I so need these wonderful stretches for my legs.  I may never get low to the mat in the splits due to my hip structure, but the stretch is good.  I do get foot cramps when reaching back to stretch the quads.

I loved hanumanasana. I feel like I am tuning in to the balancing back and front body, and connecting the whole body. I enjoyed a heavenly reclined baddha konasana at the end because my hips were asking for it.

Joan, one reason I find the foot cramps happening is that we try to “do the pose” by unconsciously gripping the sole of the foot. The brain loves to work form the extremities. When we do this the foot cramps from over work. See if that’s happening in your pose. 

Brilliant sequencing approach to Hanumanasana! Today (exceptionally) I did this practice in the evening, after a bunch of snow-shovelling this afternoon, and a soak in a hot bath. The heat really made a difference in the stretching. Everything felt just a little bit more accessible : ) (But I was careful not to push it too far!)

I appreciated the intentional progression toward Hanumanasana. Big difference between my left and right sides - both welcome. Also, the way you cued entry into  Chapasana felt very natural. I was able to maintain my balance more easily. Thank you, I enjoyed this practice so much.

GIGI,

I went as far as my body allows me to for the yogi split and pigeon pose. My eight- year-old daughter who does gymnastics gave me some tips on how to get there slowly.  

This was a very pleasant practice.  Hanumanasana is an asana that my body likes. I did find that my toes cramped when flat on the mat, so I kept my toes curled under, which made it more comfortable. I saw your response to Joan about foot cramps, but these are in the toes. Any advice? Thank you! Namaste.

Christine, yes the toes can get a little crampy in this pose. If the mobility of the back leg foot and ankle is limited such that the foot or toes are at maximum plantar flexion there is a good chance they will cramp. And as I mentioned earlier, unconscious gripping of the sole of the foot or the toes can lead to cramps. Your idea of curling the toes under is a good solution. Note that this does put more strain on the quad and hip flexors of the back leg. One other possible solution is placing a small rolled blanket under the ankle of the back leg to decrease the pressure on the foot against the mat. Let me know how that goes for you. 

Thanks so much Nathan.  I'm a few days behind in the challenge but feel like I'm back on track. Lovely sequence of poses to prep for hanunmanasana. I really liked the way you brought us into the pigeon pose progression - I've always had a slight fear of that but actually it felt great.  I really enjoyed Hanumanasana but it really showed up the left / right imbalances.  Strangely even though my right hip is more open  than my left hip, my right hamstring is a little tighter than my left hamstring - perhaps a compensatory.  Another super class!