For those of us practising on our mats this week, the intention is to be in the bliss zone that can be found through the practice of restorative yoga. We will settle in on our mats, safe in the knowledge that there is nothing to do, nowhere to be and that nobody wants anything from us. From this place of peace and tranquility, we invite in the experience of just being, feeling and listening to the ever-present Self. This is our opportunity to withdraw from the world for some precious ‘time out’, as we experience nourishment, nurturing and complete relaxation.

And if you are able to be at chair yoga this week, we shall also be ‘listening in’ with the through the practice of Pawanmuktasana I, a traditional practice that will enable us to rest our attention on energetically clearing anything that has become stuck in our joints, in order that our energy may flow freely once more. This practice encourages profound healing throughout all the layers of our being: physical, energetic, psychological, wisdom and bliss!

Enjoy your practice, you deserve it!

If you would like to come along to class, or for more information, you can contact me, Sarah, in the following ways: Telephone/Text/WhatsApp: 07817623330; email: [email protected]; Facebook: Free To Think; Website: freetothink.co.uk.

For mat-based students, the first part of this term is all about Pawanmuktasana (energy block release).

In the highly regarded seminal book “Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha” by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, we are told that “the Pawanmuktasana series is one of the most important groups of practices that has a very profound effect on the human body and mind and is thus a most useful tool for the yogic management of various disorders and maintenance of health.” As with all three Pawunmuktasana practices, this week’s practice – The Digestive Series – encourages us to better understand the meaning of asana by developing an awareness of the movements of the body and the subtle effects these movements have on all our layers of being.  

Meanwhile, in chair yoga, we shall be focusing our attention specifically on opening up the side body in order that we might create more space in the lungs to breath, and encourage energy to flow more freely throughout the body and mind.

If you would like to come along to class, or for more information, you can contact me, Sarah, in the following ways: Telephone/Text/WhatsApp: 07817623330; email: [email protected]; Facebook: Free To Think; Website: freetothink.co.uk.

This week in our Chair Yoga class we will be focusing on our abdominal organs, and reflecting on how often we think about all the work that happens tirelessly in our abdominal region, day in, day out? We tend to only notice when something goes wrong. Ayurveda, the sister medical science of Yoga teaches us that our health begins and ends in our digestive system. Not only are we literally what we eat, but how we eat, and when we eat. And before I get carried away about digestion … Suffice to say that optimal health depends on keeping our abdominal organs in good, clean, energised and nourished working order, which is why the intention for our practice this week is to move towards those goals.

If you are attending a mat-based class, you can look forward to a little bit of physical, mental and emotional spring cleaning. We shall be working on the areas known as the Four Corners of The Body, namely the hips and shoulders. This week we shall be easing them open, and giving them a good old dust and polish, in order that we can rid ourselves of what no longer serves us, and create space for new intentions, habits, thoughts, ideas … and anything else that you would like to invite into your body, your mind and your heart.

We currently have space available in all three classes (limited in the 6:00pm class), so if you would like more information or to book a space simply email Sarah at: [email protected]

Everything that we do on our mats is preparation for our life off of our mats. When we are on our mats, we are investing time in ourselves to get to know and better understand our true Self. When we do this, we can begin to recognise, and become familiar with our natural felt state of equibrilibrium and also have a better sense of when we have moved away from that state. When we check in at the beginning of our practice, we are observing all the different parts of the Self, just as it is, without judgement, criticism or blame. And we try to hold onto that process of observation (often described as focused awareness) throughout our practice. Regardless of whether we are practising pranayama (breathing), asana (postures), meditation or relaxation, we try to stay in the moment as much as we can. That is the practice of yoga.

As we progress through yoga, we learn more and more about our Self, and we begin to take our practice off of our mat and incorporate it into our daily lives. We find we can use the understanding we gain about our Self on our mats, to help us in everyday life. Challenging situations may remind us of how it feels when we practice balancing on our mats. We wobble, and we try to re-centre ourselves. We wobble again and we refine our posture. We wobble again and fall out of the posture, and we wobble again, and again and again. And still we come back to the posture, until one day we find we are wobbling and yet still holding the posture. And on another day, we become still.

And that stillness we experience in a balance is a tangible thing. We might feel, peaceful, victorious, strong all four, or any number of other emotions or physical sensations. Balancing on our mat takes patience, tolerance, determination, perseverance, self-compassion and self-awareness. Yoga balances require a strong core, a sense of self-belief and kindness towards the Self. We have to let go of our need to achieve, perfect or strive. We have to let go of attachment to the outcome.

Instead, we practice and observe, practice and observe and one day, we suddenly realise that we are are there exactly where we wanted to be. This can be said of so many situations off of our mats, when we might feel wobbly, out of sync or uncomfortable. In those kinds of situations, yoga teaches us to observe, and connect with those qualities and resources we have discovered through our practice. In this way we can mindfully focus on what needs to be done in order that we can return to equilibrium.

For all Budding Chair Yoga Students in the Crowland area!

