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SuryaDeva
USA
13 Posts |
 Posted - Nov 20 2013 : 7:47:26 PM
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Hello AYP community!
I have a question about using stimulants before practice. I know it's silly but it's been bothering me for quite a while so I thought I'd ask.
I drink a strong coffee every morning and cannot imaging starting my day without it. When I asked my yoga teacher if it's ok to drink coffee before doing pranayama he almost cursed me out and got very upset.
Why is it bad?.. What happens in the body from the pranic point of view?.
Thank you |
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Etherfish
USA
3615 Posts |
Posted - Nov 20 2013 : 8:41:28 PM
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Hi SuryaDeva,
This is just my opinion, and i'm sure others will disagree;
I think it's no big deal if you have your coffee.
Although you can go deeper easier without coffee, it is also dependent on your tolerance level, which is very high if you drink it every day.
So people like your yoga teacher who probably never drink coffee, would be thrown for a loop if they did, while for you it is normal.
As you do more practices over the years, you will probably feel like backing off, but for now it's no big deal.
However, if you ever have trouble deeply relaxing, you will know the reason... |
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chinmayo
Finland
67 Posts |
Posted - Nov 20 2013 : 9:07:28 PM
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hello!
i have been drinking a cup of coffee before my morning practise for months almost daily, and for me it doesnt seem to do any harm. I know coffee drinking isnt the best habit but for me it is just that one cup a morning so i am not so hard on myself for that.
I would recommend to try and see for yourself, as Yogani says, the guru is in you! |
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Nov 21 2013 : 08:40:18 AM
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Welcome to the AYP forums SuryaDeva!
The reason they say not to have coffee before our practice session is because coffee is a stimulant and will make it harder for an individual to still the mind and move inward while the coffee is pulling you outward which makes the mind more active.
But every individual is different, some get affected by it, some don't, some do at one point but get past it, some that are not affected by it become sensitive to it down the road...
If coffee has not affected your practice, then I think this---> " but it's been bothering me for quite a while" is more harmful for you than the coffee itself 
Here is a topic where coffee has been discussed... http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic....PIC_ID=12169 and that one has a link to a few more coffee related topics.
Wish you all the best!
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snake
United Kingdom
277 Posts |
Posted - Nov 21 2013 : 1:12:04 PM
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| doesn't seem to bother Iyengar,in the DK book he has if i remember at least 2 cups before pranayama |
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SuryaDeva
USA
13 Posts |
Posted - Nov 21 2013 : 4:05:12 PM
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Thank you everybody for your replies
It's nice to hear that coffee is ok for some because I do experience guilt if I drink it before pranayama. I keep asking myself is it me or the artificial stimulation that makes me do my practice? I also take a Rx stimulant medication in the morning (I'm on my way to be completely drug free soon) and it adds on top of the coffee guilt:)
I tried to not take anything but then I have absolutely no energy and keep falling asleep during meditation which destroys my whole routine. I'm not a morning person by nature plus I've been having lots of health issues lately, so I found myself unable to do any yoga without stimulants. On the other hand taking stimulants in order to do yoga seemed somewhat counterproductive...
Everybody is different however and it seems like for me at least for now it's truly necessary thing to use stimulant substances. I just hope it will vanish soon like all the other destructive habits
I'm so happy to be a part of this community,
Thank you everybody and I wish you all the best!
SD |
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Nov 22 2013 : 12:01:25 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by SuryaDeva
I tried to not take anything but then I have absolutely no energy and keep falling asleep during meditation which destroys my whole routine. I'm not a morning person by nature plus I've been having lots of health issues lately, so I found myself unable to do any yoga without stimulants. On the other hand taking stimulants in order to do yoga seemed somewhat counterproductive...
Everybody is different however and it seems like for me at least for now it's truly necessary thing to use stimulant substances. I just hope it will vanish soon like all the other destructive habits
Something came to me last evening when I read this so wanted to run it by you...
Falling asleep in meditation is not a bad thing... some purifications happen at a very deep level and when these happen we do feel like we have fallen asleep. Many here have gone through a phase of falling asleep in meditation (me included). (Yogani's lesson on this: http://www.aypsite.org/17.html)
There is no wrong/bad meditation session... each session will be exactly what we need at that point.
If you keep yourself energized with a stimulant, you may not be able to go into those sleep phases where the deeper level work happens.
My suggestion, if you feel you just cannot do the session without first having some coffee, maybe have a few sips of coffee before your practice session, and then do your session and then after your session pour a full cup of coffee for yourself.
And over time maybe make the few sips before your first session less and less... Just a suggestion. |
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Etherfish
USA
3615 Posts |
Posted - Nov 23 2013 : 07:40:32 AM
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In case you ever want to quit for a while:
I have caffeine all the time, but periodically quit for a couple days. If I just quit drinking coffee all together, I get terrible withdrawal headaches and other symptoms, for a couple days. But instead I switch to green tea, then taper off, and have no symptoms at all! |
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snake
United Kingdom
277 Posts |
Posted - Nov 24 2013 : 01:59:49 AM
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| i found it was the taste and smell i love so i tried a few alternatives until i found my old friend from my early 70's macrobiotic days Yannoh by lima.dont get the instant though ,the filter type has slightly different ingredients and is so much like the taste of coffee with cream.http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lima-Organi...words=yannoh |
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SuryaDeva
USA
13 Posts |
Posted - Nov 26 2013 : 5:20:58 PM
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Shanti
It's a very good point that you mentioned. I do feel like although I can easily sit in meditation for 20 min there is something always stirring inside as if I'm forcing my body to do something that it is not naturally inclined to do at the moment... And that's why my intuition is telling me to stop using stimulants but my mind is awfully addicted to that extra 'kick' in the morning and that's why I'm bothered by it. If I wasn't addicted then I wouldn't even ask this question in the first place:)
Etherfish and snake
It's not the coffee that I enjoy it's the caffeine effect regardless of what form: green tea, caffeine pills or sports drink. Any substitution simply wouldn't work like those drinks made out of barley and any replacement with other caffeinated beverages simply wouldn't solve the problem.
Now that I thought about it carefully I think I will just taper down and slowly try to eliminate stimulants or at least minimize their use and see if my energy comes back naturally...
Thank you for your responses
Enjoy the holidays! |
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snake
United Kingdom
277 Posts |
Posted - Nov 27 2013 : 12:08:28 PM
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You too Suryadeva.
I guess the green tea is your best bet as it has theanine also which can balance the caffiene.
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Topic |
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Coffee before practice
