WORKSHOPS & SPECIAL EVENTS

FALL INTO YIN

Online Workshop

With Freya Thomas

Sunday 27th September 2020 | 4pm – 5.30pm

Join Freya for this seasonal online Yin Yoga workshop as we find ourselves moving into Autumn. We will be looking into the world of Chinese medicine alongside our physical yin practice, exploring the meridian lines of the Lung and Large Intestine.

Chinese medicine takes a holistic approach to one’s health and much like a yin yoga practice, it promotes balance throughout the whole body. We will be exploring aspects of Chinese medicine by visualising and locating meridian lines, finding organs and acupressure points, as well as working through some specific breathing techniques to build on our lung capacity.
Autumn is linked to the element of Metal and the organs of the Lungs and Large Intestine. Our practice will follow the theory of Five elements to bring the body into ‘homeostatic balance’.

Yin yoga places mild to moderate stresses on our joints and connective tissues (fascia) and can help to improve blood flow and overall mobility in the body. This practice is suitable for all abilities and we will be using lots of props to help us along the way!

This workshop is suitable for all levels of experience.

Please make sure you have set up a Zoom account to join in

£15

FLOWING INTO STILLNESS: VINYASA YOGA AND YOGA NIDRA 

Online Workshop

With Heather Gregg

Saturday 3rd October 2020 | 4pm – 5.30pm

Join Heather for this special session to cultivate stillness through movement and deep rest with a joyful yoga flow and nourishing Yoga Nidra meditation. Heather will first guide you with a dynamic Vinyasa style practice uniting breath & movement to create heat, vibrancy and spaciousness in the body and a sense of mental lightness, ease and clarity. We then recline back and get super comfortable in a long Savasana to drop into deep rest and awareness through the art of Yoga Nidra meditation aka Yogic Sleep. Through this guided meditation we practice Pratyahara (withdrawal of senses) that allows you to scan the body and tap into a state of relaxed consciousness as the mind settles in a place between wakefulness and sleep, linking conscious thought with the subconscious mind. Sunday morning is a beautiful time to step onto your mat for this blend of powerful yoga practices which will encourage an experience of both harmony and peace in body and mind to take with you for the rest of your day.

Open to all levels.

Please make sure you have set up a Zoom account to join in

£15

YOGA AND QIGONG FLOW POP UP 

Online Workshop

With Debs Grossman

Saturday 10th October 2020 | 5pm – 6pm

Yoga & Qigong Flow – a steady paced flow of yoga asana fused with qigong practices encouraging fluid, intentional and mindful movement and breathing to stabilise and strengthen the body and calm the mind.
Qigong means cultivating life energy; qi – life energy, gong – to cultivate with time and effort.

Qigong is a blend of active and dynamic movements, breathing, visualisation and meditation techniques aimed at cultivating healthy qi flow through the body. It has its roots in Daoism and Buddhism and is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Active movements in qigong help to loosen joints, strengthen tendons and muscles, improve circulation, and relax the nervous system. These, along with the breathing and intentions of qigong practices work to create greater balance and harmony, and an overall sense of health, vitality and wellbeing.

By practicing postures, movement and meridian stretches, we can influence our vital energy or emotional state. We hold emotional stress within our bodies; yoga, qigong and meditation helps to release tensions enabling you to feel lighter, and calmer, to a place of stillness and quiet.

Deborah’s class is inspired by her training in Seasonal Yoga and with Mimi Kuo-Deemer, integrating qigong practice with yoga practice.

Open to all levels.

Please make sure you have set up a Zoom account to join in

£10

YOGA UNWRAPPED© LICENCE TO FLY: AN INTRODUCTION TO ARM BALANCING

Online Workshop

With Heather Gregg

Saturday 17th October 2020 | 4pm – 6.15pm

Our next Yoga unwrapped© with Heather will help you to find the physical and mental strength to approach arm balancing and to start flying gracefully & fearlessly into them. Designed to teach you the foundations & preparatory steps of arm balances so you can understand the essential actions & movements and approach this type of Yoga pose safely with greater confidence, mindfulness and ease. They’ll be plenty to fill you up with knowledge & inspiration whether you’re just starting out with arm balancing or have been spending time on the mat with this type of work and want to level up.

For most people arm balances can seem terrifying and confusing – how often in our daily lives do we balance on our hands?! This class will help to remove the fear factor from the seemingly impossible so you can be strong & confident in body & mind when becoming airborne.

We’ll prepare the different areas of the body, learn how to safely support weight on the wrists and shoulders whilst finding that all important centre of gravity. You’ll discover the sweet balance between strength and flexibility that makes arm balances achievable and enable you to experience them with proper technique and alignment.

