Variety is the spice of life.

Sometimes our yoga practice can begin to die a slow death and then in an instant it can be revived just through the power of our attention and crucially - by slowing down.

Moving through our postures quickly can bring a sense of lightness but it can also mean that we miss out on those full bodied stretches, stretches where the very sinews are able to expand. We rush into our asanas and rigidity sets in so that expansion is no longer an option. Our bodies need a little time to get into these various shapes we embody.

Try this: stretch you leg from the lower abdomen, the stretch burrows deeply through the pelvis melting open the crease of the hips, the flesh of the thighs hugs on to the femur and the femur itself hugs onto the bone marrow, keeping the knee aligned you can feel the flesh of the calves extends toward the elastic tendon of the achilles heel. The arch of the foot contains no rigidity but naturally domes toward the inner knee and the inner knee continues its ascent toward the groin. The leg is switched on.

Through the full support of the legs we are naturally more grounded and our upper body is more energized as we literally can channel the energy of the earth, the feedback response from the magnetic draw of the earth rebounding and charging us as if we were plugged into sockets through the pores of the skin on the soles of our feet.

I sometimes practice in this way. My practice is richer when I slow down. As long as your mind doesn't drift off to the the distant planes of elsewhere I highly recommend it.