Principles of the Yoga Practice - Path of least resistance

Part 4 of 6 of the Principles of Yoga series. See the first three here ---> One, Two, Three

According to the Law of Compensation, we will automatically bend into where we are soft and avoid the areas that are hard during a yoga posture (asana)

“The path of least resistance”: Easiest, where we always go to easiest expression of the posture.

When this occurs we exploit the joints.

Poses may look prettier when we exploit, but we are actually more likely to get injured.

Let’s explore this concept with Eka Pada Rajakapotasana - Pigeon Pose

·         The law of compensation is most likely to occur around the knee and hip area. We would bend the knee as much as necessary to not feel the deep sensation up the leg and hip. We may even sit on the buttocks to avoid deep sensation on the leg.

Let’s take this concept off the Mat

The path of least resistance is essentially the ‘same old, same old’:  Emphasizing what works well and what you are good at and ignoring or dismissing where there is stiffness or aversion or where you have encountered hurt or failure in the past.

But, if you decide to not let the past define you (the ‘fixed mindset’), your future can change dramatically.  Similarly, if you divert from the path of least resistance (activating the ‘growth mindset’, by e.g. becoming a student again, learning something new or challenging ingrained patterns) it can give you a new perspective on life and the old paradigm of “I’m too …. (fill in the blank) … to do that.” becomes a busted myth.

#dothework

With love and gratitude,