Arm balances build core & upper body strength, improve balance reflexes, improve the function of the shoulder, wrists and hands whilst mentally they can boost confidence, stamina, and concentration whilst changing your perspective.

This workshop will invigorate you, challenge you, and educate you.

For all levels however not suitable for people with serious wrist or shoulder injuries.

Come with an open mind and be ready to fly!

Please make sure you have a Zoom account to join.

Full Price £25. Early Bird Offer £20 until 13th September.

Thoughts on HY past workshops…

“I’d been increasingly frustrated in my practice due to a rotator cuff injury, abd general stiffness in my shoulders, and stopped doing poses such as Updog and Chaturanga. Heather’s workshop, done in her usual friendly and thorough way was an Informative anatomy lesson. Most importantly, she broke down the poses in a way that gave me confidence to attempt them. The skilful way in which she encouraged me to build up to achieving them has enabled me to strengthen my arms and shoulders.” Savi – attendee of previous Yoga Unwrapped© workshop

“I was impressed by Heather’s emphasis on being gentle and listening to the body, as well as working with all areas around the hips, rather than just ‘trying for the pose’. Sound advice and an enjoyable session. Thank you!” Richard  – Attendee of Yoga Unwrapped© For Lotus Pose

“Heather’s workshop went through every stage in detail, explaining the anatomical issues carefully.  My Chaturanga practice has greatly improved as a result. A very well spent Saturday afternoon.  Thank you – I will be booking more of Heather’s workshops.” Julia  – Attendee of Yoga Unwrapped© For Chaturanga

AUTUMN FLOW AND DEEP RELAXATION

Online Workshop

With Debs Grossman

Sunday 18th October 2020 | 4pm – 6pm

Autumn is a time to gather our energy inwards, slow down and adopt a gentler regime, physically, mentally and emotionally, preparing for the colder months ahead.

It is the time for letting go of things that do not serve us. By clearing away the old and stale, we make room for what we value and cherish; clearing our minds as well as our physical clutter. Our lungs enable us to breathe in new energy; encouraging movement and flow through our lung and intestine meridians which help to detoxify our system.

Our seasonal yoga practice incorporates qigong and breathing practices for the season of Autumn. We will focus on increasing our breathing capacity, coordinating breath and movement, focusing on the moment of change and pauses within our transitions and use opening and closing postures to stimulate lung ventilation; gathering energy to cleanse, stimulate and detoxify.

Yoga Nidra follows the practice, bringing about a deep conscious relaxation. It is said that one hour of Yoga Nidra is equivalent to four hours of sleep. It is performed in savasana (corpse pose) and can be hugely beneficial in aiding tension, stress and anxiety.

This workshop is suitable for all levels of practitioner. Please make sure you have set up a Zoom account to join in.

£20

THE ART OF COOKING

Online Workshop

With Ella Young

Sunday 8th November 2020 | 4pm – 6pm

This online workshop is based on the principles of Ayurveda (the sister science of yoga). Ayurveda means ‘the science of life’ and offers us guidance on how to interact with life in ways that help us to feel well. This covers all sorts of things such as sleep/wake cycles, relationships, treatments, deep introspection and many other lifestyle practices.
One area that we can incorporate Ayurevdic wisdom is through food preparation. Cooking can incorporate practices such as intention, energy awareness, creativity, interaction with nature, gentle herbal medicine.

Preparing food that is cooked just right is individual to you but general tools include a balanced use of herbs and spices, a combination of both augmenting (building) and extractive (detoxifying) foods, incorporating all 6 tastes and utilising elements that digest together well, as opposed to over-taxing the system.

Ayurveda is not ridged and rather than seeing these areas as overwhelming, they are simply guidelines for us to have fun with and observe if these can add joy to our whole cooking, eating and digesting experience.

The first half of this workshop will be a discussion, touching on:

· Energetic practices (mantra, prana, gratitude, oneness)

· Nature and the journey of our food

· Quality ingredients

· The 6 tastes of Ayurveda

· Culinary spices and herbs

· Intuition

· Creativity and pleasure

From there we will move into the practical element of the workshop where we will cook-up a vata-calming meal which means grounding, warming and moisturising from the inside out. The sweet and sour flavours of this curry is perfect for pacifying vata… more on that in the workshop!

Courgette & Parsnip Curry with Pilau Rice

A shopping list will be sent out 1 week before the workshop (Sunday 1st November)

Please make sure you have set up a Zoom account to join in

£25 Full Price. Early Bird £20 until 8th September