June Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis, 

I hope this newsletter finds you well and enjoying the sunshine. As many of you know, this will be the last month of teaching for me - I will be going on maternity leave on June 21st. Although I look forward to meeting the little human that is slowly growing inside my belly, I will miss our classes and the relationships I have formed with several of you over the past couple of years.

While I do my best to prepare for my transition into motherhood, as students you will transition to new classes or a new teacher. Indeed, as the term comes to a close, many of you will be leaving Oxford for your next adventure! 

Transitioning into a new phase in one's life can be one of the most challenging practices - whether it means finding a new teacher or taking a step towards the unknown. Change can make us uneasy, and while it opens up unforseen possibilities, it can be unsettling  and cause us to be afraid.  So how to meet the challenge of a transition with grace and courage? 

When it comes to the physical practice of yoga, I remember the words of one of my teachers, who suggested that we try practicing each pose with a Balasana Mind. In Balasana, or Child's Pose, we seek to quiet and relax the brain, and while regulating the breath we cultivate a feeling of surrender and ease as we drop our weight into the ground. Balasana reminds us to soften, as we organize our body into a less demanding shape then Downward Dog or Warrior I. 

Only by experiencing what it feels like to let go and release, can we try to cultivate similar qualities in those poses that are more exciting and stimulating for the nervous system.  As we practice this month, I will look at different ways in which we can learn to release and soften the brain, trying to cultivate our Balasana Mind in order to tackle challenging poses with more grace.

Once you leave the mat, the same principle applies. What is your Balasana practice in your day to day? How do you nourish your sense of ease when you are confronted with change or an unexpected turn of events? Following an exercise taught to me by the lovely Judith Lasater, I encourage you to think of 5 ways in which you comfort and take care of yourself - write them down right now on a piece of paper, no matter how silly you think they sound! 

The next time you come across an unsettling event, practice taking care of yourself, resetting your mind to Balasana.  With a softer mindset you might notice things look and feel different, maybe even a little easier and less tight! Whether in a new class or at a new job, your Balasana Mind is always available to you. 

Please remember that while I will be pausing my newsletters during my maternity leave, you will still be able to reach me by email so don't hesitate to be in touch with any questions.

With my best wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com

May Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis, 

It's almost been a month since the last newsletter, and I have thoroughly enjoyed observing the development  of the different yoga practices in my classes! Over the past few weeks, I have noticed in those students who attend regularly a quieter, more focused energy, a clearer intention in sensing your own body and breath, and a more meditative quality in the way you move and sit with a pose. 

When I first began practicing yoga, I remember feeling that "advancing" in the practice would mean becoming stronger, being able to stay longer in a pose, or tackling some of the asanas that looked very challenging. It wasn't until I started teaching that I learnt that the real advanced practice is the one where we stay connected to who we are, remaining honest with ourselves with our boundaries and abilities, without forcing or pushing the body. I feel very grateful whenever I am reminded about this in the way I see students practice in class - it brings me back to a more compassionate and observant attitude with myself, so thank you!

As some of you might have noticed, this month we have been working more clearly with the support of the "side body", thinking about how to create more space between the hips and the heart centre in the full, three dimensional space that we inhabit. Even as you read this newsletter, can you bring your awareness to your waist staying supported? What does it mean for the front of your body to meet the back? And how does that help create more space for your inner organs? 

As we explore some of these physical experiences, you might notice changes in the way you feel after you practice, as the front of the body softens and sends a quieting message to the brain. Have you noticed any changes in the past couple of weeks? I would love to hear from you!

In other news, many of you are now aware that I am expecting! The Little Sprout is due at the end of September, and I will stop teaching for this year on June 20th. If you would like to set up any private classes before then, please do so and do be aware that slots are filling up quickly. I will be looking for teachers for all the classes I teach and hope most will continue! As usual, please don't hesitate to be in touch with any questions.

With my best wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com

April Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis, 

After so many uninterrupted days of dry weather, it feels right to say: spring is finally here! My classes have also resumed and I've felt welcomed and blessed both by the warmth on my skin and in the spaces were I teach.

Over the past week, I have had the pleasure to reconnect with a lot of you and find your spirits clearly lifted by the sunshine. When the days become longer, warmer, and lighter, I notice a perceptible difference in the way yoga is practiced. Students seem to be braver, more interested in keeping an open heart and waking up the body. I look forward to riding this wonderful wave of energy over the next term in order to explore more challenging poses and to find a playful edge to the way we come to the mat.

In the meantime, as you come back to practice with me, I invite you to do so gently, with a curious approach to how your practice might feel different after the break. Can you reintroduce your body to downward dog with kindness? Can you connect to your breath and let it guide your awareness of how you are moving? And where is your mind headed in response to all this sunshine and spring activity?

When I come to my yoga mat to practice, I am reminded again and again that the real challenge is not perfecting a physical position, but learning to stay connected to how I am experiencing myself in that moment. Is there a quality of excitement? What are my expectations? Is there a continuous stream of thought and opinions defining the currents of my mind? And what happens when I come across things that I perceive as negative or problematic?

