you're good to mama" from Chicago to myself when I notice that I'm indulging a bit too heavily off syllabus during practice. The line "The system works! Caaaause the system works... the system called... reciprocity!" Stands out strongly in my mind.
Here, as I make a shape that is not within the system of Ashtanga, i am reminded that I am participating in contortion, not practicing the system of yoga as prescribed by my teachers. When I'm tempted to go off track, I have to gently remind myself to come back.

There is a brilliance to the system of yoga refined by Pattahbi Jois and Krishnamacharya over 80?-odd years in Mysore.
It radically opens the body, strengthens the nervous system, and stabilizes the mind. It also allows me to do all kinds of other modalities of human movement, performance, and play.

Having strong support inside the system, from my teachers, also makes the hard times easier-- like when I fall off my bike, push too hard, or discover a place that needs a (seemingly too slow) but of strength.
Frankly, you can't expect a radical restructuring to always be fast and easy, and as such, when the work demands it, I know how to work and modify... and I have faith that it'll be ok.
Just because I can make this shape doesn't mean I have a grounding in a system of yoga... but because I have a grounding in a system of yoga, I can make this shape.
Sing to with me: "RECIPROCITY!!!"

Charlie's kinda wondering why I skipped happy hour.
After a day of teaching, my singing lesson, cleans, deadlifts, and stabilizing accessory work, I got in a really great practice... Clocking in around 40 minutes, and really just a bit of primary.
At @dcashtanga -- our moon day is tomorrow. I'm stoked. The planets have had a crazy strong pull-- this Gemini is feeeeeeling it.
Am I too late for 1/2 price mussels??

My heart broke into far too many pieces to count. My apathy swelled. My sorrow stole my voice. And, still, I prayed.
These past five years I've prayed for bravery.
The practice of Ashtanga Yoga healed the dark part at the back of my heart. It purified my voice. And, it brought the richness of courage to my doorstep, asking only that I keep praying, until bravery became it's own resignation: no other choice to make, because there is more work to be done, and I want to do is work more.

A riff on urdhva kukutasana a-- with a focus on sutra 3.32-- By samyama on the kurma nadi (a subtle tortoise-shaped tube located below the throat), motionlessness in the meditative posture is achieved.

Led primary was filled with folks I've had the good fortune to work with for over three years each (wow!!) So, I put my mat down and we all practiced together, taking turns calling the postures.

It does get really hot out here. Ya gotta work quickly sometimes.

KAPOTASANA
What's really interesting here is finding places of weakness, tightness, or asymmetry, and targeting it directly. If something's out of whack, we gotta build both the length and the strength to put it back. So first things first, we we have to FEEEEL the asymmetry, but then we begin to introduce actions that encourage symmetry. When I practice I don't always know how to do that! Regularly at the gym, I play around with strength building concepts and overlay them onto poses. You've seen a bunch of them so far in this feed, right? #
So much of the practice of yoga is *strength building*-- the front body needs to both *lengthen* and work. Same with the front of the legs, the back of the thorax, back of the legs, pretty much everything.
This will keep your thighs forward enough that the spine can mobilize in all of its different places (not just the low back) and you can research the posture further, for longer.
Pretty great post deadlifts and cleans 🙂 Grab a pvc pipe!

HIPS: there is a real effort keep the navel over the hips and the hips over the knees for as long as possible so as to give the spine a chance to lengthen and circularize. You're not trying to rest on the ball so much as gesture forward from it.
SPINE: the key is finding an anchored and stretching front body -- floating ribs in, coccyx down, lower spine extended, upper spine extended, back muscles engaged.
The spine goes up up up.
SHOULDERS: To move from an extended shoulder joint to a flexed shoulder joint, you just take your arms from down to up... except for our purposes, it requires scapular protraction (wide) , upward rotation (bottom of the blade in to the rib) , and some elevation (just enough to stretch!) ... WTF: first part getting easy? In the second part, I'm using a resistance band to move from a flexed elbow to an extended elbow in a manner that strengthens the tricep. A stable shoulder girdle is essential for longevity in this posture (and practice)!

Casual cleans and a shoulder press in my @ashtanganation tank from earlier in the week.

