Happy Full Moon In More Ways Than One!

Published: Thu, 02/17/22


A little while ago, one of our long-time students and a great friend (you know who you are) told us that every time they train with us "it all boils down to the b's, as in butt, butter, bacon, bridge, breathwork and buddhi". :)

We call them, "the basics".  Honor the basics and everything else will fall into place.  Two of the basics, the bridge pose and the butt, go hand in hand.  Proper practice of the bridge pose helps create strong butt

Why do you want a strong butt?

The benefits of strong glutes are tremendous in terms of both injury prevention, day to day life, and athletic performance.  A strong butt can: I like to say that "a strong butt has your back".  Tim likes to say, "better butt, better back".  Either way, you cannot get the butt you want by sitting on the butt you already have... :)

Our bridge pose is the most effective way to activate and strengthen your glutes

You can't always rely on squats, deadlifts or even one-legged balancing poses to strengthen the glutes. The reason being -- most people's glutes are completely turned off.  So other muscles such as hamstrings and quads will start taking over before you can even get to the glutes. 

If however you start with our version of the bridge pose, chances are really high that within a couple of repetitions, the person will get to feel the glutes, even if they are really weak.

A muscle working hard recruits the neighboring muscles, and if they are already part of the action, it amplifies their strength. The neural impulses emitted by the contracting muscle reach other muscles and ‘turn them on’ as an electric current starts a motor. -Sherrington’s Law of Irradiation

Based on the above law, you can use your feet to get to your glutes.  If you practice our bridge pose as described in the instructions of this quick Ayurvedic workout, the Bravo Series, and you still don't feel your glutes, it means that your feet are not in the proper place and/or you are not using them properly. 

Time for Planet Speak...

Yesterday, we got to experience a gorgeous Full Moon in Leo with the Sun in Aquarius.  Looking at the chart of this Full Moon tells us that the planets want us to focus on peace and creativity, with enthusiasm and courage.

Other than the highly promising conjunction of Venus and Mars in Capricorn that we already talked about in our previous email, we also now have Jupiter in Pisces giving us the energies of growth and expansion.

Think of Jupiter as the ruler of your second chakra which is all about confidence and faith in yourself.  The second chakra is associated with the water element and the State of Flow.  Assuming we have a strong first chakra (ruled by Saturn) we need an equally strong second chakra as a prerequisite for a happy, content life.

Pisces is a water mutable sign, which means that it has the qualities of the mid waters, think Vata in the water.  Forever changing currents between the surface and the bottom can be fascinating to watch and take advantage of but they can also drag the best swimmer into the abyss if they are not careful. 

Jupiter in Pisces gives us possibilities for expansion and growth as long as we stay in the right direction. 

Excessive trust in the wrong current can be dangerous, especially since on February 23, the Moon meets the South Lunar Node in Scorpio

Think of the South Lunar Node as our past behaviors and habits, what has brought us to this point in our life.  It also represents that from which we may need to detach ourselves, in order to go toward the North Lunar Node, the future, which is right across, in Taurus.  Think of Scorpio as the opportunity for regeneration, rebirth, the mystical, deep thinking, pattern recognition, beliefs.

So the South Lunar Node in Scorpio makes it easier for us to evaluate and answer the following questions: Until next time...   The Second Chakra & Your Mind

Much much love from both of us!

Na’maste Kala! (Which in Greek means, may we all be well!)
-Tim and Vie | Ayurveda Outlaws