Restorative Sunday: Recap
We held our restorative yoga workshops yesterday led by our dear visiting teacher, Ms Sara Duke. And what a wonderful day it turned out to be.
The early session featured an investigative experience into deep relaxation where all had opportunity to experiment with props to find support for achieving release and rest. Sara brought with her a wealth of knowledge and techniques for enabling all participants to feel degrees of deep relaxation in various positions. One of Sara’s key approaches is to recognize that we are all different physically (and mentally) so there was wonderful scope within her guidelines for personal variation and trial. And I think that really allowed people to experience Sara’s motto: Go 50%, i.e. using that degree of engagement to find greater release and decompression.
The second workshop was a unique look into our inner core. Sara introduced the bandhas (mula bandha and jalandar bandha etc) and offered descriptive guidelines for finding the pelvic floor and isolating those inner, smaller core muscles, (need I say without engaging the hip flexors!). There was also very interesting work with the neck – all who attended can never forget how Sara’s head weighs 50lbs! Some of the other therapeutic approaches featured isolated and dual usage of the abductors and adductors. It was really a very eye-opening, intense, and specialized presentation – one which we will certainly incorporate little by little into our own classes and practice.
All in all it was a wonderful weekend with Sara & her partner Dave. Starting with the potluck on Friday evening (40 attendees and enough great food to feed half of South County) where we all got opportunity to talk and share, and culminating with Sara’s excellent seminars yesterday. As much as we appreciated her skills and insights, certainly it was her demeanor, manner and way that we all found so comforting and charming. This was the fist time I had a visiting yoga teacher come in and lead and I personally felt 100% comfortable – in all aspects. As I told those in the second seminar, I felt like I was with my sister all weekend long – and the feeling remains. I know many of you were also touched by her presence and we all truly hope she one day returns to South County – certainly she will be most welcome!
Here is a Sara’s write-up of her experience with us…
Sara is a world class teacher. I will use the knowledge I gained for many years to come. I found much that was new to apply to my practice. I also don’t think such a high level workshop would be possible in little ole Galesville without Satyam’s already established outstanding leadership and teaching.
Every monthly workshop he presents turns out to be so rewarding.
Here are excerpts from student evals from the morning workshop, Discovery and Practice:
The best part of the seminar was…
– “Learning about the 50% concept, reinforcing to be more easeful in the poses…”
– “excellent instruction through modeling.”
– “The stucture – starting with a demo followed by a full class.”
– “Sara”
– “Focusing on comfort in order to relax.”
– “Learning how to do this at home.”
– “I found the suggestion to find or fine tune your own comfort at each turn to be very helpful.”
– “Very lovely.”
Here are excerpts from student evals from the afternoon workshop, Restoring and Rebuilding the Inner Core:
The best part of the seminar was…
– “The growth of awareness of my inner workings / balance / imbalance.”
– “The explanations for the movements and the challenging postures.”
– “I got into the best chair pose ever thanks to the belt and the block.”
– “Learning to control the muscles.”
– “The fellowship, the core work – can’t pick one thing – it was collectively AWESOME.”
– “Felt great for my back.”
– “Losing all the unforgiving tightness from the top of the head to lower waist.”
– “Quiet concentration and awareness of my core.”
– “The work. Sara, you worked hard to attend to everyone and your compassion was clear. I also appreciate your sense of humor.”
– “Adductor inner thigh – amazing how painful this small move is.”
– “A completely new awareness of what core muscles are…”
– “Sara is so engaging and clearly enthusiastic about this subject. I really enjoyed her great personality and learned so much that will help me stabilize my core – hips and make my practice even better.”
Thanks for a great weekend, Satyam and Sara!!
I am so pleased to have been invited to share the passion I have for relaxation and for the inner core. Being in Galesville was a wonderful experience. And meeting Satyam and all of the Renaissance yogis could not have been better!
As you all deepen your knowledge through your home practice or through your continued study with Satyam, please know that I am available for answering questions or hearing about personal “ah-ha’s.”
Thank you, Satyam, for hosting me, and thank you, students, for attending.
Hi Satyam – looks like you have been quite busy, as usual, sponsoring several offerings in the community. Even though I wasn’t at your restorative workshops in person, I’ve gained some helpful information in reading your blog.
I did some of my own “restoration” work recently. Pete and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary by going to Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Resort in the Collegiate Peaks. I had been told about the water yoga class there and being a lap swimmer for years, I was quite interested. It was a glorious morning in a 94F mineral springs-fed relaxation pool at approx. 8,500 feet alt. The water was soothing, clean and odorless. Of course we did down dog against the wall, various warriors, balance and stretching routines, finishing off with a 5 min.+ free float on foam spaghetti using however many we wanted. The water moved you ever so slightly making it a bit of a challenge but finding a drishti point really helped, not to mention the buoyancy. It was a unique 60 mins, then we made our way to other cold dip or soaking pools and the ultimate – Chalk Creek, where you could also pick your temperature zone and move the large and small rocks around to lounge or immerse yourself. That was your reward after climbing down the boulders to chose your location. My local instructor and the one there both said there are very few water classes to be found. It gave yoga a new dimension for me!
All the best to you.
My oh my Jane – what a great account – some things in life are uniquely Colorado!!
I know if you were out east you would have greatly enjoyed the potluck and restorative workshops.
Though as I say, it sounds like you more than made up for it!
Thanks for keeping in touch and following along.
All the best,
Satyam
Next is sno-yoga! We did have a mini blizzard here this week, after the aspens and flowers had started to bloom out :(… but it’s again glorious for the holiday weekend.
My instructor here takes us outside first chance and we have been out once already. What a mountain range view to change your focal pt.! With the time change it is still a bit chilly in the early a.m. but that will change soon.