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When I finished my practice this afternoon, I spent a while crouching with one knee pulled up trying to massage my hamstring while the muscle was warm. I pulled it a bit recently (my tip: go super gently if you're cold, dehydrated and jet lagged and feeling impatient to get over the tightness of long-haul-hips!),... Continue Reading →

January 11, 2017 2

A further taste of Iyengar

Finally I got to an Iyengar class! I had attended an introductory course at the Iyengar Institute in London a couple of months back, but given the distance and awkward schedules I haven't made it back there for a 'normal' class. Meantime I was recommended a teacher locally, and although her small class is regularly... Continue Reading →

January 4, 2017 6

Validation and witness

"I give you permission NOT to do full Chaturaṇga each time". I wondered at this comment from my teacher in class today. Do people really need this permission? Do they feel some necessity for this action in every vinyasa? If they do, would the validation of the teacher make a difference? I wonder... I don't do... Continue Reading →

December 18, 2016 6

Exploring the three corners of the world

First question of teacher training (the yoga equivalent of those terrible corporate ice-breakers you have to deal with in management seminars and what-not) - what's your favourite and least favourite yoga pose? Tricky question. So many to choose from -- in the 'least favourite' category that is! 🙂 One of them was definitely Trikoṇāsana. I... Continue Reading →

November 18, 2016 2

The new morning habit

I met with a fellow new graduate this week. We caught up on life and work, and of course yoga. We both admitted feeling a bit disconnected with our practice recently. "At least you've been doing it, though" was her comment to me. For reasons of life changes and injury she's not been practising at home... Continue Reading →

November 9, 2016 0

Yoga poses in sync

I just realised that what I spell as 'synch' most of the rest of the world writes as 'sync'. Hubby things I'm being pretentious in my spelling, but honestly this is how I hear the word. "In Greek it would be spelt with a chi not a kappa," I plaintively assert! He knows this is true,... Continue Reading →

November 3, 2016 10

Continuing with Iyengar?

So I've completed my baby Iyengar course now (6 introductory sessions at the Iyengar Institute in London). I was sad to miss the final class with the usual teacher since I was (ahem) teaching a class myself. So I hauled myself down one evening after work to catch a session with another teacher. It was interesting to... Continue Reading →

October 29, 2016 10

Days of love

I had a lovely phone chat with my mum today. All seems well with her and my dad, so I'm happy. And they are coming to stay soon too. This feels like a gift to me to have them in my home and be able to look after them and keep them fed and comfortable. Not that they... Continue Reading →

October 21, 2016 0

My whispering heart

I bumped into a friend today who asked me how my early steps in teaching were going. I told her about the practice class I'd just done with two teachers at my local studio, getting ready for teaching a charity class there later in the week. The mentor teacher had offered me some quite amazing... Continue Reading →

October 11, 2016 6

Flirting with Iyengar

Since TT I've been reflecting simultaneously on how I proudly recognise how much I have learned and understood about yoga as well as humbly how little I know and how limited my experience is. If I want to teach, this will limit what I can offer. And as I try to explore the limits of my own... Continue Reading →