The lovely teacher Judith Lasater was training a group of us in early March, and among other things, she taught us the mantra: "How human of me!" As you come to practice this month, when you encounter something about yourself that feels a little off, give it a try, and notice if it allows you to stay connected to yourself a little differently. As usual, please don't hesitate to be in touch with me if you have any questions.

Sending you my best wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com

March Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis,

I hope this newsletter finds you well and that you are discovering good solutions to coping with such dreary rain! If you are in doubt, get on all fours and try a couple of cat and cow poses. Feel free to add sound effects, like "loud mooing for weather dissatisfaction"!

Over the next month, I will be training to become a teacher of Restorative Yoga with the wonderful Judith Lasater. If all of this sounds new to you, I highly recommend looking up Judith and checking out her book Relax and Renew. It's filled with delicious poses to recharge both mind and body.  I look forward to introducing more restorative techniques to my teaching and to sharing some of these wonderful tools with you once classes resume in the spring.

Meanwhile, this month come to class to open up the heart and your lungs in preparation for the season of flowers and bees! In the next couple of weeks, I will be focusing on poses that help build the support of the side of the body while making space for the lungs and the chest.

One of my favorite poses to work towards with this in mind is Ardha Chandrasana, Half Moon pose. In Ardha Chandrasana we build a strong connection to the ground and then encourage the rest of the body to open and expand above our standing leg. It's a wonderful pose that works our balance, strength, concentration and patience! We will work towards this standing practice by preparing the side of the body and connecting with intention and purpose to the ground, so that our Half Moon may become increasingly filled with ease and light.

Sending you my best wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com

February Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis,

Namaste! One of my long term students recently asked me: why don't you end your classes with "Namaste" as you used to? After a couple of years of teaching, I started drifting away from this classic greeting, concerned that it invited a confusing term into the  class, a term that I wasn't always able to explain and that brings with it an exotic quality that can mystify students.  I decided to stir clear for a while, but, like my student, I missed it, and when she offered her question, it felt like it was time to go back! So here is my attempt to demystify Namaste.

To start, a literal explanation. The helpful Yoga Journal breaks the word down like this:  "Nama means bow, as means I, and te means you. Therefore,namaste literally means "bow me you" or "I bow to you."" When at the end of the practice I say "Namaste" I am saluting you, each one of you who have come into the space, recognizing your presence and your commitment to the practice. I am also saluting my teachers and the people who have practiced before me and made it possible for me to practice. And finally, I am saluting myself, paying respect to the practice that just took place and the effort and concentration that went into our time together.

By bringing my hands together, I am also inviting a quality of quiet introspection, keeping a loop of energy between my hands and close to the heart, in order to recharge and offer that energy onwards. Bringing the palms together also allows my brain to get a little quieter and my thoughts to soften. 

So here it is, the practice of Namaste! What does it mean to you? Have you noticed that I have reintroduced it in our classes? And, if so, how has it affected the way your practice ends? I am curious to hear your thoughts.

This month's newsletter arrives a little late, but I wanted to point out that there are two small time changes in the classes at Pembroke on Wednesdays and St. Catz on Thursday, please look below for more info.

 As usual, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions (practice or class related).

With warm wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com

January Newsletter

Dear Yogis and Yoginis,

First of all, happy New Year!  I hope this Newsletter finds you well and making your transition into 2013 with as much support and gentleness as you need. 

I came back to Oxford a week ago after being away for almost three weeks and was struck by how quickly I started to feel overwhelmed by all the things that needed doing! From planning our classes  together to taking care of my home, within 48 hours of having returned I felt like I was already back to full work mode. 

On the second bustling day I noticed that I was moving very quickly around my house trying to get everything done, and decided I needed to just sit for a moment and recollect my energies. So I sat on the couch and took a couple of breaths, just looking around the space - a small pause that proved very welcome.

My mind went back to my teacher training at OM Yoga in 2009 and one of my mentors, a teacher called Edward, who always brought our attention back to how we transitioned between poses. Did we move rapidly to get to the next shape? Did we force things into place to achieve what we thought was the end of a sequence? Did we breath as we moved away from one place and into another?

It took me a moment to wonder: why the hurry? There was no way I could ever get everything done (there is always a new project ahead!) and in the meantime I had hardly stopped moving around for 2 days. What a contrast with the hours spent resting during the break!

The little pause of the couch made me realise that one of my challenges for 2013 is simply to pay more attention to the spaces in between, those moments of transition in which the inertia of the moment might carry us too far and we risk loosing our centre. 

How do you take care of yourself when the awareness of the present moment falls in the back seat? Can you still pause and breath to notice how you are feeling? What would it mean to slow down?

To honor this practice, classes in January will focus on how to stay present in transitions. On my website you will find a full list of all the others being offered this term.

As usual, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions (practice or class related).

With warm wishes,

Beatrice

www.beatriceyoga.com