Sunday, September 25, 2011

Trying Something New

Yogis can get pretty attached to their favourite teachers. We appreciate their personal yoga style that emulates through their teaching, they know what we are capable of in class and they'll encourage you to go deeper or hold back where necessary. Sometimes they even throw your favourite song onto their play list because they know it will make you smile! :)

My favourite teacher, Clancy, from Moksha Yoga Winnipeg has recently moved further west for a change of scenery. After her incredible final class, (we sang "Colours of the Wind" while holding bridge pose!) I felt unmotivated to find my way onto the mat, afraid to give a new teacher an opportunity, I was being stubborn and not open to new inspiration.

Everytime I neglet my body and lose my yoga practice, I falter a little: my focus shifts to the trivial, I stop caring about what I eat, and I get lazy. Unhappiness ensues.

This weekend, two whole weeks after the Pocahontas sing-a-long class, I reunited with the mat for a 60minute Moksha Flow class taught by a new teacher at Moksha Waverly.

Jordan is a young, energetic instructor with a great presence. He shared a personal story with us to begin the class, using it to set an intention for the class. The intention was lila, a sanskrit word meaning 'devine play'.

Lila is my favourite yoga word! The new kid is off to a good start....

His style was much more yin than the power yoga I am used to, but it was a great class and I'm so glad I tried something new. Jordan showed me how subtle changes within a posture, like pressing down through the big toe of your standing leg in balancing postures, can change a posture that you once thought you had mastered. This little variation created a beautiful stretch in the outer hip flexor that I am still feeling today.

My favourite teacher is gone, leaving an opening for a new inspiration. I will use this blog to find it. I will search the city far and wide, trying classes of all styles, meeting teachers of all ages and backgrounds in search of a new yogi inspiration. Minimum one class a week. No faltering, no getting off track.

Stay tuned to find out what happens to this Prairie Yogi.

Peace. Love. Namaste.

No comments:

Post a Comment