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laurelbeversdorf

Yoga with Resistance Bands
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Sometimes, as teachers, that feels like knowing le

Sometimes, as teachers, that feels like knowing less and responding more.

Responding to who is in front of us, what they want to learn, and where their curiosity and our curiosity as learners intersect. (To do this well, we need to forget what we know sometimes.)

Maybe teaching is finding the intersectionality of shared curiosity between ourselves as teachers and the students who are drawn toward us. Their curiosity molds ours. They show us what to teach, because they show us what we still need to learn.

If teaching is an intersection of curiosities, then, as teachers, we are not the path. We are travelers, just like our students.

But how do we actually respond to students these days when our modes of teaching seem to limit a real-space (and sometimes real-time) responsive relationship?

Webinar-type teaching means the teacher can’t even see their students.

Asynchronous teaching (pre-recorded classes) mean the teacher never had students there to begin with.

In these cases, what is the relationship, actually? Where does the intersection between these curiosities thrive?

On social media?

Good. Yes. But then does the relationship become more performer and audience? Lecturer and listener? Supply and demand?

Where does the teaching happen actually?

And how do we continue to hone our craft as teachers during these pandemic times? How do we make what we are trying to teach easier to learn?

These are questions that were partially uncovered, I believe, in my most recent podcast episode with Frances of @taylorfitwellness.

We also talked nitty gritty on how I launched my Virtual Studio with over 180 members, my tech secrets, and nerdy shit about the difference between anatomical versus biomechanical approaches to injury prevention.

SWIPE L for a few topics we covered! @taylorfitwellness outlined it all!

Link in bio to listen! 👀 Or search TaylorFit Wellness in iTunes.

Get to know your cast iron dance partner with this

Get to know your cast iron dance partner with this progression themed around rotational cleans.
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We’re going to play with some of these principles today in Kettlebell Gym 12-1:15p EST
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Video 1️⃣ WEIGHT SHIFT and ROTATE then put it together with CAST, SWING, and CATCH
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Video 2️⃣ all of the above, but now we PIVOT and LUNGE
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Video 3️⃣ all of the above but now ONE ARM with more load (potentially, although you might notice I dropped down in weight from 26lbs to 20lbs, but still more load per arm) and complexity (much more technical complexity).
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Video 4️⃣ all of the above but now we PIVOT and LUNGE again.
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Wanna come make progress with us today at Kettlebell Gym? All you need is one kettlebell or dumbbell.
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Drop in or membership with replays for both options. Links in bio 👀

These Z-sits are great for did you vote yet? I’l

These Z-sits are great for did you vote yet? I’ll be standing in line on Friday.

Who’s riding who, magic carpet? #witchyblanketmo

Who’s riding who, magic carpet? #witchyblanketmoves #spookyseason

Here are some novel ways to play with a blanket in

Here are some novel ways to play with a blanket in some supine postures.

And here’s what I love about using a blanket in each one —

VIDEO 1️⃣: the blanket encourages more adductor (inner thigh muscle) participation (adductor work is now non-negotiable!) It also offers a visual for external curing. Now the timing of arm and leg movement is timing the oppositional dance of both ends of the blanket as the spine rotates.

VIDEO 2️⃣: push me pull me! The blanket is thicker and asks for more grip. As I push my foot into the blanket I have to hold on tight with my hands and pull back against it. All the while I’m rolling so there’s *core-dination* as well. 😅

VIDEO 3️⃣: this is a step up from the previous video. Now my arms are overhead so shoulder and grip work is different. And my adductors (inner thigh muscles) have to squeeze the blanket. This shoulder and inner thigh control (and its relationship to core control) will be helpful for training for inversions.

VIDEO 4️⃣ and 5️⃣: a new way to stretch your legs with partially closed chain feedback and external load. Definitely a more active, core-centric way to work on hip flexibility.

Try these and let me know what you think!

Aaannnnd, I hope I see YOU AND A BLANKET tomorrow 12-1p EST. This class is part of the latest class series in my virtual studio, ONE PROP, MANY POSSIBILITIES.

Live class and recording available for drop in or membership. Links in bio 👀

This pose has long been my nemesis. Less bird of p

This pose has long been my nemesis. Less bird of paradise, more bird from hell.

But the main issue was that I was really attached to a shape — binding the arms and straightening the lifted leg, even though these were performance goals and didn’t serve me in a bigger picture way.

Now my goals are more process-oriented. I want to improve my strength, balance, and control. The blanket in this case helps me do that better by providing a little extra weight and a little extra task — don’t drop it.

In which case, this pose has more to offer me, and I can stop trying to cram my body into an arbitrary shape and instead explore and emphasize specific challenges of the process that help me reach my personal goals.

Like going from two feet to one foot back to two feet without the use of my arms which is quite a lot of work for my hips and quite challenging for my balance.

The blanket increases this challenge by adding weight/load, but it also clarifies the path I need to take by providing a task - don’t drop the blanket.

