Flow and Power Foundation
Absolute beginners are welcome.
Classes start from clear explanations for legs, hands, and body alignment;
every posture and movement are taught in details. Also good for people
who practiced before but want to come back to basics as far as proper
alignment has deep therapeutic effect on our body healing old and
preventing future injuries, relieving backaches, keeping our muscles,
ligaments, tendons and joints strong and flexible. Properly aligned
outer body affects placement of our internal organs. Body focused
practice brings us back to present time and calms down our mind, reduces
anxiety and depression.
Flow
Vinyasa means union between breath and movement.
Every movement is lead by an inhalation or exhalation. The time you
move, is the time you breathe. Your body follows this natural rhythm
of breath that sooths your nervous system. Classes start with Sun
Salutation to warm-up you body and postures are interlinked together
in a powerful, balanced, flowing sequence with Vinyasa, special series
of poses to create and keep heat that purifies and detoxifies your
body on physical, emotional, and energetic level during practice.
Challenging and supportive classes are alignment-oriented and they
target strength, flexibility, and balance development of body and
mind.
Power
The Power Yoga flow will torch your calories,
tone, strengthen and rinse your body, clear your mind and leave you
with a sense of accomplishment and empowerment. The dynamic mix of
sweat and spirit that is cultivated in a Power Yoga class will challenge
you to step up to your edge, and unlock your hidden potential for
achieving authentic personal power and living an extraordinary life.
Be prepared to SHINE!
Hatha
Steady postures and deep breath-work emphasize
balance of body, mind and spirit while enhancing flexibility, stamina,
and muscular endurance. Modifications are offered for all postures.
A guided relaxation closes the session, leaving you feeling stretched,
relaxed, and centred. Seniors are welcome.
Yin
Meditative and restorative classes are equally
appropriate for beginners and experienced yogis. Athletes, runners,
dancers, people who like to exercise in gym will be benefited as well;
this practice helps to release soreness in muscles and protects from
future injuries. Some resent researches show that Yin practice is
very beneficial for people with arthritis and prevents osteoporosis.
Yin yoga
is a slow, passive practice that stretches and stimulates the connective
tissue, protects health of our joints and fights with their degeneration.
Postures are held for 3-5 min enabling deep opening, particularly
in the hips and spine.
Qi gong Yoga
Qi Gong Yoga combines
traditional Hatha Yoga with the gentle Chinese internal energy exercises
known as Qi Gong. These exercises strengthen joints, relieve tension,
calm the nervous system and subtly but profoundly increase strength
and wellbeing. The Qi Gong exercises are woven into the sequence of
postures and are easily to learn, requiring no previous Qi Gong experience.
Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini yoga is the
yoga of awareness. A typical class includes a blend of dynamic exercises,
breathing practices, mantra, meditation and relaxation.
Kundalini
yoga focuses on the movement of the life force energy (Prana or Chi)
through the Chakras. Chakras are our inner energy centers, located
along the spine. This style of yoga helps to awaken Kundalini energy
that is stored at the end of the spine. The meditations and breathing
practices aim to improve intuition and improve our connection to the
inner self. This helps increase our awareness of proper physical posture,
and our everyday choices.
Yoga for Pregnancy
Yoga for expecting Moms helps to feel better
during pregnancy and prepare body for an active and natural birth.
Pre-natal yoga improve circulation, aid in digestion, and can also
alleviate many of the discomforts of pregnancy such as nausea, constipation,
varicose veins, swelling, back pain and sciatica. Gentle, safe practice
is designed to strengthen back and abdomen muscles and open pelvic
area for an easy birth. Breath work and relaxation techniques promote
well-being of a pregnant women and her baby allowing her to meet the
challenges and transformation of pregnancy with confidence and joy.
Mom and Baby
Classes help women gradually regain strength
and energy that may have been lost during pregnancy and they are designed
to strengthen abdomen, back and pelvic muscles; release ache and tension
in upper body area (neck, shoulders, chest) caused by baby's weight
and emotional stress. Previous yoga experience is not necessary to
fully benefit from the classes, and women who have practiced yoga
before will find these classes are a great way to transition back
to their pre-pregnancy practice.
Meet other new moms and create community. Open to mothers 4 weeks
post-delivery or 6 weeks post-caesarian. Please have midwife or health
care provider's permission before starting. Babies 1 month-pre-crawling
(or not crawling too far or too fast!).
Yoga for Runners &
Cyclists
This class is designed to open and lengthen areas of the body that
are tightened from repetitive motion as running & cycling. Areas
to focus on are hamstrings, ankles, feet, calves, quadriceps and hip
joints. Resilient and flexible lower body is less prone to have injuries.
