Meditation Workshop in February

I am teaching a mindfulness meditation workshop again this February. 

It will run four Tuesdays in February (Feb 3, 10, 17, 24) from 7-8pm each evening, in the Van Santvoord Room of the KV Congregational Church. The cost is $65 for the four sessions.

Each week I will introduce a new aspect of mindfulness, followed by guided or silent meditations. We will also discuss the process and evaluate the techniques we are practicing. 

Sharing meditation with others in a supportive environment and a pleasant room is an excellent way to learn more about meditation technique and experience the benefits of group meditation.

My recent workshop for veterans, adults and teens have been very successful and I look forward to sharing mindfulness meditation with you.

Please contact me if you have questions, and to register for this workshop.

Happy New Year 2014

Welcome the new year with a 20% discount on your next yoga session. Just mention this post. 

Fascial Fitness

I continue to share Iyengar-based yoga with many students at my studio in Keene. I especially enjoy working with connective tissue and fascia (tendons, ligaments, muscular-skeletal alignment and much more) in their yoga practices. The work is very rewarding as many students are building strength and endurance, and gaining flexibility, using the fascial fitness modality I designed. Improving this aspect of yoga is so individualized, private sessions are really the best way to learn.

Meditation

Meditation has become a greater part of my daily practice. This past autumn I taught a four week introductory workshop for veterans and their families. I will be offering another four week workshop this winter for yoga students and their families. 

Contact

Please contact me to create a personal practice, to recover from injuries, or to improve your quality of life through better joint health, increased strength and greater flexibility.

Yoga for Fascial Fitness

I am creating a yoga practice that emphasizes myofascia and connective tissue work. Instead of isolating muscles from tendons, bones from ligaments, I visualize this body-wide web of tissue while practicing yoga. The interconnectedness of the body is at the forefront of my awareness. This holistic approach creates a synergy in the pose. As my pose develops from my feet to the top of my head, I use the myofascial web to energize and enliven my pose.

Much myofascial work is done with hands-on bodywork, but in yoga, the work is through movement into a specific pose, holding that pose and releasing from the pose. This movement can be fast or slow but the essence is to expand the awareness throughout the entire body. This is how the body experiences the pose, our mental picture and our verbal references can match the body's unified experience.

Next time: How the myofascial web can be felt in functional connections in a yoga asana, and how that can be beneficial to your practice.    

Welcome back!

Has it really been a year and a half? I have been very busy with yoga and other things. My emphasis this past year has been on yoga therapy and I am very excited about the possibilities for yoga in this new aspect.

In particular I have been studying the work of Thomas Myers and his myofacsial fitness concepts. I truly believe this is the next opportunity for us all to learn more about our bodies from the inside out.

Anatomy Trains by Thomas Myers was my introduction to myofascial therapies. And my friend and massage therapist, Marie McMahon, has helped by demonstrating the techniques.

In the next few posts I will share some of the techniques I now use in my practice that help improve fascial fitness. 

Hotel Yoga

Being on the road gives me stiff joints and tight muscles. Is it the hours of sitting or the hotel beds? No matter what the cause, yoga helps!

I don't carry a mat, nor do I expect to find a yoga class in the hotel fitness center (unlikely), all I need is a piece of floor in the room and a towel or two.

Lying on the towel(s) on the floor, begin with legs up the wall pose (Viparita Karani) for a few minutes. This is a wonderful restorative for feet and legs, especially after a lot of walking on sidewalks or airports.

Adapting the practice to limited space, try lying on your back, knees to chest, then move into twists (Jathara Parivartanasana) with legs bent, followed by leg extensions (Supta Pandangustasana) toward the ceiling. Move into Little Bridge pose (Setu Bandha Saravangasana) a couple of times, lifting one leg then the other to balance.

Finish up with Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I) and Warrior III (Virabhadrasana III), then a brief relaxation (Savasana) and you'll feel refreshed and invigorated.

Thanksgiving Day Yoga

Restorative yoga is the best yoga for a family and food-filled day like Thanksgiving Day.

Hopefully before the "Big Meal," find a quiet space, stretch out on your back, with a blanket or towel running the length of your spine, in a passive chest opener, for a few minutes. This opens your chest and fills your heart (the 4th Chakra) with grace and gratitude.

Next, rolling onto your belly, push up into Cobra (Bhujangasana) then to Dogward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) then onto your knees, and move your hips back into Child pose (Balasana). Rest here for a few minutes, feeling the roundness of your back, the softness of your belly as it rest on your thighs, and the pressure of your buttocks on your heels.

Coming up into Staff (Dandasana) pose, feel the extension of your legs away from you in front, and the lifting of the spine as your head reaches for the ceiling, tilt forward from the hips with a flat back. Then bending your knees bring your thighs to your chest and support the chest with the thighs, arms clasped around the shins, head in line with the spine. Relax in this position, feeling the support on your belly, and the extension in the back body, down through the buttocks and back of the thighs.

Cross your legs into Cross-Legged position (Sukasana) bring your hands into Prayer position  (Anjali Mudra or Namaste). Give thanks for your body and spirit, and all those with whom you are able to share this day.