My favorite part of the sun salutation is not chaturanga, but the actual salutation to the sun!
“If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?”
-Milton Berle
Yoga, at its best, is a practice that helps us evolve into our best selves. I began teaching in 1999 and I have evolved with my practice, but my practice has also evolved with me: I’ve learned the value of 10-15 minutes practice when I don’t have time for an hour, I finally incorporated meditation after more than a decade of practicing only postures, and I am constantly discovering how motherhood presents countless opportunities for spontaneous yoga, sometimes in the most unexpected ways.
And then there are postures I can do that I wasn’t able to before, as well as postures that I can no longer comfortably do that used to fit into my practice with ease. That’s okay! In fact, it’s great, because when I started out with yoga, I actually had sort of an ego boost from how many postures I could do well. I’m sure there are plenty of yogis out there in that boat and unfortunately, it’s not really yoga. Recently, there have been many yogis, even teachers, who have injured themselves because of trying to fit themselves into a posture rather than modifying the posture to fit their bodies needs.
In this light, there seems to be a movement in the world of yoga teachers towards offering alternatives to chaturanga, not just to add variation to the classes, but also because there is question as to whether or not chaturanga is good for your arms and shoulders. Now you see variations of sun salutation and vinyasa flow that have come in response to teachers who have found that the traditional plank/chaturanga/upward dog/downward dog flow can cause injuries in the shoulders and wrists.
I have definitely seen more people than I can count going through this sequence with either incorrect alignment or lack of strength to do it. Sometimes what is needed most is some strengthening exercises that might not come in the form of traditional yoga poses. Trina Altman goes into detail on this matter in her article on the importance of cross-training and yoga. This is great for anyone who really wants to do chaturanga and is willing to systematically build up the strength and range of motion to do it.
But, if you’d like to simply take some alternatives that help you make that transition from uttanasana (standing forward bend) to adho mukha svanasana (downward dog), here are some great, simple suggestions from Kat Heagberg that still offer ways to build strength while filling in that part of the sequence.
On the other hand, you might be very experienced, very strong with a keen sense of alignment, or just bored with basic flows. For a little more variety and spice, San Francisco based yoga instructor and chiropractor, Garrett Neill wrote an article about his journey with chaturanga and why he has created 9 alternatives to it. This is great news for people who don’t exactly love chaturanga but still want a challenge! Neill shows some fun ways to create strength with one-handed and one-legged versions. I think of things moms have to do with one hand, one eye, one ear, one scrap of their attention while the rest of them is attending to something else. If only we could have more than two hands; it’s almost as if all those multi-limbed Hindu deities are suggesting that maybe humans should have had four arms. It would definitely help a mother of twins!
Anyways, for now let’s use the two hands we have to get down on the ground and do some sun salutations. Here are some of my own alternatives to chaturanga. Try them out, modify them, make them your own. Or make up your own!
Slow-ga
This one is easy. Give thanks before a meal, either out loud or silently before you eat. Follow that with three deep breaths. Then eat slowly and without distraction (aside from conversation with anyone who might be eating with you, but if you have the opportunity to eat in silence, try it!). Eat with two hands; might as well take advantage of this time to uni-task and enjoy your food fully. I can’t tell you how many times I have eaten with one hand while the other hand was busy doing something else (like helping my daughter eat her dinner, for instance).
Some of you might already have some kind of pre-meal prayer or gratitude practice. That’s great! If you do, then try to have the meal in silence with minimal distractions. I know that can be hard with kids, but maybe try with a snack while they nap if that works for your situation, or even just your morning cup of tea or coffee if you can manage to have it before anyone else wakes up.