You have probably heard a yoga teacher say something like “come to your edge”. Most often this place is defined as the place beyond which the risk of injury goes up dramatically. In the context of stretching, I define “the edge” as the point beyond which you can no longer savor your breath. To me, that is a definition more in line with supporting balance and wellbeing. However, this week I want to refine our thinking about edges further.

What we usually call “the edge” I will call the maximum edge, using yoga teacher Erich Schiffmann‘s terminology. This redefinition allows us to talk about another place along the stretch continuum that Erich calls the minimum edge. Your minimum edge is the place where you first feel a stretch. Why might that be interesting? Similar to last week’s theme, finding your minimum edge helps you slow down and become more mindful in more moments in time. Not just in the big moments, where you come into your fullest expression of a pose. But in the small moments in between, when you may be tempted to let your mind, and thus your body, rush ahead to the “full” pose. This week we will focus on finding our minimum edge to help us come into poses more mindfully, more slowly, and more deeply, and reduce our chances of injury at the same time.

Slow down and tune in to more subtle sensations

This week I want you to focus on pausing at your minimum edge as you come into each pose. In other words, pause at the place where you just begin to feel a stretch. Finding your minimum edge is a real challenge, as the first inkling of a stretch sensation is a very subtle feeling. However, by attuning yourself to this place, you can’t help but heighten your self-awareness and become more present in the moment.

When you come to your minimum edge, pause, become aware of your breath, observe your alignment, and allow your energy to flow freely. Wait for the sensation of stretching to diminish before moving gradually deeper into the pose. You work from your minimum to your maximum edge using your breath, engaging muscles as you inhale, but also releasing tension and lengthening other muscles as you exhale. Learn to move into each yoga pose more mindfully and more skillfully, balancing effort and surrender.

Let the overall sensation of moving into a pose be one of being drawn into the pose, rather than pushing into it. This way of moving requires full presence in the moment, and patience. It also requires that you enjoy yourself, and that you are interested in what you are doing. When you push too hard, too fast, you not only risk injury, you also miss the point of doing yoga in the first place. I practice yoga to increase my awareness and serenity, and ultimately, my happiness.

Try it now

Props are very useful for finding your minimum edge in many poses. This is true especially in poses where the hands serve as support, or where the hand is “supposed” to reach the foot. Find a yoga strap or buckle 2 belts together to make one long one. Lie on your back and draw your right knee into your chest. Place the middle of the strap around the middle of the right foot. Then fully extend the leg forward, with the heel just above the floor. Hold the ends of the strap in one hand, supporting the leg near horizontal. Notice the tendency to want to lift the leg straight up. Doing so would immediately take you well past your minimum edge, of course. Notice how much mindfulness is required to pause at your minimum edge. 

Gradually walk your hands along the strap, shortening it and lifting the leg slowly. Find the point at which you feel the hamstrings just beginning to resist the movement in the hip joint. Stop, breathe, and observe. Notice how low your leg is, and how far your minimum edge is from your maximum edge. Wait for the stretch sensations to diminish before you gradually shorten the strap a little more. Pause again and wait for the sensations to diminish again before shortening the strap some more. Don’t be in a rush. Notice your body awareness becoming more acute as you tune in to your body. When the stretch sensations no longer diminish, you have reached your maximum edge. Stay here for 5 breaths or so, breathing into the stretch and immersing yourself in the sensations. Then release, rest for 3 breaths, and repeat on the other side.

Find your minimum edge to make your practice more effective

You may notice that when you begin a stretch by pausing at your minimum edge, you are actually able to move deeper into the pose. Moving more slowly gives your muscles more time to release residual tension. This in turn allows them to extend more fully with less stretch intensity. However, this is not the main point!

The real point of tuning in to your minimum edges is to slow down and become more present in each moment. You do this by bringing your awareness to something exceedingly subtle. The point is to focus on the path instead of the goal. Your minimum edge can teach you to stop missing most of the moments of your life because your mind is elsewhere, rushing towards the next challenge, the next goal.