Uttanasana: Finding Love

Uttanasana used to be a dreaded pose for me. I still have difficulty putting words around what it was precisely that challenged me most. I felt challenged in my hamstrings (used to be very tight and then, after a pull, 13 years of “extra tightness” and discomfort). But even more than the hamstrings, it was the forward fold. I felt uncomfortable in any forward fold and especially this one. One of my teachers once said as just as an aside to me while I was in Uttanasana, “You will be amazing when you finally use your legs.” That was at least 11 years ago and last year I got it. I have studied for a couple of years how to effectively use my feet and legs to engage them and feel the energy. Once I “got” how to use my legs better, this pose felt great!