There will be a second one-off Introduction to Chair Yoga Session at Crowland Community Centre on Tuesday, 13th February, from 4:00pm-5:00pm. The cost of the session is £8.00. This is likely to be the last introductory session, and if there is enough interest, it will become a regular class. So if you are interested, do please put your name down and come along!

Emphasis is given to a warm and friendly atmosphere. We will practice at a pace that suits every body, and everyone is welcome to come along and try it for themselves.

To reserve your place, or find out more, please email me at: [email protected]

Yoga is a multifaceted practice with many layers. It becomes a continual journey of discovery, as we approach, view and explore our practice with new perspectives. So far, we have released, listened and surrendered, and this week, we will be using affirmations to deepen our connection to our practice.

This is how it works. Every yoga posture affects the different layers of our being (our Koshas). So when we sit in Paschimottanasana (seated forward bend), we are adopting an attitude of surrender, which calms the mind (mental layer); stretches our back body, enhances our flexibility and stimulates vital organs (physical layer); improves digestion (energetic layer); connects body, mind and breath, allowing us to really listen in, with full awareness, to what it is that we are receiving from the pose (wisdom layer); and, over time, we discover a place, within the posture, where we can release, relax and enjoy the present moment exactly as it is (bliss layer).

So it follows that, if we have an opportunity to receive all of this on so many layers, with so many postures, the available benefits of a regular practice, are quite simply astounding. Once we understand the nature of a posture, we can direct our focus towards a particular aspect or benefit of that posture. One of the ways in which we might do this is through affirmation. Affirmation, like traditional mantra, works on the mental layer of our being (Manomaya Kosha). When we mentally affirm a benefit of the posture, it encourages us to recognise and invite that benefit (wisdom layer). It gives us focus, purpose and a positive connection with, and to the posture (mental layer); and it creates and reinforces positive neural pathways in our brains (physical and energetic layers). So this week, we shall be using affirmations with each of our postures, in order that we might consciously direct our attention, deepen our awareness and receive some of the essential gifts of each pose.

If you would like to experience yoga, rather than just read about it, I can be contacted in the following ways: Telephone/text/WhatsApp: 07817623330; email: [email protected]; or message me on Facebook: Free To Think.

Have you ever experienced that sense of bliss as you sink into a pose, feel your body open out towards its edges, and then remain there in the moment as you slowly release, and release, and release? If you have, then you were probably practicing yin yoga.

Yin differs from our usual hatha practice in many ways. A more usual Yang practice seeks to warm the muscles and encourage opening and stretching of the muscles to build a combination of physical strength and flexibility, a deeper connection between the body, mind and breath, and an overall holistic sense of wellbeing. Yin focuses on the less pliable connective tissues (the fascia, ligaments, tendons and joints), those parts of us that give us structure, that are more stable and less able to move and stretch. This is why we hold yin postures for longer, as we patiently allow these areas time to slowly open up and release.

To give you a better sense of how it differs, let me introduce you to some of my favourite yin yoga teachers.

Yoga teacher and author Norman Blair uses the following words to describe the experience of yin: “slowing, surrendering, merging, sinking, allowing” … So yin can be about embodying the delicious feeling of becoming one with the body, mind and breath …

In his book The Complete Guide to Yin Yoga, teacher and author Bernie Clark encourages us to keep in mind that “how we practice is much more important than what we practice.” He tells us that “Too often, students force themselves into contorted positions with no regard for whether what they are doing is helping them or hurting them.” And, my favourite teaching of his: “We do not use the body to get into a pose, we use the pose to get into the body” … So yin is also about the intention behind our practice, one of ahimsa or non-harming …

Yoga Teacher Sarah Powers, reminds us that yoga is “a transformative vehicle”, and that yin serves to “not only increase my physical agility, but to stabilise and replenish my energetic vitality and mental clarity as well” … So yin is also about connecting with, and stimulating a different type of energy to yang yoga …

And yet yin is so much more … We may share some of the larger understandings mentioned above however, as is usually the case in all aspects of life, the experience of yin is completely personal and different for every person who rolls out their mat. And so, we can safely concluded that yin yoga is an opportunity to pause, soften, connect to and enjoy the moment exactly as it is – and how remarkable is that – yin needs to be felt, explored, acknowledged and appreciated, just as it is at that moment in time.

And finally, I just want to point out that yin yoga is not restorative yoga. Restorative yoga is a therapeutic practice that can be practised with the intention to heal damaged aspects of our body and our Selves. Restorative yoga is more subtle than yin, encouraging a still deeper level of connection and communication with all of our many layers, it has a different purpose for a different outcome, and therefore cannot be replaced by yin.

If you would prefer to experience yin, rather than just read about it, come along and roll out your mat with me.

Telephone/text/WhatsApp: 07817623330; email: [email protected]; or message me on Facebook: Free To Think

When we get on to our mat, the tendency is to bring the awareness inwards and focus on what’s happening in our own inner world. Sometimes, however, it is fun to experiment with others and bring our awareness and attention to the outside world. Working with a partner enables us to deepen the posture, develop trust and patience, and deepen our sense of inter-connectedness with our fellow students.

Together we can be introspective …

Supportive …

And know how it feels to experience peace and joy at the same time!