A monthly newsletter that explores all things Yoga – from adjusting your asana to discussing philosophy – and how to make all of it your own.

Happy March!

Hello Reader,

The countdown to maternity leave is on – my schedule is reducing as my waistline keeps expanding. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to continue these monthly newsletters during my teaching hiatus, but only time will tell...kids have a tendency to change your plans (as any parent can tell you!).

In the meantime, as we gear up towards spring, I hope you find time to get outside and appreciate the changes (both in life and in Nature).

Anatomy Spotlight: Knees and Rotation

Knees seem like such a simple joint – they bend, and they straighten. But as so often happens with anatomy, there’s more variation available than you see at first glance. When the knee is bent, there’s actually some rotation that can (and should!) happen. The hamstrings, which wrap from the back of pelvis and femur to the front of the tibia and fibula, are shortened/more relaxed when this joint is bent, allowing for the femur and lower leg bones to turn around each other.

Functionally, this allows our heels to pivot our feet in or out without relying solely on the ankle joint. When we’re walking on uneven surfaces or placing our feet at angles for balance (when hiking, for example), this ability to rotate assures a more versatile use of the lower limb. In a deep knee bend, the rotation allows our femur and fibula/tibia to shift around each other to facilitate movement (think of rolling over the shin as you move from seated on the floor to kneeling; see example on right photos).

Pose Breakdown: King Pigeon’s Front Leg

One of my least favorite cues of all time is “flex the foot to protect the knee.” It gets my goat because it’s applied universally, with no nuance for when a flexed foot is beneficial; in King Pigeon Pose, it can be actively harmful to flex at the ankle joint. The idea of flexing is not totally flawed – it can help prevent over-rotation into the knee – but it’s misapplied here.

If the knee is aiming for 90º in Pigeon, we want to allow for the knees’ natural rotation as a safety valve for tight hips. Flexing at the ankle transforms the foot into a lever with a hard stop: your knee cannot rotate because your foot can’t push through the floor. While it’s nice to believe that stopping knee rotation will target the hips, in reality, if the hip muscles have reached their limit, the weight of the body will transfer down into the knee. If the foot is stopping rotation, that translates to shearing forces that can damage ligaments as upper leg goes one way, and lower leg has no give.

Keeping the ankle long in King Pigeon will still allow you to target the hips – it simply gives your knee room to adjust and keep itself safe. You can double the safety by not forcing your knee to 90º; a deeper bend allows for more rotation if needed. If you want to create effort in the bent leg (to help with the backbend, for example), a light rooting of toenails towards the earth can create that effect.

Philosophy: Duhkha

Some words or concepts are so influential that they permeate a culture, and impact multiple philosophies. Duhkha is one of these concepts – it’s found in various Indian philosophies and religions, though each interpretation depends on the greater context of the philosophy. For the purposes of Patanjali’s Sutras, I’m going to use the translation of “nagging discomfort” or “feeling of restriction.”

This feeling of duhkha becomes noticeable as we progress in our practice; it may be as vague as a sense of something not being right, or as specific as noticing unexpected negative consequences from our actions. Ultimately, we must take responsibility that our duhkha-s are self-inflicted, as we are the orchestrators of our actions, and actions performed without true unattached clarity (which is hard to achieve!) can lead to uncomfortable or even painful circumstances. It takes time and effort to distinguish our blind spots, and to practice actions in life that support freedom instead of restriction.

To use a physical metaphor, think about the edge of sensation in a challenging yoga pose. Whether initially pleasant or painful, you must learn to distinguish if it’s a sign of growth, a warning of imminent injury, or just habitual feedback. Understanding the true cause helps decide the best action – but it takes time (and sometimes retraining) to build that awareness.

Thanks for joining me!

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