I’ve been through a 2 year phase where I have been trying to explain to others what kind of yoga I teach. I’ve been saying “I teach my own version of yoga,” which is true. However, I’ve finally come up with a title that I love. I am a Progressive Yoga Teacher. What does that mean you ask? Well, here’s my best explanation:
As a progressive yoga teacher I’ve decided that modern movement and neuroscience has some very important insights for my own practice and my students, in that when applied to traditional yoga, our practice can be MORE beneficial to our body’s health and resiliency. And there’s more…
After all those years of stretching and moving into maximum ranges of motion, my body didn’t feel good anymore. My SI pain was back from my earlier dancing days. I’ll never forget when my awesome chiropractor, Sam Spillman, made me try to engage my glute muscles and said “those aren’t working for ya.” He was right. So I started lifting heavy things and varying my workout routines. HIIT one day, Pilates another, restorative yoga another, hiking another. I learned more about functional movement and the difference between flexibility and mobility. I began to notice a difference in how my body felt both in and out of yoga. So now, as much as I like Sam, I don’t need him anymore.
I have an insatiable appetite for learning all about the human body, especially the nervous system. With all my movement exploration and work with my own clients, I’ve started to realize that there are very few black and white answers about how our bodies should move. When I ask questions, it just leads me to ask more questions. I understand that what may work for one person doesn’t work for another. I keep unpacking the old paradigms of what I’ve previously been taught, including traditional anatomical cues and even pranayama. But this is exciting and the way it should be. More questions invite more curiosity, and more curiosity keeps me more open. So I question everything.
I’m finding myself getting annoyed at the abundance of circus-like poses on Instagram, so rather than perpetuating the dominant images of yoga on social media, I’d much rather share all the ways that yoga can look a little different. And I spread that message to my students in class.
So, my own practice and the classes I teach do not look the same as they once did. While I’ve kept the mindfulness and awareness, I’ve been adapting the traditional poses, supplementing them with creative and functional movements as well as non traditional meditations that work to balance the nervous system. To keep yoga a living tradition, I believe it needs to evolve with our modern world. So, if or when you come to my class know that most likely it won’t feel like the yoga you are used to (unless you’re a progressive like me). I won’t be telling you how to breath. I won’t tell you exactly what to do with your body and I won’t adjust you deeper into a pose or try to “fix” your alignment. I might ask you to try movements that I made up earlier that day. I’ll challenge you in ways that don’t involve performing a hundred chaturangas. But don’t worry friends, you’ll still be doing yoga. Progressive Yoga.
Thank you for reading my blog and I hope to see you soon in class, at a workshop, in a private session, OR on my yoga/surf retreat to Costa Rica in February!
