On Saturday March 21st Christchurch will officially be the bendiest, best-balanced city in New Zealand as it hosts the third official yoga asana championships. We tend to think of yoga asana championships as a recent development but they have been around for a very long time originating in India some 2000 years ago!
Read more here... http://i.yogasportsfederation.org/resources/competition/
It is not uncommon to hear people express their surprise as seeing the words yoga and championship/competition in the same sentence. We often hear the following points-of-view:
1.Surely the whole point of yoga is that it is NOT a competition?
2. Isn’t yoga about NOT comparing yourself to others?
3. What could be motivating about having judges score your postures?
4. What are you trying to prove? …
But I think you’ll find that most agree on the following rebuttals:
1. Yoga is NOT a competition in the traditional sense of the word. You are competing with yourself to give the best demonstration of yoga you can give.
2. Because of 1. you shouldn’t and don’t compare yourself to others.
3. Scores out of 10 are simply a means of quantifying results… you can attach as much or as little importance to this figure as you like, but at least you will know how to improve on your posture next time.
4. You are trying to prove nothing except that when you get out of your own way amazing things can happen.
Yogis who compete in these yoga asana championships often do so on more than one occasion, and they do so to improve on their previous demonstrations. They wish to see their progression. They are motivated by the sense of achievement that comes with rising to the challenge of competition, and are trying to prove nothing really, except that they can do it… as can anyone who puts their mind to it.
So, what’s involved in this competition then? Well the readers amongst you who practise Bikram yoga will be familiar with most of the content: Competitors must perform 5 compulsory postures from the beginners series (standing head-to-knee, standing bow-pulling, camel, rabbit, final stretching) and 2 optional postures taken from the 84 in the advanced series. Participants have a total of 3 minutes to perform 7 postures and judges will look for balance, strength, flexibility, well-paced timing and appropriate breathing in postures.
Last year Britomart’s own Rosey Tracey competed for the first time and won bronze! Here she is in action with tiger pose!
This year Rosey we hope to have quite the troop heading to the south island to bend it like Bikram and demonstrate what the body can achieve when the mind believes. Nikki Minhas is guiding our participants with the advanced class and posture homework and preparation twice weekly. The support is there! :-) Here's the photographic evidence...
So, what are you guys waiting for?! It’s not too late to sign up… If you have even just a small interest in competing come and talk to your teachers. We can help you with your postures and explain the process to you. Maybe you have zero interest in the competition aspect but are simply looking to push yourself a bit further with your practice? There is space for you too. See it as an opportunity to celebrate your yoga practice with the general public?
What would you achieve if you knew you could not fail?
See you on your mats! :-)
Read more here... http://i.yogasportsfederation.org/resources/competition/
It is not uncommon to hear people express their surprise as seeing the words yoga and championship/competition in the same sentence. We often hear the following points-of-view:
1.Surely the whole point of yoga is that it is NOT a competition?
2. Isn’t yoga about NOT comparing yourself to others?
3. What could be motivating about having judges score your postures?
4. What are you trying to prove? …
But I think you’ll find that most agree on the following rebuttals:
1. Yoga is NOT a competition in the traditional sense of the word. You are competing with yourself to give the best demonstration of yoga you can give.
2. Because of 1. you shouldn’t and don’t compare yourself to others.
3. Scores out of 10 are simply a means of quantifying results… you can attach as much or as little importance to this figure as you like, but at least you will know how to improve on your posture next time.
4. You are trying to prove nothing except that when you get out of your own way amazing things can happen.
Yogis who compete in these yoga asana championships often do so on more than one occasion, and they do so to improve on their previous demonstrations. They wish to see their progression. They are motivated by the sense of achievement that comes with rising to the challenge of competition, and are trying to prove nothing really, except that they can do it… as can anyone who puts their mind to it.
So, what’s involved in this competition then? Well the readers amongst you who practise Bikram yoga will be familiar with most of the content: Competitors must perform 5 compulsory postures from the beginners series (standing head-to-knee, standing bow-pulling, camel, rabbit, final stretching) and 2 optional postures taken from the 84 in the advanced series. Participants have a total of 3 minutes to perform 7 postures and judges will look for balance, strength, flexibility, well-paced timing and appropriate breathing in postures.
Last year Britomart’s own Rosey Tracey competed for the first time and won bronze! Here she is in action with tiger pose!
This year Rosey we hope to have quite the troop heading to the south island to bend it like Bikram and demonstrate what the body can achieve when the mind believes. Nikki Minhas is guiding our participants with the advanced class and posture homework and preparation twice weekly. The support is there! :-) Here's the photographic evidence...
So, what are you guys waiting for?! It’s not too late to sign up… If you have even just a small interest in competing come and talk to your teachers. We can help you with your postures and explain the process to you. Maybe you have zero interest in the competition aspect but are simply looking to push yourself a bit further with your practice? There is space for you too. See it as an opportunity to celebrate your yoga practice with the general public?
What would you achieve if you knew you could not fail?
See you on your mats! :-)
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