Wow, it’s been a few months since I was here last. What a journey it has been. As time goes by and the more I am exploring yoga and the teachings of yoga I am noticing that I am becoming more passionate and excited about it every day.
I wouldn’t say the past few months have been easy I seem to be learning about the things that can go wrong when you teach a yoga class. I had a bout of sickness (rarely happens) at the beginning of the year, classes were hampered by the snow and we have had a slight hitch with the venue where we teach, meaning classes will have been put on hold until July. I was devastated for a while especially as desperate attempts to find a new space was proving difficult, but then I decided to pull myself together and get smart. I decided to use the time wisely to invest in my own yoga practice and experience as much yoga as possible with the aim of deepening my own yoga practice and to enrich my own teachings.
I started off taking part in a Spring Yoga Retreat at Manchester Yoga Central, it was a great event and an opportunity to catch up with Gemma, a fellow yoga teacher. It was great to share our experiences of yoga teaching. It was also my first introduction to Ashtanga Yoga, which I have to admit I did not find it easy and seemed to be incredibly hard on my body. However it has to be said I wasn’t feeling great in myself and I was sore from a fall I had a few days before but despite that my interest was peaked, I wanted to explore this practice even more.
The following week was the Om Yoga Show at Event City near the Trafford Centre and I was determined to seek out more Ashtanga experiences. I made it to the first class on time and luckily aimed at beginners. Feeling less sore and less tired I found the pace and experience much enjoyable and even though I found it challenging to the body I also enjoyed how my body felt after practice. I liked the Ashtanga practice so much I have signed up to an 8 week beginners course, focusing on ujjayi breathing technique and correct eye gazing points (drishti).
After the Om Yoga Show I took a trip to Kensington, London to take part in my Yoga Pregnancy Teacher Training, a four day course with Tara Lee Yoga. It was a truly amazing experience with wonderful teachers and fellow yoga teachers, I laughed and I cried. Doing this Training was so important to me, when I have classes I want people to feel safe and secure and with this type of Yoga being so specialised I wanted to ensure I had the right knowledge and also knowledge from the right experts. Tara and Claire had spent years researching material for the course, it really was expertise at its highest level and the manual was beautifully put together.
After the course I returned home to teach class 8 of the experienced yoga group, before catching a flight to Albir in Spain for a 5 day yoga trip with Premier Yoga Holidays. A great time was had, Colin and Anouk were both lovely people and looked after us so well. I felt so cared for I cannot praise the experience enough. Plus it was another opportunity to embrace my own yoga practice and deal with some of my own fears that became apparent on the mat.
Over the next few weeks I will be formatting the next 8 week block, deciding on themes and sequences for us to explore. I will also be completing my yoga pregnancy training. There are other things in the pipeline too which I will tell you about in due course but in the meantime….Thank you to everyone who has come to class over the past few months, it has been great and I hope to see you all soon
Love
Andrea
andrealouiseyoga 