The Pose of the Month for PYC this May is Warrior III.
Power Yoga Canada has a great incentive every month; they pick a pose walk you through the posture. Check out Sam and Mike walking you through the posture from beginning to end (with three fantastic take-away tips).
PYC then invites you to post a picture of your most unique or inspiring version of that particular posture on Facebook. It is a great idea, not only can you win some great FREE yoga (check out your studio for more info) it allows you to connect with and practice a posture you might easily just blow through in class or, even better, one that you might struggle with practice after practice.
Warrior III has always been a fav of my. I love the feeling of freedom and strength I get from the posture, I struggle to align my hips with the floor and love to add a little backbend to open up my heart!!
Physiologically it is a GREAT pose for core strength. You would be mistaken if you thought you needed stronger legs to properly execute this posture!!! It’s all about the core, baby! Once you activate your lower back and abs into a nice tight circle of strength it takes all the pressure off your stationary leg and takes your pose into a light and airy floating feeling (just the way it looks in the pictures!!) It is also a great way to strength weak ankles and hamstrings, which can be sometimes hard to target.
Although I love the way a good Warrior III feels, I think it’s back story is even more awesome/crazy!
Apparently it gets it’s name from Hindu mythology!! It is a crazy little story about a sacred ritual, some uninvited guests, an argument between a father and daughter that results in a little dramatic suicide, a heart broken husband who creates a warrior out of a tuft of his hair, the warrior seeking out revenge on the father, a remorseful husband who restores the father’s head with the head of a goat (so that he may live) and eventually his bride is reborn!!!! WOW!!! Apparently, the pose represents the warrior’s role in the tale. Bet you didn’t see that coming!!
Warrior III P.O.T.M. is a great way to introduce yourself to studio/community. So if aren’t active on the PYC studio Facebook pages (which you totally should be!! The people are super supportive AND inspiring!!) take this opportunity to strike your best/most unusual Warrior III, get a friend to snap some pics and introduce yourself to your community!
P.S. The Sanskrit term for Warrior III is Virabhadrasana. The broken hearted husband named his warrior, Virabhadra. Vira = hero + Bhadra = friend. So, go and find your best Hero Friend (or perhaps a new one!) and strike up your best Warrior III and maybe you will be lucky enough to snag some of that free PYC yoga love!
Namaste,
Amber