Do The Right Thing

Dear Yogis,

I often think about what to write in this email on my Sunday run. I try to think of yoga lessons and insights... This week, I got to Kew Bridge and found a cyclist had been in a hit & run (or open-the-passenger-car-door and run). Cyclist in shock; first-aider in charge; ambulance called; Cervélo bike un-rideable. A guy came along who turned out to be a trauma surgeon and checked him out. Two other runners came along and said they were doctors and could they help. The local Sainsbury’s lent a huge jacket to keep him warm. Others were waiting for the ambulance. It brought back, of course, memories of my own hit & run; lying on the tarmac and feeling surrounded by the kindness and concern of strangers. It reminded me that there is such an overwhelming amount of caring people with beautiful hearts out there. We just need to win, that’s all!

Workshops

I mentioned before that I would let you know what workshops I’ll be attending in case you might want to have a go at something other than a class. On Saturday April 9th I’ve signed up for Quest For The press with Ambra Vallo at Indaba. It’s about developing exercises and drills to build up strength and stability for arm balances, inversions and ‘floating’.  On Saturday April 16th I’ll be going to a Moon Sequence Workshop. Click here for details. The wonderful teacher, Mike Conroy, credits the Moon Sequence for the flexibility he enjoys. Believe me, he enjoys flexibility... that’s why I’m going! I’m also considering Become a Handstand Hero at Indaba on Friday April 22nd.

Website

It’s finished! It’s transformed! Thank you for the positive feedback and thank you for booking classes online. I have passed on all comments to the web designer who is delighted. If you need help with your website then let me know and I will pass on her details.

Second Greek Yoga Retreat

I’ve put together a poster for the Yoga ‘n’ Chill retreat. A couple of you offered to put it up in your office. Many thanks for your interest and support. If you would like me to send it to you, I can do that. And thank you to those who posted the link on your social media. It’s very much appreciated. This is the retreat that would be great for all levels. If you don’t feel like you’re the ‘type’ that would do a yoga retreat, then this is for you. It has a great balance of yoga and holiday. You won’t be overwhelmed by yoga. Whatever your level, beginner, intermediate or advanced, get in touch.

Have a lovely Easter break

Beware the ego and blow the nose

Dear Yogis,

Last week I took part in workshops dedicated to adjustments. It’s the kind of workshop that teachers go to, where postures are advanced and interesting and the steps up to a pretzel shaped impossible tangle seem deliberate and safe. However, the ego can overtake ability. Injury is a possibility! The brilliant teacher, Will Lau, came over to adjust me and I could feel my body breaking in three separate places. This reminds me to tell you that if you don’t want me (or any yoga teacher) to adjust you, or if you want only gentle adjustments, you must let me know or scream... or both. Will Lau also took us through ‘shining skull’ breathing and the top of my scull really did feel scrubbed clean with a wire brush. If you know a few pranayama techniques, it was Kapalbhati combined with Alternate Nostril. You really do need to blow the nose first!

Book Online – Home Studio

More loveliness in my lucky Home Studio this week. Yesterday we finished the class with inversions using the ‘Feet Up’ stool. The head doesn’t touch the ground and the neck is left unstressed. It’s a great prop to use if you have fear of going upside-down... plenty of people do. We conquered that fear for one of our number. And it again proved to me the immense positivity that comes from inversions. The brain/endorphins/mood seems to love it.

Come and have a go at a class here. Beginners always welcome. It’s a group class with personal attention and adjustments. Also, please consider booking through the website – although if web technology is not your thing, this is not a hard and fast rule. But late cancellations and no shows/forgotten bookings can be easily managed or remembered if you reserve the class online. You get an email reminder with the time of the class and the opportunity to cancel so that I get notification!

Second Greek Yoga Retreat

The first week’s retreat is really filling up. The apartments in the serene and lovely back bay of the island village of Kapsali are full. No worries though! There’s plenty of room on the second retreat which is the kind of yoga retreat that will suit the majority of us. You'll do yoga every day which is a big step up and quite a revelation for people who take only one or two yoga classes a week. This will be perfect for you.

Austerity, passion and peace! Yikes!

