I started by thanking everyone for coming and thanking my teachers, namely Jillian Pransky, John Friend, Mr. Iyengar for coming up with restorative yoga and Judith Lasater for being such a great source of knowledge and inspiration with her classic book Relax and Renew.

 

I then spoke about restorative yoga, what it is, it's benefits, etc. 

Then we moved to stress, to the nervous system and to how Restorative yoga helps activate the "relaxation response" which is a true, physiological process that happens whenever you are meditating and/or in restorative yoga.

Then I spoke about the koshas and how to use them as a model to teach people when they are in a pose. This is a very successful technique that I got from my restorative yoga teacher Jillian Pransky.

Then I showed how to get someone in a pose, and I chose corpse pose. I gave detailed examples on how to prop the body, how to best support it, and always ask the student how something feels. I also spoke of aligning the spine and honoring the curves of the spine. I showed how to adjust someone's leg and pelvis, as well as their shoulders.

We then did some partner work and students adjusted each other and put each other in restorative poses.

Then we did a yoga train where we tried the same pose taught in myriad ways and this was by far a most important lesson as students saw how different is a block feels, from a bolster, from a blanket.

There was a short break (it was a five hour workshop after all!) and then we finished with an hour and a half class that I taught, which included pranayama as well as Leg-up-the wall, Supta Baddha Konasana, Balasana and Savasana.

Time ran out on me!  I ended with a poem from Thich Nhat Hanh. Very inspiring poem that I think connects us all in a deep way to a bigger energy.

What a beautiful gift to share with other's the lessons of yoga. What a gift to learn how to relax so that we can tap in to our own radiance.

I got home and was a little tired and proceeded to do Viparita Karani! Delicious!

Very excited about seeing Sally Kempton tomorrow!

Namaste everyone!