A rare peek inside the mysore room. Are you interested in going further in your yoga practice? Working one-on-one with a teacher is an incomparable experience. Go further, go deeper. What do you want to work on? Reach out michael@michaeljoelhall.com

Transitions mean change. Change has an inheritant taste of death to it, and death is scary.
I have historicaly been guiled by the idea of the encroach of Winter. It means the death of my favorite, Summer. Bribed by Halloween and all things pumpkin, I still don't much like putting away my tank tops and finding long sleeves.
This fall, I'm trying to change my tune. We like the idea of transforming into something better/stronger/wiser-- and transformation IS change. In my life, I don't want to be averse to change, Autumn or otherwise. It's an ignorance, to think things aren't always changing. Yoga practice is designed to free up that baggage.
In the Equinox, I practiced by the pool at @vidafitnessdc on U Street where I teach two new classes. I see in the eyes of practitioners a certain kind of hesitation and dare I say distrust at this new class, in me a new teacher, to them. I get it... I teach a practice that asks of them a real attention and effort. It is precisely so potent because of that. It's also sometimes scary to get a real, sober look at the churning of the mind.
It pings me strongly, as I feel a current kind of way about the transition of seasons and see inside of them an analog to me. I want these folks who turn up to trust me, to give potent and authentic practice a real go. But I know it requires time and attention. As I told my friend @mbwould-- "You can't hatefuck someone into trusting you." What to do? I'm gonna give fall a real chance. On my end, its the same as for them. These aspirants and I have a similar working schema:
1) Show up.
2) Pay attention.
3) Be willing to feel.
4) Be willing to try.
5) Be willing to not know.
7) BE WILLING TO LAUGH.
8) Be willing to try again.
Yesterday, I tried to welcome change. I went into the old street car station in Dupont and did a gong bath with @takefivemeditation -- letting the waves wash over me. Old ideas, can't force them away, but I can soften my grip. I can show up and look where I fight change. Maybe I can see things as they are, maybe I can lead by example. Change happens. But it doesn't have to happen violently.

GRIT

Steely-eyed, dirt on the sleeve stick-to-it-ive-ness is essential to success in yoga (and life!). Resilience is precisely so valuable because of what it demands.
1) you gotta be willing to try to bite off more than you can chew. This often times means ... Failure.
2) you gotta suck it up, look at your failure and try again.
3) You must learn something from the prior experience so as not to have the exact same outcome.
4) remember that "failure" only exists if you don't try. Otherwise, it's practice. Repeat steps 2-3 until shit works out.
This means looking at life through a much longer timeline than what we "want want want" in the now.
5) you gotta celebrate your triumphs, and any comeback is a triumph! This requires big picture thinking. If youre stuck on a too-confined timeline, youre gonna suffer.
Yoga develops resilience. It hones grit. Get out there and try
...
Join me this week in the mysore room:
Mon-Fri 6-9:30 @dcashtanga at @kaliyogadc
Tues: 12-12:40, Hot Spot Dupont @hotspotdupont
Wed: 6:30-7:30p, Vida U St @vidafitnessdc
Thurs: 12-1, Vida U St @vidafitnessdc
Fri: 12-1, Balance TC @balancegym

"Vishvamitrasana? Not Vasisthasana?" "Did I stutter?"
Vasistha, the great sage, lead a peaceful community-- the kind where people got on swell and took care of each other. He also had a dope magic cow that granted wishes, given to him by the gods. Come through, Nandini, the cow o' plenty!
Vishvamitra, leader of a neighboring land, was curious as to how Vasistha managed his people. He was even more interested in his magic cow.
Arriving in Vasistha's kingdom with his army, Vishvamitra tried to take the cow with force. He was convincee the cow could feed his vast armies. It didn't go well: the magic cow created a crazy big army and walloped Vishvamitra's men! No slouch, Vasistha defeated Vishvamitra's army with his keen control of emotions and also incinerated the rest of the warriors with the power of his breath.
Leaving the life of a king, with the blood of his men on his hands, he swore atonement. Penance and effort and an abandoning of worldly riches allowed him to discover great wisdom ultimate redemption in his time as an ascetic.
Even Vasistha came to recognize Vishvamitra as a sage.
The first posture of Ashtanga's third series is named for Vishvamitra... Tho many other lineages name it for Vasistha. Proving that a) pettiness is timeless b) that through great effort, we can all find redemption c) don't fuck with magic cows

Marichiyasana... eh?! What're you doing over there? #ashtangadadjokes

Marichiyasana... eh?! What're you doing over there?

