“One should not overstretch, nor understretch. If one thing is overstretched, something else gets understretched. If overstretching comes from a swollen ego, then understretching results from a lack of confidence. If overstretching is exhibitionism, understretching is escapism. Overstretching and understretching are both wrong: Always stretch from the source, the core, and the foundation of each asana. This is the art of dynamic extension. It is not that yoga injures, but it is the way one does yoga that leads to injury…
“Always try to extend and expand the body. Extension and expansion bring space, and space brings freedom. Freedom is precision, and precision is divine. From freedom of the body comes freedom of the mind and then the Ultimate Freedom. The Ultimate Freedom that yoga works toward can be tasted in our own bodies, as each limb gains independence, flexibility, and freedom from its neighboring limbs…”
~ B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Life
The key to freedom, my friend, is being tuned in, fully present, aware, and feeling exactly what is happening at any given moment.
Utilize this precision in your yoga practice and witness how it begins to pervade every aspect of your life.
Ah, freedom is so satisfying!