Transitions are a powerful part of I am by nature a fast walker. You won’t find practice. Take them slowly, and you’ll me ambling down a street unless it’s winding and paved build strength and awareness that with cobblestones and I’m on vacation. I never thought serve you on much of it until a friend in college told me that he hated and off the mat. walking to class with me because I rushed him. He pre- ferred to walk slowly and take in the scenery. One day, he astutely pointed out that by focusing all my energy BY JASON CRANDELL PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRIS ANDRE Learn to transition gracefully into big, beautiful poses and discover an experience that’s more accessible and enjoyable. on getting from one place to another, I was missing out on The transition from Virabhadrasana I to Virabhadrasana III all sorts of “in between” moments in my life. It was his way of shifts the body from a stable, rooted posture to one of yoga’s most conveying the old adage that the journey is just as important challenging standing balances. If you use momentum to move from Warrior I to Warrior III, you’ll likely lose your balance because it as the destination. And he was right. I’d never given much will be hard to slow the momentum down, and you’ll throw yourself thought to my walk to and from class, but when I was able to off center. But if you glide slowly and mindfully from one pose to rein myself in and consciously slow down, the whole world the next, your body will find its balance point more easily. Taking around me came into vivid focus. The flowers, the trees, and the transition slowly will also strengthen your front leg, your the pond on our campus—they all came to life. I breathed abdominal muscles, easier and actually enjoyed my eight-minute walk instead and your back body. As you train your Begin in Virabhadrasana I with of being preoccupied with what was going to happen next. mind to observe the your left leg forward. Bring your atten- The same tendency often shows up on the yoga mat. We sensations of move- tion to your front foot. When people ignore the moments in between our poses, instead focus- ment and balance, lose their balance in this pose, they ing our attention on getting into the next pose. We hurl you will have the almost always fall forward and to the opportunity to prac- outer edge of the front foot. To coun- YN HEINEKEN; HAIR/MAKEUP: FRANCE PIERSON ourselves through Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed L tice maintaining teract this tendency, root down through IST: Staff Pose) and Up Dog just to get to the stillness and ease L your awareness the base of your big toe and the front of Downward-Facing Dog. Once we get into the more in a difficult and edge of your heel. Now, bring your advanced poses, such as Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Hand- changing situation. hands to your hips and lean forward stand), we may think we don’t need to pay attention to the so that most of your weight is in your moments leading into and out of the poses. We either rush front leg. Lift your back heel, coming to through the transitions or tune them out completely. There the ball of your right foot. Continue to are a couple of reasons for this, the most obvious being that slowly lean forward until your ribs meet your front thigh. Extend your arms : STEPHANIE BERNSTEIN; STY L transitions are nowhere near as rewarding to the ego as the straight back toward your outer hips. glory of a full pose. So, just as we do in life, we often avoid MODE 74 YOGA J OURNAL.C OM M A R C H 2 0 1 1 >>> Pause and feel the intensity building in right thigh and press your heel away. you to place your back foot softly on your front thigh. Notice the impulse Lengthen your torso so that it is paral- the ground. Once the back foot has to rush into the next phase of the pose lel to the floor. Take one more settling landed, slowly lift your torso to vertical in order to bypass the searing sensa- breath before initiating the transition and reach your arms overhead in Vira- tion in your quadriceps. Instead, take back to Virabhadrasana I. bhadrasana I. Congratulations! You’ve a slow deep breath and practice staying landed without waking the neighbors >> Try not to let the movement from calm in the midst of the difficulty. who live below you. Virabhadrasana III to Virabhadrasana I >> Enter the next phase of this transi- devolve into a free fall. Having just com- Take a moment to feel the tion by shifting your upper body for- pleted a strenuous pose, you might effects of this slow transition. Become ward until the majority of your weight naturally want to check out and cruise aware of the sensation in your front ETICA is directly above and in front of your on autopilot. Instead, draw your atten- thigh, the increased heat in your body, L standing leg. Once you do this, your tion into the present moment and focus and the demand that has been placed back leg will lift off the ground with on moving slowly and consciously. on your breath. Repeat this transition EMON ATH very little effort. Continue into Vira- two to three more times and focus L >> Bend your front knee to begin your U L bhadrasana III by slowly straightening on gliding in and out of the postures U L descent. As you start to lower your both legs and reaching your arms for- smoothly. Observe how this practice right leg, lean your torso forward. This ward. Take a moment to refine the pose: builds intensity in your body as it simul- A; MAT: will counterbalance the weight of your L Ground the base of your big toe and taneously refines your movements and lower body and keep you from crashing the front of your heel; draw up through focuses your mind. Now try the same the back foot heavily into the floor. the muscles of your standing thigh; transition on the other side. Bring your arms by your sides or onto level both hips by lifting the inseam of your hips. As you continue to descend, your right thigh while your outer right focus on keeping the weight of your hip drops. Reach strongly through your body directly over the standing leg to avoid leaning too far back. This will build strength and control and will allow TOP: PRANA; BOTTOMS: YOGABE M A R C H 2 0 1 1 YOGA J OURNAL.C OM 75 Instead of launching forward with hardened determination, pause and steady yourself. Lean rather than leap. There is no hurry to get anywhere in your practice—because you’re already there. the less comfortable or attractive places in our yoga practice Like the transition from Warrior I to III, shifting from Side in order to get to the final pose. Angle Pose to Half Moon Pose will challenge you to find a subtle Transitions in yoga, as in life, are hard. When the body balance point. Notice whether Half Moon Pose is easier for you than Warrior III. If it is easier, do you find yourself rushing through is well aligned in a pose, there’s often a sense of ease, as the transition even more than in the previous poses? the bones absorb much of your body weight and the mus- When something is easier, we think it requires less attention. cles support and stabilize you. During transitions, your But, remember, rushing through the transition will only make it brain has to figure out the actions, and your muscles have harder for you to find balance when you come into Half Moon. If to move your weight from one plane to another. Moving you can glide slowly and mindfully through these poses, however, slowly through transitions is more demanding, mentally and your balance will become much steadier. After all, the way you arrive somewhere affects your experience once you’re there. physically. But if you always rely on momentum to take you Imagine the feeling you have when you get to work after a slow, to the next pose, you’ll never build the strength to stop using calm morning as opposed to how you feel after sleeping through your momentum. Those moments when your muscles are your alarm, skipping shaking as you move from Parsvakonasana (Side Angle Pose) your morning prac- to Virabhadrasana II (Warrior Pose II) are opportunities to tice, and knowing Begin in Side Angle Pose with your left leg forward. Initiate the transi- create strength and integrity in your body. If you don’t take you’re late to a meeting. Similarly, tion to Half Moon Pose by stepping advantage of them, you’ll strengthen only the already-strong a smooth approach your back foot halfway to your front aspects of your practice and skip over the weak ones, leaving into Ardha Chan- foot. Bend your front knee deeply and yourself ill prepared for new challenges. drasana will deliver move your upper body forward beyond Momentum can be risky, too. When you push yourself, a steadier landing. your front toes. Reach your left hand you risk missing a cue that your body can’t handle the pose forward and down—placing it on the floor or on a block—to the left of your you’re moving into.