Undoing bad ingrained practices..help help help!

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

hi there… i need help!!

i have been doing yoga for three years…most of this period i have had a daily practice…i have practiced ashtanga and anusara during this time and have had many great teachers and spent a year going to classes and workshops very continuously…i got very proficient quickly as i was doing so much yoga and i am naturally very flexible…i was very finely tuned to my body…my posture was great, i was connected …i felt lovely…

however i became disillusioned last year for various reasons and gave up yoga for a few months alltogether…no classes no practice nothing…my flexibility did not wain. i then went through a period of time where i exercised obsessively…running mainly and lots of intense yoga on my own but no classes…this was every day too…i have since given up running as i completely over exerted myself…i didnt realize but this combination a couple of months down the line has resulted in my body seizing up, totally misaligned, insane tension in my neck and shoulders and back that i cant relieve and really really bad alignment…but still ridiculously flexible…BAD NEWS…

i realise the frantic desperate way i have approached yoga in the past while has backfired…can i salvage this??? i know now i am not connecting my bandhas, my breath is all over the place, in my head completely…

i cant really afford endless classes at the moment but im afraid to practice on my own now for fear of solidifying bad habits…

HELP!!!

#2

When students become overwhelmed and anxious as a result of their choices then it’s very helpful to simplify their living. This also applies to their practice.

We all reinforce some less-than-wholesome habits in our practice. The more frequent our practice (asana of course) the more reinforced these become, the more there is a need for the watchful eyes and guidance of a clean teacher (and by “clean” I am not referencing one that is well washed, though that is included).

Asana, without an underlying spiritual component (one that connects the student to their spirit or source) merely aggrandizes the ego, puffing wind into its sails. So what I suggest, to those who ask in earnest, is to find an alignment-based practice where peers and teachers are practicing what they are teaching (living it) AND that practice is interwoven with something far greater and more robust than asana (applied philosophy, meditation, lifestyle/nutrition).

I personally believe that variety is the spice of life BUT too many cooks spoil the stew. Trying this style and that style to see what works is recommended. Following, it is best to have some committment to that choice and study in a lineage that does not foster muddied waters in the student’s mind.