This first-ever Yoga Alliance Leadership Conference was held October 30 – November 2 in Indian Wells, CA. More than 300 teachers attended, most of them from the U.S., but also represented were India, Australia, Japan, and China. The conference was unique in that (a) it was affordable, (b) all meals were vegan, and (c) it was designed for yoga teachers … Read More
The Deeper Teachings, Yoga Postures
Bhakti Yoga — The Yoga of Devotion
Bhakti Yoga is about creating a dynamic flow of energy from the heart chakra toward the object of one’s longing. It is not a sentimental or sappy kind of love; it is pure, strong, one-pointed and calm. The heart becomes the vehicle through which the soul unites with the object of worship. Some people don’t consider themselves naturally devotional and … Read More
Students with Unique Needs, Yoga Postures
Sasamgasana – The Hare Pose
From the Kay Erdwinn’s Post Teaching Yoga for Round Bodies This asana usually makes fat people laugh and make jokes about “Maybe in my next lifetime…” There is simply too much tummy and thigh and possibly chest on most fat people to roll into a ball. I don’t teach this asana per se, although I do sometimes start with the “frog” … Read More
Students with Unique Needs, Yoga Postures
Surya Namaskar Sun Salutation
From the Kay Erdwinn’s Post Teaching Yoga for Round Bodies Except for position 3, Padahastasana, there are no positions in this sequence that are much harder for the fat beginner than for the thinner one, in and of themselves. However, the transition between postures may be very difficult for fat people. For example, lowering the hands to the ground between Banarasana and … Read More
The Deeper Teachings, Yoga Postures
Gyana Yoga — The Yoga of Wisdom
Gyana (sometimes written jnana) is wisdom, the goal of all learning and knowledge. On one level, it is higher awareness gleaned from life’s experiences. As each one of us goes through the “school of hard knocks” known as life, we learn, grow and understand more. We hopefully garner wisdom: a perspective on life — and on ourselves — that is … Read More
Students with Unique Needs, Yoga Postures
Jathara Parivartanasana – The Supine Twist
From the Kay Erdwinn’s Post Teaching Yoga for Round Bodies As with pregnant women, fat people need to accommodate the belly via less bend in the leg that crosses over. The difficult bend is at the hip joint, not so much in the knee joint. Holding the knee of the crossover leg may not be possible. I personally practice this twist … Read More
Students with Unique Needs, Yoga Postures
Paschimotanasana – The Posterior-Stretching Pose
From the Kay Erdwinn’s Post Teaching Yoga for Round Bodies This asana presents the same difficulties for the fat person as Padahastasana. I usually teach it using a strap around the feet and held in both hands like reins, including with the same slight looseness one would use with a horse. Then I instruct the student to move the chest forward, … Read More
Perspectives, Yoga Postures
Moving Toward Standards for Training Yoga Therapists
Last summer saw an historic meeting of some 40 schools that currently train Yoga Therapists and are member schools of the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT). On August 31 – September 1, 2011, I was able to meet with about 70 other people at Asilomar, CA, plus IAYT’s Board of Directors and their Standards Committee, which recently submitted a … Read More
Unique Teaching Experiences, Yoga Postures
Ananda Yoga Comes to a Women’s Prison
Gyandev How did you start teaching in a prison? Nikki After Ananda Yoga Teacher Training in August 2002, it came to me in meditation that I needed to teach free yoga in the prison system. I heard it loud and clear. So I made some calls, and a friend whose brother and sister-in-law are both judges in Idaho connected me with a … Read More
Students with Unique Needs, Yoga Postures
Chandrasana – The Crescent Moon Pose
From the Kay Erdwinn’s Post Teaching Yoga for Round Bodies The only real problem here for some fat people is the need to keep the legs together. I don’t think the student risks injury if s/he has a slightly wider stance, but it does tend to decrease the feeling of the body being in a smooth, compact crescent-moon arc — … Read More
