Why Cool Yoga Tricks? The reason millions of people are practicing yoga is that yoga gives us a sense of freedom and expansiveness in our bodies, minds, and spirits. This sense of freedom is different from the endorphin high that people experience in Western exercise. As various poses are mastered, the practitioner experiences enhanced self-esteem--a sense of mastery of his world. Strength-building poses give us a sense of both internal and external strength, and as we become more flexible in our bodies, we become more flexible in our attitudes. Inversions help us find our internal balance and poise when our lives are upside down. Back bends open our hearts with love and compassion for ourselves and for others. Practicing yoga poses leads to a much quieter mind. Internal mind chatter is what causes stress, and as that diminishes we have many more internal resources to offer to ourselves and to others. Ultimately, yoga practice leads to a completely quiet mind, which all spiritual traditions claim is the experience of God and/or the experience of our own divine nature. While millions are practicing yoga, most people are physically unable to perform the "classic" poses. It can take many years of practice to acquire the strength, flexibility, and body awareness to perform some of the most basic yoga postures correctly. Yet, the more closely we can duplicate the classic poses, the more freedom and expansiveness we feel. This is one reason people stay interested in yoga--there is always an opportunity to improve their postures. And accordingly, always the opportunity to feel more alive and more connected to themselves, to others, and to the cosmos. In light of that, this book is geared to the "beyond beginner, but far from accomplished" student; to preintermediate and intermediate practitioners. Cool Yoga Tricks contains more than 200 tricks that involve the use of props--yoga mats, straps, blocks, blankets, chairs, and walls--to enhance your yoga practice. By employing these tricks, you will be able to move more fully into postures and enhance your sense of physical and spiritual freedom. Through the tricks, you will experience that "ah-ha" feeling that comes from performing the postures in the manner that is most correct for your body. While all of the techniques in Cool Yoga Tricks will improve your ability to perform yoga poses more easily and effortlessly, the tricks specifically assist in: bringing an enhanced feeling of freedom in your body and spirit increasing flexibility, strength, and endurance lengthening your spine and back muscles more completely strengthening back muscles, which can bring a permanent end to back problems opening your hips more fully, which also eases back pain releasing the neck and shoulder muscles, allowing healing of neck pain expanding awareness improving concentration allowing practice of certain postures if you are injured, ill, or overly tired healing injuries improving circulation enhancing relaxation at the end of your practice quieting your mind As you read through this book and try the various postures, allow your body to guide you. How to Use the Tricks At the beginning of each chapter is a brief discussion of the category of postures presented. Within the chapter, many classic or traditional yoga poses are depicted, with detailed instructions on how to enter the pose and suggested alignment adjustments to make while in the pose. The tricks that help you learn how to master these traditional postures follow. The book is organized this way because prior to practicing the suggested tricks, it is necessary to understand the most important components of each classic pose. Each trick helps you assimilate a certain aspect or aspects of the traditional posture. You have learned the fundamentals of most of these poses in your yoga class or from a favorite book or tape. Perhaps what you have learned about some poses is different from what is presented here. That is because there are often many different ways to practice any given pose. There is no right or wrong way to do a pose. One variation may give one person more freedom in the pose, while another person may feel more constricted. That is largely due to our unique skeletal structure, musculature, and any injuries or illnesses we may be nursing. Some of the suggested adjustments may surprise you. At first you may be doubtful of whether you can do them or skeptical as to whether they will make a difference. The best way to determine if a variation or alignment suggestion is right for you is to try it. Let your body be the judge. As you experiment with a particular aspect of the pose, be completely aware of your body. How do you feel while in a particular variation? Does the trick give you more freedom in your body or less? Do you feel more alertness in your body or your mind? Are you more relaxed in the pose even though you may be working harder than you normally do? Do you feel stronger and more flexible in the pose? And, consequently, do you find other poses easier? It is important to let your body be your guide. Yoga awakens the body's intelligence and as you continue to practice, you become more and more discerning as to what is right and what is wrong for you and what meets your individual needs. Trust your body, trust your intuition, and trust yourself. Excerpted from Cool Yoga Tricks by Miriam Austin All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
