Excerpt from my daily yoga practice (Ashtanga Primary Series)

In this video, I'm practicing Ashtanga Primary Series. I've edited out Sun Salutations, Standing Sequence, Backbend Sequence, and Closing.
In this practice, I was thinking quite a lot about my insecurities and mistakes. It happens. I have a belly pooch from two pregnancies many, many years ago. I have remnants of diastasis recti which is when the two sides of the abdomen separate. I've become accustomed to readjusting my shorts over and over to try to cover the pooch. Anyway... when I focus on my insecurities, I tend to also start noticing mistakes. They live together in my head like a grumpy couple, each always blaming the other for our misfortune.
Insecurities become scary because we imagine they'll block access to our human needs, such as acceptance, love, safety, and other survival resources. A balanced Root Chakra is essentially a firm belief that these needs will be met. Perceiving something as a mistake means that we also imagine we had some power to do differently. Our personal power is tied to the Solar Plexus Chakra.
In Ashtanga yoga, we are often taught to "lock our energy" with Mula Bandha (translates to Root Lock) and Uddiyana Bandha (Upward Flying Lock). Physically speaking, many teach this to mean contracting pelvic floor muscles (root) and keeping the abdomen pulled in (solar plexus). Metaphysically speaking, it can mean cultivating curious, non-judgmental awareness of the potential energy that can manifest as an insecurity or perceived mistake. I believe that kind of awareness is enough to regulate behavior and energy leaks over time, but I'm still learning.
Interesting Moments
0:00 beginning of Primary Series
8:26 weird jump, but I caught it
14:05 a moment of reflection
16:38 a brief L-sit
20:08 another moment of reflection
22:55 Marichyasana D
25:25 Navasana 5 times
27:10 Bhujapidasana
29:18 Supta Kurmasana
33:55 almost skipped a pose
38:50 rolling mishap
40:20 Setu Bandhasana - final pose of Primary Series
#AshtangaPrimarySeries #ashtangayoga