Tight muscles are brittle; ideally they should be soft, malleable,
and supple, with some give. Brittle muscles, on the other hand, cause
the joints to rub and grind, making them vulnerable to tears.
Stiffness in the rib
cage, diaphragm, or spine can reduces lung's capacity. By practicing
yoga on a regular basis flexibility in the key areas of the upper
body is increased. This promotes deep breathing and ultimately improves
running & cycling endurance. Also, yoga teaches breath awareness,
and breathing properly is a key part of an efficient, pleasurable
and healthy run and cycling.
Balance, symmetry and
proper alignment are the next benefits of yoga classes and important
factors to avoid pain due to, for example, common runners & cyclists
misalignment - hyper extended lower back, and to prevent knees, ankles,
and hips injuries.
Every class is finished
with Yin postures to relax muscles, to release soreness in the body
and to strengthen connective tissues (ligaments and tendons) and joints.
Plus Size Yoga
Classes are designed especially for bigger women and men who want
to begin yoga but want to do it in a setting where everyone is similar
in size and shape. Plus Size Yoga Program incorporates gentle movements,
breathing techniques, and relaxation to work on every plane of our
being: physical, energetic, and emotional.
Each class
consists of 5-7 min meditation, asana (posture) and breathing exercises,
10-15 min of relaxation/meditation.
Plus
Size Hatha Yoga
Hatha yoga develops your muscle strength and flexibility. Asanas (standing
and sitting postures) burn calories, normalize hormonal balance, and
improve functioning of digestive system. Deep breathing provides more
oxygen to our body and increases energy level. More...
Plus Size Yin Yoga
Yin targets connective tissues (fascia that wraps our muscles, bones,
joints, ligaments and tendons) that are not normally exercised in
other yoga classes. It is done on the floor, we hold postures for
3-5 min relaxing muscles of the entire body completely. For Plus Size
yoga it is done with plenty of bolsters, cushions, blankets, blocks
to support the body. It releases soreness in our body and improves
joint health. When we relax our body, our mind relaxes as well, so
that, the whole class is practiced in a meditative state of mind.
Relaxation lowers level of cortisol and other stress hormones that
cause us to gain weight.
Many Doors Meditation Group
Meditation relieves stress, increases mental
clarity and wellbeing. Clinical studies have shown that meditation
stimulates parts of the brain whose activity is associated with lowered
stress response and decrease in anxiety. When practiced regularly
meditation helps us to maintain our psychological and physical balance,
and reduces the risk of many stress related illnesses such as heart
disease, alzheimers, IBS, fibromyalgia, immune disregulation syndromes
and cancer.
In this 6 week course Matthew will introduce his students to the core
skills involved in learning to meditate, and guide them through the
use of different methods of meditation so as to empower people in
finding what works best for them. We will explore meditation on breathing
(anapanasati) in the unique style of the Thai Buddhist tradition,
mindfulness, lovingkindness, mantra, visualization, Zen meditation
(shikantaza), and meditation on inner space, sound and awareness.
Experienced meditators and beginners will both find insight and helpful
guidance. Attendance at all 6 sessions is best, but students can attend
on a drop-in basis and still benefit from the instruction. After meditation
there will be time for questions and discussion.
Yoga Nidra,
Yoga Nidra, also known as yogic sleep or sleep
with awareness, is an ancient practice that is rapidly gaining popularity
in the West. It is intended to induce full-body relaxation and a deep
meditative state of consciousness. "We live in a chronically
exhausted, over stimulated world," says Los Angeles yoga teacher
Rod Stryker. "Yoga Nidra is a systematic method of complete relaxation,
holistically addressing our physiological, neurological, and subconscious
needs."
During a typical
class, teachers use a variety of techniques-including guided imagery
and body scanning-to aid relaxation. And unlike a quick Savasana at
the end of asana practice, Yoga Nidra allows enough time for practitioners
to physiologically and psychologically sink into it-at least 20 to
30 minutes.
The ancient yoga text the Mandukya Upanishads refers to four different
stages of Yoga Nidra. The practitioner begins by quieting the overactive
conscious mind, then moves into a meditative state, gradually finding
a state of "ultimate harmony," in which the brain waves
slow down and a subtle euphoria emerges. We practice Yoga Nidra in
order to:
-induce deep relaxation
-eliminate stress
-overcome insomnia
-resolve trauma
-overcome anxiety, fear, anger & depression
-to open the door to our super conscious mind and intuition to make
better choices in our daily life
