“When the asana is correct, there is a lightness, a freedom.  Freedom comes when every part of the body is active.  Let us be free in whatever posture we are doing.  Let us be full in whatever we do. “  – BKS Iyengar

I have a love/hate relationship with backbends.   I love them because they are stimulating and energizing – who needs coffee when you’ve got some good backbends under your belt for the day?

But then I hate them because they’re hard – they require awhile to warm up before you can properly do them.  I have to practice at least 30 minutes before I can do more difficult backbends, and then I have to spend at least 15 minutes releasing them so I don’t have an achy back afterwards.   They also need to be repeated in a practice several times in order to really work in them, and after you’re done with the first, you rarely want to move on.   So, it’s a full hour practice for me, much of it pushing myself.

I also hate them because they show me the state of my practice – and when they’re stiff and stuck feeling, I know I haven’t been practicing with enough intensity.   And that’s how they’ve been feeling lately.   So….

It’s time to do a little backbend challenge!   I’m commiting to a month of backbends in October, my birthday month.  It’s a little Iyengar tradition to do dropbacks on your birthday – sometimes practitioners do as many as they are old (for me that would be 33 this year), and sometimes practitioners do 108, the sacred number of yoga.   Mr. Iyengar, now in his 90’s, still evidently does dropbacks!!

Here’s a beautiful video of a dropback. I’ll be using it as my inspiration – yes, I can do dropbacks, but no, I’ve never done any significant number in a row!  I don’t think that will be my goal in October, but who knows?  Stay tuned and check in with me on how my backbends are opening up as I commit to a more regular practice.

Anyone care to join me on my backbend quest?

Love to you all!

Barrett