Dear Yogis,

The British Museum is putting on a special event in an attempt to tell us about the ‘fundamental meaning’ of yoga. Here we go again! It’s called “Yoga: austerity, passion and peace” and it takes place next month on Friday 8 April 2016 at 18.30–20.00. Lots of notice! I cancelled all my clubbing plans and bought a ticket. Have a look at the full description if a Friday night of talking about austerity and passion strangely interests you: http://bit.ly/2240QuI

Home practice

I had an interesting lesson in posture practice and ego last week. I had a photoshoot in my home studio for the website (take a look – incredible photography!). The postures weren't linked or logical but my standing-half-lotus-forward-fold has never been so deep. Home practice should be like this; full of surprise and fun, satisfying, not over concerned with logic. We’re more likely to practice on our own that way. However, keep an eye on the ego and ambition! The next day will tell you that a slower and more logical ride into advanced postures is a better idea. My legs took a while to recover... and a few pain-killers!

Second Greek Yoga Retreat

I’m really excited about putting on a yoga retreat for people who are not sure that the full-on all day yoga thing is right for them. This is a nice half-way point. Yoga every day in the morning will teach you plenty of new things and step up your practice phenomenally. Kapsali Bay in Kythera (also spelt Kithira) is the perfect place for relaxing and recharging, reclaiming the person that you could be without the workload and responsibilities.  Navigate over to the retreat pages. Flights for Kithira (this is the spelling airlines use) are pretty good in price – budget lines will be cheaper than BA, of course. If you were hoping to use Flight Centre, they can only book flights originating in the UK, not the Greek internal flights. The flight from Athens to Kithira can be bought on the Olympic website.

 Book Online – Home Studio

Classes in my home studio have been a real joy. On Monday we paid attention to backs and elbows! On Tuesday a small class with inversions. On Wednesday we built up to Eight-Angle Pose - called  Astavakrasana in Sanskrit. It's the kind of pose you might do at a break-dancing party. On Thursday, members of Ealing’s Special (Yoga) Branch were here. Total joy! You can always come here and work through a posture that you’re trying to figure out – we can work it into a class and find alternatives for everyone.

And it would be really nice to get some new testimonials from you – you can post them on the ‘testimonials’ page on this website

Secure, Safe and Special

Dear Yogis,

It gives me such great joy and satisfaction to teach. Last week, a yogi who is on a Triyoga Teacher Training course came to my studio to practice her assessment routine - an hour’s class for beginners. She was so good; I had such pride. I have since found out that she passed, that she kept to time, she explained everything clearly, and that she was generally amazing! She didn’t say that! She told me all about the ‘feedback’ and where she needs to improve and how she could do better! I read between the lines and saw that she was amazing!

This reminded me of the notes I made during the John Scott training in Cambridge two weeks ago. He spoke about relationships and what we ultimately need from one another: to feel secure, safe and special. This goes for the teacher/student relationship too.  Be drawn towards where you feel valued. You can see that when children are valued and loved, they blossom at school. Adults are no different! And in this crazy world of brutal ‘feedback’ – especially in the workplace - we need to make the yoga world different. We are learning, in a yoga class, how to be confident. That comes from ‘stilling the fluctuations of the mind’ and hushing the needless chatter which leads to self-doubt.

You can also think about those John Scott values in a yoga posture practice. Be secure in your foundation, bandhas, balance and alignment. With security comes safety to relax and establish freer breathing. When we take great interest in the breath we can realise how very special it is, how magical our body is... and how very special we are. Practice these values.

YOGA MAT

The yoga mat industry is mesmerising. Can you believe that you can easily spend £100 on a mat? I’m a fan of spending much less than that... but I still need a bit of anti-slide grip. Lululemon is selling off its UN-Mat. It’s a thin mat cover. It’s light and easy to carry around and it is half price at the moment – from £42 to £24: http://bit.ly/1oUwBaS (or, from the menus, Women > We Made Too Much > scroll to the bottom). Don’t worry about the colour – you can use the black side! You can also come to practice in my Home Studio and try it out.

SECOND GREEK YOGA RETREAT

The second week is different from the first – which is really filling up. Week 2 is not full on yoga – two classes a day, yoga yoga yoga! It’s all about getting away: starting the day with a yoga class and then relaxing or exploring for the rest of the day - letting the island look after you and entertain you. To that end, I have called this retreat Yoga ‘n’ Chill! Take a look from the menu bar.  Get in touch if you need more information. Secure a place with a £50 deposit. 

 BOOK ONLINE - HOME STUDIO

Come and see what it’s like to experience yoga in a small group with instruction and adjustment specific to you. You can read testimonials/leave feedback here on the Good Times Yoga website. Click on 'About Me' in the menu bar and the 'Testimonials' option appears.

Some of you are getting into the swing of booking online. For people who haven’t been here before, I can reserve the place for you. It means that you get a reminder and the option to cancel, and I get a cancellation notice instead of a no show. However, last minute cancellations mean that I can’t use my waiting list – I turned away two people this week. Please give as much notice as you can.