An Amazing Practice with Jörgen Christiansson

I had originally planned to head back to YogaWorks today to practice as I mentioned in my previous post. However, last night I was catching up on the blogs that I read and doing some additional research and I found out about  Jörgen Christiansson and his Omkar108 shala. After reading the reviews of his shala it seemed like a place where serious Ashtangis go to practice. Not that I even consider myself an ashtangi hence the namce of this blog but I do like a serious practice with serious teachers in a serious environment.  And serious it was, but Jörgen himself was very warm and welcoming.

I try not to judge my practices by the assists that I receive but I did receive some great assists and because the room was nice and toasty I was feeling extra flexible in my unusually tight hamstrings. He help me bind in marichyasana d and we did this thing where I first twisted for a few breaths without binding and then he helped me actually bind in the pose. Doing it that way made the whole process seem a lot easier and like a lot less work on both of our parts. I also got a pretty intense baddha konasana assist which I'm sure I"ll pay for tomorrow. During the assist  Jörgen jokingly asked if that was my favorite pose and I vehemently shook my head no. Lastly, as I was coming up into headstand I kept saying to myself "please don't fall over in this foreign shala in front of all these strangers" and  Jörgen must have sensed something as well because as soon as I felt myself start to tip over he was there to catch me. Yes, it was as embarrassing as it seems. I did the pose again with a different hand position and him spotting me and it went over much better.

As I was leaving he walked me out of the room and asked me how long I would be in town and I told him that unfortunately I'll be leaving today but I did promise him that I would be back next time I am in town. Before I left he asked that I give his regards to my teacher back home which I will definitely do.

The next time you're in LA I definitely suggest that you check out Jörgen at Omkar108.The practice room is a decent size but be sure to bring your own mat and towel.

Omkar108
11154 Washington Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90232