In the first part of the video I pin the blanket to my inner thigh with my arm. This helps me better sense where I am in space by improving my proprioception.

In the second half of the video, I keep the blanket clamped between the side of my trunk and top of my thigh — harder, lots of hip flexor work, but again the blanket gives me a very clear idea of where to work, and so in a way, it makes the process more do-able.

Can you tell I’m on a bit of a blanket kick? This is how my creative process works for planning a class called One Prop, Many Possibilities: You and a Blanket — come up with as many ways to use one blanket as possible, and then pick out all the ways that go together for the “narrative arc” of a sequence that is well-rounded and focused. It’s creativity meets editing. Curation.

I’m putting the finishing touches on this Tuesday’s class. It’s gonna be fun!

Want in? Links in bio for membership or drop-in!

Ever play with origami paper fortune tellers? Thi

Ever play with origami paper fortune tellers?

This exercise reminds me of opening and closing the fortune teller.

As I widen the base of support slowly out from underneath me, the bones of my extremities no longer help as much to support my center. My X patterned muscles (opposite side pecs to obliques that cross-cross our abdomen to opposite side hip flexors) must generate tension to control the lower and lift of our body (move our arms and legs evenly and not plop!)

I like moving my body in X patterns (as opposed to just forward and back or side to side) because they break us off the grid-like patterns of movement we get worn into in the asana practice.

These X-patterns help make us stronger for different pushing angles, rolling patterns, and crawling patterns, to name a few.

VIDEO 1️⃣ is the waaaay progressed version of paper fortune teller.

VIDEO 2️⃣ is a better place to start with shorter levers/lower load. You can also work to just move your arms or legs out to progress even more slowly.

Aaaaand...if you like this, we’ll be exploring lots of ways that a single blanket can offer us valuable information and and opportunities to strengthen in...

YOU AND A BLANKET, Tuesday 10/27, 12-1p EST

This is the second class in a 4-part #minimalprops class series running Tuesdays called One Prop, Many Possibilities.

Each class we’ll do the stimulus response dance with our prop in focus - block (last week!) blanket (this week!), wall (election day 😂), floor (in that order...)

This live class (You and a Blanket + the whole One Prop, Many Possibilities Series) + class recordings are FREE for members.

Dropping in? Pay $15 to join live + get a 7-day replay of the class emailed to you after class ends.

Membership and drop-in links in bio 👀

A BLANKET IS A HEAVIER BELT This approach to Pras

A BLANKET IS A HEAVIER BELT

This approach to Prasarita Padottonasana C helps us have contrasting experiences of active and passive range of motion in shoulder extension.

It highlights the different sensory experiences of muscle activation versus soft tissue and muscle stretch. Because the blanket adds load, it accentuates both experiences.

While upright, the blanket acts as resistance, encouraging more muscle force to move our shoulders into extension against its weight. While folded forward, the blanket acts as assistance—it becomes a source of external leverage—to move our shoulders into more extension than we would be able to create actively with muscle force alone.

All of this to say, the blanket helps us work both actively and passively depending on how we orient ourselves in relationship to gravity.

Then, for extra #evilshittodowithblankets if we take the passive range the blanket helps us achieve while folded forward and MAINTAIN it as we come back upright, we can train our muscles to better control that end range position.

You won’t get this same effect with a belt or interlaced hands, which is why I like adding the thicker heavier effect of a blanket.

Try it and let me know what you think!

Wanna play with more ways a blanket can become the impetus for both finding more range of motion and generating more tension to support our end range positions? If the answer is yes, you may want to join me this Tuesday for

YOU AND A BLANKET, Tuesday 10/27, 12-1pm EST

We’ll explore lots of ways a single blanket can bring a variety of new stimuli to our practice!

This live class and access to the recording is FREE for members. Dropping in? Pay $15 to join live + get a 7-day replay of the class emailed to you.

Links in bio — membership or drop-ins. 👀

Here are three ways to use a blanket in a differen

Here are three ways to use a blanket in a different way than how we typically use a blanket in a yoga class.

For funsies, I listed “the usual” ways I notice blankets are used in a yoga class.

To make the floor softer
To cover up with and stay warm
To raise the floor up higher
To prop some part of our body to explore a range of motion
To slide around on (this wasn’t a typical way we’d use a blanket but I’d argue it has become mainstream now.)

What other ways can you think of for how you use a blanket and how would you classify it? What’s its purpose?

In these three videos (Swipe L) I use the blanket as

VIDEO 1 — Light external load to warm up the shoulders and provide a sense of direction for them in halos

VIDEO 2 — Equipment to pull on that also provides feedback for stacking the body upright and generating tension in that upright position like we need to for inversions upside down.

VIDEO 3 — The blanket is not only equipment to pull on, but a pliable wall of sorts for feedback on hip hinging. Push your butt back to pleat the blanket while pulling it long over over your back and head.

