ganesh

What is Yoga?

The word Yoga means “union” – to cultivate synergy between mind, body and heart. Who doesn’t want to find love, harmony and balance in life? Yet it can be hard to make sense of our humanity when we are constantly trying to keep up with a complex, fast-paced and constantly changing world spinning around us. At such times, we feel we are living against ourselves, our minds and bodies out of balance, feeling stressed, anxious and ill at ease. If you are reading this still, it shows that you want to bring your life into balance – to release stress and tension, relax, boost immunity and raise energy levels, stretch out tight muscles, alleviate a painful lower back, lower back, or improve other physical and mental health conditions that may prevent you from enjoying your life as much as you want to. This is the starting point of your yoga practice: to explore who you are now, and finding out what is possible.

As relevant today, as when Patanjali wrote the yoga sutras over two thousand years ago, time on a yoga mat will help you to cultivate self-awareness, wellness, and wellbeing on many levels. As a yoga teacher, I hope to encourage you to develop a yoga practice that creates new possibilities and empowers your mind, heart and body long after you have rolled up your yoga mat. This is the living, breathing gift of yoga.

 

What kind of Yoga do you teach?

Like a necklace of coloured beads strung onto a string, there are many different yoga traditions. All of these leading us inwards to the same inner source of intuitive wisdom and wellness. So as we all see life differently, each of us will be drawn to practice a particular style of yoga, whatever name we then put on this. As such, there is something for everyone to discover and explore in Yoga.

In my yoga classes, I don’t aspire to follow a prescriptive Yoga lineage, which is defined like this or that. As a teacher and lifelong learner, I would rather guide you instead to plant seeds of positive intention, opening and change into mind and body to create a yoga practice that is boundless and resonates through all levels of your life. As the mind and body open to the infinite possibilities of yoga at source, you can start to enjoy and feel the positive benefits of coming to a yoga class through the rest of your life, regardless of the name put onto it.

Can anyone do yoga?

It truly doesn’t matter whether you are a complete beginner or a seasoned yogi – everyone at some point has a first or else many times of standing on a yoga mat and not knowing what to expect! My classes are warm, friendly and welcoming, with a wide range of people practicing from all walks of life. Yoga classes are open to everybody, regardless of your age, fitness level and/or physical condition. If you do have a health concern, you may want to discuss it with me beforehand so I can plan the class accordingly to meet your needs.

A yoga class will more often than not include:

  • Physical postures or Asana to explore flow and stillness, and stretch, tone and strengthen mind and body
  • Cleansing practices or Shatkarma to shift and release stagnant energy, discomfort and tension held inside us
  • Breathwork or Pranayama techniques to enhance life energy, boost immunity and relax the nervous system
  • Inward reflection or Pratyhara to sharpen and focus mental perception and concentration
  • Meditation to cultivate insight and awareness