In One Nostril, Out The Other

Dear Yogis.

It’s the time of year for sinuses! Y'know... the point of sinuses is to produce mucus which forms a barrier against pollutants, dust, and micro-organisms. My nose is on another journey entirely, reaching its peak in spring by inviting in various pollens!  And, y’know, yoga, the clever-clogs, has an answer!

There are various Kriyas (cleansing routines) and pranayamas (breathing exercises) that yogis practice. The most obvious Kriya for the sinuses is the netti pot. I never got addicted to this, as some are, but I keep meaning to! A pot looks like a mixture of a teapot and a watering can. You fill it with warm salt water and pour it into one nostril and let it run out of the other. Now that I’ve written to you about it, I’d better have another go!

Yogic breathing can be highly distracting if the sinuses are blocked. Kapalabhati might be just the exercise for you because the mind is focused on the work of the abdominal muscles. Here’s how it works: begin with softly pushing your exhalation out and let the inhalation be passive. Squeeze your stomach muscles for the process. As you get used to it, you make it more rhythmic and subtle. Here’s a beautiful demonstration. There are many benefits… including clearing sinuses.

Any talk of cleansing brings to mind David Swenson’s ghastly story of ‘Sutra Neti’ – feeding a cloth into one nostril and out of the other  - as described here by another teacher. Pattabhi Jois, the teacher, would thread a waxed cloth through the nose of the yogi, go back and forth to polish the inside, pull it out and wipe it down for the next person! No Sharing Today! Obviously! But I suppose the point is that the nose wasn’t a stranger that sat in the middle of the face; they were interested in its function, in the respiratory system, and how to improve it. 

Zoom Classes 

We can have a go today in the afternoon class. It’s at 4.30 this afternoon and I call it ‘Ashtanga-based’ because I like to add to the sequence. I’m not strict, but I do try to keep the rhythm of one-breath-one-move in the sun salutations. I do notice people struggling slightly… don’t think I’m unsympathetic. When the flow of moving with the inhalation and exhalation comes, you’ll be glad you persisted. You can book/click here. See you later. 

Magical Kapsali Yoga Retreat

I spoke to Christina and Mirto at Porto Delfino yesterday to start the organisation of next year’s retreat. I also sounded out Valentina Candiani who taught last year’s retreat and I have fingers crossed that Lisa Lischak will come too. We would travel to the island on the weekend of the 11th/12th September. Fancy coming? Let me know and save the date.

Yoga in the news 

There was a snippet of this story in the news last week: CNBC investigates and tells us 78-year-old Paul McCartney's fitness routine includes headstands and yoga with Alec Baldwin. ‘“If I’m in a gym and all the big guys have got big weights and they’re doing all the big stuff, at the end I do a headstand,” he said. “And they come over to me [and say], ‘That’s pretty impressive man.’”’

The Telegraph has: 'Yoga needs to lighten up': Maya Fiennes on rediscovering the joy of yoga through dance. Maya Fiennes is internationally respected, zestful and nurturing and teaches her light-yoga joy from Santa Monica.

Woman & Home has: The benefits of yoga for children. “Unlike most sports, it’s non-competitive. It emphasises what a child can do, rather than what they can’t. It doesn’t focus on the child’s shape or size.”

Buckinghamshire Free Press has:  High Wycombe man loses 12 stone thanks to DDP Yoga ‘DDP Yoga was founded by semi-retired wrestler Diamond Dallas Page, with its aim to help men, who wouldn't usually use yoga, as a method to getting fit.’