backbend week

I am only taking class with Geeta on Friday night but I had heard from all the ladies that she was teaching backbends all week. I have been grumbling that Prashant hasn't been doing backbends. Until today. Oh my. First of all we did Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana on the chair, in many variations, for over an hour. Then moved on to ropes and free standing back arches, as he called them. As I was leaving the hall a new friend from London said "Well, I used to like Ustrasana".

Geeta had taught backbends the night before and to say the class was challenging is probably just being polite. Then right away this morning more bending over backward. And the tough thing about Prashant's class is that all awhile I am bending myself over the chair he is telling us to use 'mind, body, breath on mind, body, breath'. I was working very hard to be present with my breath too see the effects it had on my body. This work was some how more exhausting compared to the work I had done before. Consequently, I wanted to jump out of the chair. It didn't help that I was starved and had to work to keep my mind from thinking about scrambled eggs with cheese and tomatoes!