Back on the mat - Cape Men's Yoga on 23 February 2014
Thanks to the guys who joined the Practice in the Park to raise funds for EarthChild. It was a scorching hot day but fun to practice with the broader yoga community.
We are back on the mat this Sunday 23 February 2014 at 10h00 until noon, at our regular venue in Hout Bay.
The class will be a vinyasa yoga practice. We'll be exploring asanas that help open up the hips. Hips opening is important for a number of reasons. Typically men struggle with tight hip muscles. If you are an athlete, such as being a runner, tight hips are a common issue. Tight hip and buttock muscles are also associated with low back problems.
Come find out what your body is all about, followed by some calming meditation.
Whatever your body type or fitness, there is an opportunity to connect mind and body, to journey forth with your own path of self-knowledge, transformation and making time for yourself and your own well-being. We invite you not to delay, dive on in...
Our practice is nude male yoga and meditation. Beginners and advanced are welcome. The practice is free, donations are welcome to cover the use of the venue. We practice weekly in Hout Bay.
For more info contact us on capemensyoga AT gmail.com
Or bbm on 2a2183bd
Some thoughts on the body and the mind...
I chatted with a lovely yogini friend over the weekend about our bodies and yoga. She is approaching 50 this year. I turned 50 last year. She has a beautiful body, keeps in great shape and loves practising and teaching yoga. She also has scoliosis, a genetic pattern in her family that has left the two sides of her back uneven in shape and creates pressures in one hip. She talked about the shame and fear of this physical condition during her life, and how yoga is teaching her to both work with it and also to accept herself regardless of whether her back looks like what she thinks others expect of her. She talked about all the energy she has put into giving a good front to her social encounters in the hope that no one would see her dorsal issues.
It reminded me again of why nude yoga takes us places that other practices do not. We have uneven bodies, scars, marks, irregularities, too much of this, too little of that. It is easy to build up a big narrative about what you like and don't like, and then also build up this screen to present something different to the outside world, while underneath you still know how you feel about yourself.
I think that many of us who do the nude yoga, have felt a pang of anxiety the first time we dropped trousers and exposed ourselves to scrutiny. The things we see may be seen by others, but just as likely they are not the focus of attention. We remember moments of vulnerability, of truth, of kindness, of honesty, of risk taking, of being together and being really united in hearts and minds.
Whatever your body means to you, it is temporary, it is what it is. You may transform your body in yoga, but the main point is rather to still the mind. To appreciate yourself and not to attach too tightly to the physical and material self. It is there as a teacher and as a companion, not as a master or as a judge.
Namaste...
We are back on the mat this Sunday 23 February 2014 at 10h00 until noon, at our regular venue in Hout Bay.
The class will be a vinyasa yoga practice. We'll be exploring asanas that help open up the hips. Hips opening is important for a number of reasons. Typically men struggle with tight hip muscles. If you are an athlete, such as being a runner, tight hips are a common issue. Tight hip and buttock muscles are also associated with low back problems.
Come find out what your body is all about, followed by some calming meditation.
Whatever your body type or fitness, there is an opportunity to connect mind and body, to journey forth with your own path of self-knowledge, transformation and making time for yourself and your own well-being. We invite you not to delay, dive on in...
Our practice is nude male yoga and meditation. Beginners and advanced are welcome. The practice is free, donations are welcome to cover the use of the venue. We practice weekly in Hout Bay.
For more info contact us on capemensyoga AT gmail.com
Or bbm on 2a2183bd
Some thoughts on the body and the mind...
I chatted with a lovely yogini friend over the weekend about our bodies and yoga. She is approaching 50 this year. I turned 50 last year. She has a beautiful body, keeps in great shape and loves practising and teaching yoga. She also has scoliosis, a genetic pattern in her family that has left the two sides of her back uneven in shape and creates pressures in one hip. She talked about the shame and fear of this physical condition during her life, and how yoga is teaching her to both work with it and also to accept herself regardless of whether her back looks like what she thinks others expect of her. She talked about all the energy she has put into giving a good front to her social encounters in the hope that no one would see her dorsal issues.
It reminded me again of why nude yoga takes us places that other practices do not. We have uneven bodies, scars, marks, irregularities, too much of this, too little of that. It is easy to build up a big narrative about what you like and don't like, and then also build up this screen to present something different to the outside world, while underneath you still know how you feel about yourself.
I think that many of us who do the nude yoga, have felt a pang of anxiety the first time we dropped trousers and exposed ourselves to scrutiny. The things we see may be seen by others, but just as likely they are not the focus of attention. We remember moments of vulnerability, of truth, of kindness, of honesty, of risk taking, of being together and being really united in hearts and minds.
Whatever your body means to you, it is temporary, it is what it is. You may transform your body in yoga, but the main point is rather to still the mind. To appreciate yourself and not to attach too tightly to the physical and material self. It is there as a teacher and as a companion, not as a master or as a judge.
Namaste...
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