Four Styles in Four Weeks
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With Deborah Steffen
July 5 - 28 Tuesdays 3:45 -5:15 pm Thursdays 2:00 - 3:30 pm How do I find the style of yoga that works for me personally? What is different about the styles and approaches? All styles in this series are Hatha Yoga. Explore different yoga styles each week for the month of July. Have fun trying new movements and poses and approaches. Discover your capacity to be at ease in any style yoga class. While Linda is away Deborah Steffen will be teaching these classes during the Gentle Yoga time slots of Tuesdays 3:45-5:15 and/or Thursdays 2:00-3:30. You may use your class passes or pay for a drop-in of $14. |
Week One: Kundalini Yoga Use the simple movements called kriyas, to move energy through your body. The movements are simple, and the use of your breath is emphasized. You use action to heat the body and stretch it. Keeping up with the kriya helps build willpower and strength. You will feel energized after this yoga workout. Week Two: CorePower Yoga Flowing from one posture to another you will gain core strength using these movements. Practice a CorePower Yoga beginning level class at a slower pace. Do variations of sun salutations, along with held balancing poses. You are encouraged to do what you can and let the rest go. In other words, you can rest in child’s pose whenever you like. Emphasis is placed on alignment when flowing from one pose to the next. Week Three: Yin Yoga The path of Yin Yoga has its foundation in ancient yogic and Taoist theory. It will be taught the way Paul Grilley developed his classes, drawing on these ancient teachings. This practice addresses the parts of your body closest to the core. It has been called a quiet practice. Warm up the body with Warrior Advances and Retreats, a Yang warmup, using rhythmic movement, focusing on warming the muscles to prepare for the more passive stretching poses of Yin yoga. Then move into poses on the floor with holds of 3 to 5 minutes each. This helps to moderately stretch the connective tissues of the body and relax the surrounding muscles in the area being worked. Props may be used to support your pose. Week Four: Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga As taught at Deepak Chopra’s center, this class encompasses many aspects of yogic philosophy. Pranayama breathing is practiced. Experience body awareness poses for flexibility and balance. Chant mantras while doing sun salutations. Sun salutations in a chair are also taught so you can share yoga with anyone. Energy opening asanas are experienced. End the class with the spiritual law of the day to contemplate and meditate. |
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About Deborah:
At 17 years old, Deborah met Sri Swami Satchidananda, the founder of Yogaville. In a yoga class he touched the top of her head and it shot energy all the way down her spine (shakipat). It is said this is a transferal of spiritual energy. She went on to study Iyengar Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, and various other styles of Hatha Yoga. She attended Siddha Yoga, where she chanted and meditated and met Gurimaya Chidvalasananda, the lineage head of Siddha Yoga. (You may have read about her in the book “Eat, Pray, Love”.) Deborah studied massage therapy, energy healing, hypnotherapy, emotional release, and counseling to get a Holistic Health Practitioner 1000 hour certification at Body Mind College in San Diego. She became a certified yoga instructor through CorePower Yoga in Portland, and is a registered yoga teacher (RYT). She attended numerous workshops and conferences regularly. She is also a certified Perfect Health Instructor, from Deepak Chopra’s center. As a Perfect Health instructor she is qualified to teach Ayurveda and practices that create health and balance. Finally, Deborah ran a yoga studio in Oregon for eight years, teaching several styles of yoga including Power Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, meditation, and eventually synthesized her eclectic style. She co-created and taught Body Mind Spirit weekend workshops offered regularly in Oregon. Deborah is thrilled to teach and assist others to create happy healthy lives at Downtown Yoga in the glorious town of Sandpoint. |