Join Alison on Sunday, Dec. 4^th from 1-4 for Yoga for Stress Relief: an active and restorative workshop. Using yoga philosophy to guide us, we will spend the 1^st half of the workshop practicing actively to relieve built up tension stored in the body. In the 2^nd half, we will practice restoratives to unwind the body and calm the mind.

You will learn new ways to cope with stress and leave feeling relaxed and refreshed.

To save a spot in the workshop email or call (503) 554- 5485.

There’s a cure. Join Jane on Sunday November 13 for help for aching necks, shoulders and upper back. This three hour workshop (1-4) is appropriate for all levels. In it, students will learn about the anatomy of the upper body and begin to gain a better understanding of their difficulties. Active asanas will work to develop strength in the back body while restorative poses will help stretch and relax the muscles of the upper chest and shoulders.

To save a spot in the workshop, email or call (503) 554-5485.

It is possible to trade that pain in the neck for a light heart!

Yoga myths

You must be flexible to practice yoga. Strength and flexibility are like the flip sides of a coin; the stronger you are, the less flexible you are liable to be. Yoga works to balance these qualities in all the poses. We use props like chairs and blankets to support ourselves on this journey. Yoga gradually encourages flexibility by releasing tense muscles to allow greater range of motion, while training muscles to be strong even in extended positions.

Yoga is good for improving stress and flexibility but it’s not real exercise. When we move quickly from pose to pose, yoga practice can be quite aerobic. Most of the time, especially for beginners, yoga asana is more like weight training – but the weight you bear is your own. Moving in and out of the poses as well as the isometric tension of holding poses work to build muscle. When we strengthen a muscle in a lengthening position (the opposite of crunching contractions) the muscle is less visible but more active metabolically (will burn more calories when at rest). Unlike weight machines, yoga doesn’t target specific muscles. Instead, it aims toward best function. You’ll discover muscles you never knew you had!

Yoga truths

Yoga is an excellent cross-training for most sports. Because yoga practice works to create a balanced body, the awareness, coordination, and strength it confers benefits all sports. Further, the emphasis on mental focus and emotional stability can be key in eliciting the best possible performance even in stressful circumstances.

Yoga is one of the best ways to improve back problems. Numerous well designed studies now confirm that alignment based yoga is one of the most effective ways to cure chronic back pain. Just like the alternatives, surgery and pain management, yoga has side effects. The side effects for yoga? Stress relief, increased feelings of well being, better breathing patterns, long term weight loss, and more.

Yoga decreases stress and improves concentration. While we work physically, we keep the mind focused on our immediate experience. This simple focus becomes a meditation that improves concentration and teaches tools for managing stress.

Interested? Join John Thursday evenings at our Introductory Course (For Men) and experience these yoga truths for yourself.

The discomfort of unwanted change is exactly like the discomfort we feel in asana. It may not be pleasant, but we use it to learn. We probably don’t know much about our hamstrings until we feel them complain in a forward bend. Without discomfort, the inner structure of muscle and bones is invisible to us. When I was young and filled with power, why bother with carefulness and planning? I could charge ahead and get the job done. Now, I need to think twice and this effort of refinement gives a wonderful gift: grace.

Unwanted change is the school of adaptability. Whether we’re facing the short-term change of summer to fall or the long-term changes of aging, yogis think less about most perfect conditions and more about most effective response. When we shift our attention in this way, we become the master of our fate and not a victim of circumstances. We discover grace, or, as Patanjali says in the third sutra, then we dwell in our own true splendor.

Yours in continued exploration,

Jane

At First Street Yoga, correct physical alignment is always a priority in order to transform inefficient postural habits and protect joint health. In a vinyasa class, we flow from pose to pose and there is less time for specific instruction. The practice is a little more meditative and aerobic than our usual L1 classes. In fact, it is much more like a guided home practice.

Every style of yoga has its own strengths and weaknesses. Careful detailed instruction is transformational and teaches precision in thought and movement. It is also a more analytical experience, and its weakness is that it can tend to keep us a little stuck in our heads. A flowing vinyasa practice may not be as effective at changing old physical habits but it encourages the mind to quiet and become more attentive to the sensations of the body, increasing strength and flexibility, circulation and relaxation.

Come fall, Alison will teach an on-going vinyasa class on Wednesday afternoons. I am very excited about this new option and believe you will find it to be another great yoga tool to help improve the quality of life. If you’re interested, please join us on Saturday (and let anyone else know who might be interested). You can reserve a spot by emailing or calling 503-554-5485, or you can just show up and attend first-come-first-served

The free classes are a great way for prospective students to learn about yoga at FSY, but you don’t have to be a new student. We offer the free classes periodically as a gift to the community. Current and past students are also most welcome. Those of us who teach at First Street have been changed by our yoga practice (just ask my family!); it is our great pleasure to share this simple and effective tool for living. I hope to see you soon.

Here is my favorite sequence to strengthen and coordinate the feet, ankles, knees and hips (first learned from Patricia Walden). In this vinyasan, move fluidly from position to position.

Tadasana
Urdhva hastasana
Utkatasana
Malasana (upright squat)
Heels up, balance on toes, squat
Kneeling, toes curled under

And reverse to go back to tadasana and begin again.

Practice tips: look poses up in your favorite book or at www.yogajournal.com;
keep your weight in your heels (stand with heels on a blanket if necessary);
stay firm at the waist to maintain balance throughout.

Now strengthen feet and ankles by balancing in Vrksasana (tree pose). Let your newly energized feet be the roots, reaching downward!

The path of yoga is similarly rich and varied, involving all our senses, drawing on our intelligence, determination, and compassion. Our attention is guided by our own interests and needs, of course. One person practices asana to keep their back healthy, another to keep depression at bay, another for the simple joy of physical expression. We are guided by our teachers’ interests as well. They share their knowledge and enthusiasm and lead us to places we wouldn’t have noticed on our own.

Alison Spencer and Gail Bruner will be teaching all the classes during the summer. Both are long-term committed practitioners. They bring a shared knowledge of the technical aspects of yoga and we are lucky to benefit from their years of studies. Each also brings their personal commitment and interest, their own unique relationship to this rich tradition.

I hope you take the opportunity to experience these teachers. When you travel, I encourage you to check out the local yoga. Alison, Gail, and I are currently benefiting from the dedication and experience of Patricia Walden, one of the most influential teachers in the country. Her extraordinary teaching inspires me to study harder, to become clearer and calmer in my instruction, and ever deeper in my practice. When we study with a new teacher, we gain a new perspective; we hear old instructions in new ways. Even after twenty years of practice, new vistas open before me and I’m filled with gratitude.

I hope to see you soon (I’ll be substituting some this summer). We’re planning new classes for fall. Check out Alison’s free introduction to vinyasa class on July 30.

Students registered for class on any of these days are welcome to use it as a make up to carry forward, or may use it as a credit, or can get a refund for the class, which ever works best. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Jane and Alison will be attending a workshop with Patricia Walden in Portland. Throughout the year we study with various teachers in order for us to become better teachers. Patricia Walden is one of the most influential and inspiring Senior Iyengar teachers. We are looking forward to studying with her and bringing all that we learn to you in class.