Last week I hosted my first workshop post pandemic called Back to Basics. Why the name? Well, having taught yoga classes in Derby for 7yrs, I found that yoga (after some time off) can lead people to think ‘I not flexible enough’ or ‘I won’t be able to keep up now’. And since coming out of lockdown and life returning back to normal a handful of people got back in touch with me and wanted to start practicing yoga again but felt they were slightly out of touch.
So I launched a sort of mini yoga retreat, 3 hours at The Base, Derby. Yes, 3 hours, don’t worry it wasn’t 3hrs of deep twists or back bends. It was a back to basics class where I covered a short history of yoga over freshly made smoothies and snack bars, then followed a 90mins yoga session which was designed to cover all body parts, particularly those tense areas we have. Tense shoulders, tight hips, achy back - we covered it. Afterwards we had an interactive breakdown session, this gave students the opportunity to ask questions about the postures they were having difficulty with. For example, ‘am I doing down dog right?’ We practiced each pose together where I gave a more in depth description & cues accordingly. We explored the posture as individuals plus found variation of the poses too.
After the physical part of the workshop, we took to the ground where I guided them through a practice called Yoga Nidra. This practice allows the body to completely rest as if it’s asleep, however the mind still awake. It’s known to be the equivalent of one sleep cycle, giving the body and mind rest and relaxation. This 15/20min guided meditation practice saw a few yogis fall asleep in the class. Feeling refreshed after the rest we completed the mornings session with a few mindful breaths together.
It was lovely to see familiar faces and it was wonderful to hear the feedback such as ‘I feel so much better after that’, ‘that’s just what I needed’. This session seemed to give them the confidence to partake in future classes be it hot yoga, yoga nidra or yoga of any style. The workshop really showed that many students are eager to get back on the yoga mat and continue their practice in person.
I’m currently creating a version of this workshop for next month, so if you’re looking to get back to basics then be sure to get in touch.
Thank you for reading and see you on the mat soon
Abbie x