Ashtanga yoga's primary series, as counted by Sharath Jois, can be completed in an unhurried manner at about the same rate as a full reading of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras in Sanskrit.
Today at @dcashtanga we practiced as Monorama (available on Spotify!) chanted to us. There are so many different layers to practice, I remain fascinated by what pierces through allowing me to be of this world and also internalized.
Humorously? Early on I heard "vrittayah pancatayah klishta aklishta" --1.5 Those gross and subtle thought patterns (vrittis) fall into five varieties, of which some are colored (klishta) and others are uncolored (aklishta). -- later? "shabda artha pratyaya itaretara adhyasat samkara tat pravibhaga samyama sarva bhuta ruta jnana" -- The name associated with an object, the object itself implied by that name, and the conceptual existence of the object, all three usually interpenetrate or commingle with one another. By samyama on the distinction between these three, the meaning of the sounds made by all beings becomes available.

Ashtanga yoga's primary series, as counted by Sharath Jois, can be completed in an unhurried manner at about the s…

You can't rush a good fade.

My #wcw is also my #blackandwhitephotochallenge #failedit -- @suenodevida_ecu who taught me to see the art inside of the yoga asana. Now she's creating a place where people can learn the art of conciously and sustainably inhabiting this planet at an eco retreat center in Ecuador. 📸2012 @taniradove @laminezdclifestyle

@davidgarriguesyoga is doing a Led 1/2 Primary and talk on Thanksgiving at @ashtanganation -- 8am. Wanna take a yogi field trip? I excited-- this is his first time teaching in Northern Virginia in quite some time. Come raise money to fight childhood obesity (a cause near to my heart!).

At #DCAshtanga, we value cultural exchange, and denounce bigotry, appropriation, and oppression of all stripes. Here 👁 am doing forest yoga, not to be confused with Forrest Yoga.
You’ll note I’m doing my Ashtanga practice in the forest (which is not Mysore style, it’s just ashtanga, since Mysore is what you call it when it’s taught like it was/is taught in a specific place). That said, 👁 do sometimes do Mysore style Ashtanga yoga in the forest, when I️ practice with my teacher... who teaches in the forest (and isn’t Ana Forrest ;)). Forest yoga isn’t necessarily Forrest yoga, and ashtanga isn’t necessarily Mysore. I’m being a bit glib... but the drill down here highlights difference between appropriation and exchange, something we take seriously at #DCAshtanga. Check out a class with @gratefulweirdo in the Forrest tradition at @kaliyogadc and of course you can stick around to learn Ashtanga, Mysore style, with me, or one of our incredible teachers, who learned from someone who studied the method in Mysore (me!).

At #DCAshtanga, we value cultural exchange, and denounce bigotry and oppression of all stripes. Here I️ am doing forest yoga, not to be confused with Forrest Yoga. Did you know we have the best landlady— @gratefulweirdo who owns and operates @kaliyog…

Strong people are useful. 💪🏻 Carrying my water jug up the stairs this week was the easiest it’s been in as long as i can remember! I don’t tend to have to change the jug at the water cooler, so the only time i get to lug one is when I’m in India. Year after year, i watch my perception of the jugs weight changes. Sometimes she’s heavier, sometimes(like now) lighter.
One of the marvelous things about my gym-rattiness and my yoga practice is how they can nurture and inform each other. oh sure, sometimes they can be at odds, but i credit my workouts for keeping me injury free on the job.
This year i brought a suspension training rig with me to play with. I thought I’d share with you guys some of the stuff I do.
BIG MIKE’S On-the-Go(a) Suspension Training:

