Treasures of Engagement

What does it mean to truly show up? How can our yoga practice touch all aspects of our lives? How can this practice  be inclusive and relational?

I am a yogi. I am also a mom, artist, friend, teacher, and wife. But in the freshness of the moment, all these stories drop away and I am only human. Waking up to our humanness is never what we think. It is never something that we can anticipate or know. Our practice involves a constant opening to what the moment holds. There is no awakening beyond what is here.

When I decided to curate a 200-hour teacher training program, I knew that I wanted to provide tools to move towards embodiment in all aspects of life. I’ve invited teachers Wendy Hambidge, Rebecca Harrison, Todd Jackson, Sarah Trelease and Renee Sills to join me. They are teachers who offer a deep understanding of form, while simultaneously inspiring creativity and curiosity. Our teacher training begins this January at The People’s Yoga, and is rich with somatic inquiry. The curriculum reflects my study, practice and teaching, which has been evolving over the last 21 years.

I am currently interested in teaching in a way that offers guidelines for practice while simultaneously allowing the space for reflection and embodiment. Practice is personal, intimate and always fresh. My hope is that a student’s understanding of yoga continues to deepen throughout a lifetime, and that the quality of being aligned in shape and mindset is a process. Alignment is not a product to be consumed. Developing an “advanced” practice is not about the shapes we make, but about our ability to cultivate a felt sense, which means we get to feel more and have more choices.

Our experience in the body, even on a physical level, can be incredibly complex. If we shift our weight, our entire body will re-organize. Our bodies have an inherent wisdom which we can open up to. We are mysterious. Being with our experience brings us a sense of expanse that is full of possibility. In the context of a teacher training, we want to stay open to this vastness while still tending to the details of the form.

 

I have curated this 200-hour training with an interest in approaching yoga philosophy and practice from engaged somatic self-reflection. We will draw on somatic practices such as Body-Mind Centering and the Alexander Technique to at once renew and deepen the experience of yoga. Somatic practices are about getting to know ourselves yet more intimately; entering a safe and informed practice that responds to our ever-changing needs; and reclaiming the ability to make our own choices about our bodies. We will approach yoga pedagogy with the understanding that in order to empower others into more intimate self-knowledge, we must first do the work for ourselves.

Topics in this training will include: anatomy with Wendy Hambidge, bodymapping with Rebecca Harrison, inversions with Todd Jackson, inclusive practices with Renee Sills and Sarah Trelease. I am truly excited to work with this team of outstanding teachers to bring you a unique training that is experiential and relational.

Apply for the training on our website, or attend a free info session to learn more. All info sessions are located at our NE 30th studio:

Tues, 11/21: 7-8:00pm

Sun, 12/17: 12:30-1:30pm

Tues, 1/9: 7-8:00pm

4 thoughts on “Treasures of Engagement

Leave a Reply to YOGA DEFINITION Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.