If you find this exploration compelling, join me for next Tuesday’s class One Prop, Many Possibilities, YOU AND A BLANKET, Oct. 27th 12-1p EST

Recommended Props — any that you like to have for your practice + one blanket that spreads out a little longer than you are tall.

This live class and access to the recording is FREE for members. Dropping in? Pay $15 to join live + get a 7-day replay of the class emailed to you.

Links in bio — membership or drop-ins. 👀

I often teach bus stops rather than peaks. A peak

I often teach bus stops rather than peaks. A peak implies there’s one destination. Bus stops, many.

These 3 side planks all target the adductors in a progression (bus stops) from lower to higher adductor loading.

The first side plank (or bus stop) is a short lever one, meaning the levers (the extremities — in this case the legs, but not the arms) are “shorter” — aka my knees are bent.

This decreases the “advantage” my bodyweight (the resistance) has and makes it easier for my adductors (and core and bottom shoulder) to lift my hips and torso up. It also means less weight in my wrists.

This is a good stop to get off of if you want to gradually build up your ability to manage the load of a “heavier” side plank.

The second side plank is a long lever one with regards to my lower extremities. Resistance has more advantage. My hips and trunk feel heavier on my adductors (and core and shoulder). Buuuut, my elbow and forearm are the base of support rather than my palm and wrist. We’ve unloaded the wrist completely in this one.

This is a good stop to get off of if you want to challenge your adductor (and core and shoulder) capacity more, but not your wrist too much.

In the third side plank, levers are long, especially when I kick my bottom leg forward. This challenges both my bottom and top hips’ adductors quite a bit. 🔥 Buuut blockhead helps keep “tensegrity” by encouraging my lateral neck muscles to do their fair share of the heavy lifting of my head.

If you missed today’s class One Prop, Many Possibilities: YOU AND A BLOCK, you can still get it and over 45 other classes — kettlebells, resistance bands, novel prop themed yoga classes, therapy balls — with membership to my virtual studio.

Members, the class is edited, up, and ready for you to enjoy in your on-demand library! ❤️

Link in bio to learn more about becoming a member. 👀

Don’t mind me, I’m just over hear getting warm

Don’t mind me, I’m just over hear getting warmed up for tomorrow’s class YOU AND A BLOCK.

We’re definitely going to explore these Figure Eight Prasarita Lunges tomorrow but not as a warm up. We’ll do this in between some super slow work using the block to organize muscle tension differently and cultivate more intention in our transitions through some standing poses. These Prasarita Figure Eights will be an interlude to groove a bit before we rein it in and do the second side.
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Want in?
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YOU AND A BLOCK, Tuesday 10/20, 12-1p EST

This is the first class in a 4-part class series running for the next four Tuesday’s One Prop, Many Possibilities.

Each class we’ll do the stimulus response dance with our prop in focus - block, blanket, wall, floor (in that order)

We’ll move with the prop, against it, on it, into it, away from it, across and over it and notice how its input changes our output and the way we experience our body as a result.

This live class (You and a Block + all classes in the One Prop, Many Possibilities Series) + access to the recordings are FREE for members.

Dropping in? Pay $15 to join live + get a 7-day replay of the class emailed to you after class ends.

Membership and drop-in links in bio 👀

Flexion gets a bad rap but it’s a way our spine

Flexion gets a bad rap but it’s a way our spine can move, so as long as we don’t have sensitivity in that position, why not explore it like we explore back-bending, rotating, and side body stretches?

Also, exercises like this that ask me to effort neck flexion take me back to the days when lots of us were trying to relax our necks all the time. Tension (especially neck tension) had negative connotations.

I’d feel so confused when I would hear a teacher suggest that my neck should (or could) relax while I held my head up away from the floor.

After experiencing some neck discomfort for a time, and trying different stuff, I realized actually that the thing that helped my neck feel better was exercising it actively, contracting my neck muscles against some source of resistance like the weight of my head, pressing my head into something like a block, or working against banded tension. Things like that that made my neck stronger, but also, getting stronger all around my shoulders (and the one that really blew my mind was the connection I felt between my grip strength and my neck.)

Now it makes total sense why strengthening my neck is as important as strengthening my glutes, hamstrings, abdominal muscles, or lats.

And I learned that tension is not the enemy of bodily comfort. Sometimes it’s the impetus for it.

Wanna play with ways a block can become the impetus for generating more tension in our practice, exploring under-explored positions and finding avenues of effort and connection?

YOU AND A BLOCK, Tuesday 10/20, 12-1pm EST

This live class and access to the recording is FREE for members. Dropping in? Pay $15 to join live + get a 7-day replay of the class emailed to you.

Links in bio — membership or drop-ins. 👀

Thank you @trinaaltman for the idea to press a block between my knees and forehead. The exercise was born out of a fabulous rolling video Trina shared a long time ago where she used the block like this. 💡 ❤️

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