Day 1:
45(sec) on: 30 rest
4 Rounds
Arms to side for all
Pistol Squat (R)
Pistol Squat (L)
Chest Press
Row
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (R)
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (L)
—� -Rest a while-
50 Side plank twists
50 suspended push-ups
50 supported pull-ups

Strong people are useful. 💪🏻 Carrying my water jug up the stairs this week was the easiest it’s been in as long as i can remember! I don’t tend to have to change the jug at the water cooler, so the only time i get to lug one is when I’m in India. Year after year, i watch my perception of the jugs weight changes. Sometimes she’s heavier, sometimes(like now) lighter.
One of the marvelous things about my gym-rattiness and my yoga practice is how they can nurture and inform each other. oh sure, sometimes they can be at odds, but i credit my workouts for keeping me injury free on the job.
This year i brought a suspension training rig with me to play with. I thought I’d share with you guys some of the stuff I do.
BIG MIKE’S On-the-Go(a) Suspension Training:

Day 1:
45(sec) on: 30 rest
4 Rounds
Arms to side for all
Pistol Squat (R)
Pistol Squat (L)
Chest Press
Row
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (R)
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (L)
—� -Rest a while-
50 Side plank twists
50 suspended push-ups
50 supported pull-ups

Strong people are useful. 💪🏻 Carrying my water jug up the stairs this week was the easiest it’s been in as long as i can remember! I don’t tend to have to change the jug at the water cooler, so the only time i get to lug one is when I’m in India. Year after year, i watch my perception of the jugs weight changes. Sometimes she’s heavier, sometimes(like now) lighter.
One of the marvelous things about my gym-rattiness and my yoga practice is how they can nurture and inform each other. oh sure, sometimes they can be at odds, but i credit my workouts for keeping me injury free on the job.
This year i brought a suspension training rig with me to play with. I thought I’d share with you guys some of the stuff I do.
BIG MIKE’S On-the-Go(a) Suspension Training:

Day 1:
45(sec) on: 30 rest
4 Rounds
Arms to side for all
Pistol Squat (R)
Pistol Squat (L)
Chest Press
Row
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (R)
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (L)
—� -Rest a while-
50 Side plank twists
50 suspended push-ups
50 supported pull-ups

Strong people are useful. 💪🏻 Carrying my water jug up the stairs this week was the easiest it’s been in as long as i can remember! I don’t tend to have to change the jug at the water cooler, so the only time i get to lug one is when I’m in India. Year after year, i watch my perception of the jugs weight changes. Sometimes she’s heavier, sometimes(like now) lighter.
One of the marvelous things about my gym-rattiness and my yoga practice is how they can nurture and inform each other. oh sure, sometimes they can be at odds, but i credit my workouts for keeping me injury free on the job.
This year i brought a suspension training rig with me to play with. I thought I’d share with you guys some of the stuff I do.
BIG MIKE’S On-the-Go(a) Suspension Training:

Day 1:
45(sec) on: 30 rest
4 Rounds
Arms to side for all
Pistol Squat (R)
Pistol Squat (L)
Chest Press
Row
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (R)
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (L)
—� -Rest a while-
50 Side plank twists
50 suspended push-ups
50 supported pull-ups

Strong people are useful. 💪🏻 Carrying my water jug up the stairs this week was the easiest it’s been in as long as i can remember! I don’t tend to have to change the jug at the water cooler, so the only time i get to lug one is when I’m in India. Year after year, i watch my perception of the jugs weight changes. Sometimes she’s heavier, sometimes(like now) lighter.
One of the marvelous things about my gym-rattiness and my yoga practice is how they can nurture and inform each other. oh sure, sometimes they can be at odds, but i credit my workouts for keeping me injury free on the job.
This year i brought a suspension training rig with me to play with. I thought I’d share with you guys some of the stuff I do.
BIG MIKE’S On-the-Go(a) Suspension Training:

Day 1:
45(sec) on: 30 rest
4 Rounds
Arms to side for all
Pistol Squat (R)
Pistol Squat (L)
Chest Press
Row
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (R)
Reverse Lunge (with resistance band pulls) (L)
—� -Rest a while-
50 Side plank twists
50 suspended push-ups
50 supported pull-ups