NEW - 2024 Adriene's 30 Day Yoga Journey

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Flatlander Jan 2023 9:22pm, 12 Jan 2023 2,679 posts	0 Flatlander I use a Drishti point to fix my gaze and to focus, which helps to remove interferring stimuli, aids breathing, and gives an invisible imaginary solid bar between the point and my eyes to keep me steady. I agree about the not looking straight ahead in a mirror.
Sharkie Jan 2023 9:31pm, 12 Jan 2023 21,143 posts	0 Sharkie Can you explain 'Drishti point' in English (or French) please, Flatlander
Sharkie Jan 2023 9:32pm, 12 Jan 2023 21,144 posts	0 Sharkie I know I could Google but Am Lazy.
Flatlander Jan 2023 10:04pm, 12 Jan 2023 2,680 posts	0 Flatlander Sharkie Drishti is a Sanskrit word meaning gaze, view, point of focus. In relation to poses it refers to what one physically focuses the eyes on, the point one looks at (as you wrote, almost but not directly straight ahead), and that point is used for one's attention to stop the focus wandering off elsewhere (like if riding a bike and there is a stone in the way, one looks at the way around the stone rather than at the stone which would result in hitting that stone). That way, one blocks out those unwanted stimuli, one is thinking about the pose and how one is holding oneself in that pose, whether any adjustments need to be made and then making them, and one ends up in as best an alignment as one can manage. One can become very aware of one's proprioception and know when a part of the body is not in the correct position and conversely when it is. An example of that is many people think they are standing completely upright in a one-legged pose when in fact they are very slightly slumped in the hip, or the hip is out to the side. Watching Adriene's videos, she shows that when she illustrates the differences in upright and slightly slumped postures. In classes, there were times when I'd be so focussed that I wouldn't realise that others were speaking to me because I had blotted out everything else since I was focussed on my Drishti point. Sorry, that was probably a much longer reply than you were expecting (I have a good/bad habit of going into detail ). Despite that, I hope it was helpful for you.
Meglet Jan 2023 10:18pm, 12 Jan 2023 23,253 posts	0 Meglet Yes I’ve been in classes where they use the phrase ‘find your drishti’. Basically pick a point to focus on, the wall or the floor. As we did the standing twist today I had to pick a point a bit further round, this time it was a flower on my curtains!
Sharkie Jan 2023 10:32pm, 12 Jan 2023 21,145 posts	0 Sharkie Focus/direction of gaze is interesting. Related to this is the 'spotting' that dancers use when they turn. Here's the intro to a scientific paper I found: 'Having a focus of attention (FOA) in executing complex motor tasks can facilitate task execution.'
Yorkshire Pie Jan 2023 7:41am, 13 Jan 2023 14,981 posts	0 Yorkshire Pie Day 12 done, I felt like it went really quickly and was disappointed it was over so soon.
Pam runs Jan 2023 7:49am, 13 Jan 2023 236 posts	0 Pam runs Day 12 done. I enjoyed that one. I found a lot of moves harder than they look. Wrists do not face anywhere near backwards. Half warrior was very wobbly today i think i have uneven knees which doesn't help. And lizard (i think it was called) rest your elbows on the floor. No chance with that one either. 🤔
panad Jan 2023 8:07am, 13 Jan 2023 3,346 posts	0 panad Day 12 done ✅ Agree with Pam, a lot of the moves were harder than they looked/sounded! Lots of circular movements in positions that I have never moved circularly whilst doing before, and I was definitely wobbly whilst moving in the low lunge. A big fan of lizard here - so very pleased to see that pose making an appearance. Agree that it went quickly, would have liked it to last a bit longer and enjoyed it - something I hadn’t been expecting from the first 5mins or so. If you have trouble with your wrists you may find this hard/painful at times - but it did also feel like it would be a good session to ultimately ease some wrist pain (if repeated regularly?) as the circular movements meant wrists were getting attention.
Yorkshire Pie Jan 2023 9:31am, 13 Jan 2023 14,982 posts	0 Yorkshire Pie Yes, I also struggled to get my wrists backwards and ended up static rather than doing the lunge upper body circles (I think I managed one or two each way before deciding to just stay where I was and work on deepening my position a bit). I used hands rather than elbows on the floor for lizard but did lift my back knee.