For the morning sitters...

[BeHereNow]

Do you do some movement and breath practice prior to sitting, or do you just get out of bed and sit?

I've always done a movement and breath practice prior to sitting, but I'm trying to find ways to get in a longer sit without losing too much sleep.  My yoga and breath practice takes me about 20-30 minutes, so I could use that time, but am curious as to whether the quality of the sit would suffer (whether I would get more stuck in my patterns rather than letting them go, as the movement and breath seems to loosen things up a bit).

I'm curious as to whether people prefer one vs. the other and the reasons why...

Thanks so much!

Much metta,
Paula

[clayton]

I used to get out of bed and go straight into sitting.  Personally I found this less helpful since the body can be quite sleepy.

What I have done and found helpful is:
a) Wake up, yoga (or even just a shower), then sit
b) or, my current practice, wake up, drink tea / read dhamma for about 20 mins, then walk (25mins), sit (25mins), walk (25mins), sit (25mins)

my thoughts are that you'll simply have to experiment to know the answer for yourself.  While the quality of the sit is important, sometimes it can take several days or weeks to get comfortable with a new or adjusted routine... just a part of the process to be aware of :-)

[BeHereNow]

Thanks, Clayton!

Your morning routine sounds quite nice. 

I will experiment as you say and see what sticks...

Much metta,
Paula 

[BeHereNow]

This morning I tried skipping my asana / pranayama practice, read some Pema and sat for 1 hour.  It was great to sit for an hour, I was able to settle in and have a profound experience.

But... my body is in so much pain today!  My neck is sore on one side, my back hurts... tension tension tension.  I remember from my Goenka days when I sat for the mandatory 2 hours a day I lived in profound physical pain. 

I don't want the pain to get out of control so tomorrow I'll go back to my asana / pranayama practice, since it's the weekend I'll hopefully still get in an hour sit after that.  I may continue to log here on my morning experiences to see what ends up being a good practice for me at the moment.

I may also play with one day 1 hour sit, 1 day asana / pranayama + 30 minute sit...

Much metta,
Paula

[Matthew]

Hi Paula,

Just a little suggestion that may help:

Stretch your body before getting out of bed, before it fights gravity. Like a cat does before rising from where it has slept, stretch each limb in turn out to the fullest extent, yawn deeply, arch your back. Then you can stretch again once standing.

Keep on finding out what works.

Kindly,

Matthew

[BeHereNow]

Thanks so much, Matthew.  I did the double stretch and it was helpful.

On the weekend I did the yoga and meditation practice and my body definitely felt more open and my meditation more peaceful.  Yet I noticed that the pain that arose in my 1 hour sit the day prior was helpful in seeing deeper patterns of aggression that needed to be felt.

This morning I went back to just sitting for an hour.  So much rage... but it must be felt.  It must be opened to.  This is the real work, so I'm choosing to go there. 

I will alternate one hour sits one morning with 30 mins yoga 30 min sits the next day, that way I can get the depth but not bring up so much pain that it is overwhelming.

Much metta,
Paula