Fifth Yoga Experience

My yoga experiences have truly challenged my way of thinking so far. I didnt realize how much the enviroment and the people would shape the practice but along with the prompt for this week , I do believe that the practice space promotes a sense of community. When I do yoga every Friday morning, no matter what the class , its always intimate and everyone seems to know everyone. I think those who practice find a kinship with the people around them who are on the same journey. I have observed that there are women who are as young as me and women who are 50+ that come and practice yet everyone is friendly and respects each other. The dimly lit yoga rooms that smell like burned incense create the calming atmosphere that is needed. When I go, although I don't really know people, I do feel like a part of community. We sweat together, we struggle together and we all are there to just feel better. No one is trying to impress anyone, Yoga is simultaneously a practice to isolate yourself in your own thoughts and breathing but is so amazing to practice solely but around others. 

Ashtanga Yoga

This week we practiced Ashtanga yoga. I would have to say that it is my favorite yoga we practiced. I felt that the instructor we had was also the best. She really emphasized and made a point to teach us all how to breath. I was very impressed by her knowledge and her own physical abilities. She was the first yoga instructor that actually got on the ground and would do the postures entirely with us and that made all the difference for me. The sun salutations both challenged my body and my frame of mind. I felt better after the practice and would practice Ashtanga again. I liked how all the postures were a challenge for the body but would leave you feeling empowered. I think thats a lot of what the appeal of yoga is. Going along with the prompt of the week, I do feel like this practice space promoted a sense of community. Although it isn't ideal to practice is a cramped classroom I do believe it creates of community for class. Especially this week when we practiced in a big circle. The arrangement made everyone seem equal. No one was in the front or the back, just one big circle. This community of students/classmates has a purpose for the practice, it is all of us learning together and experiencing something new together. Its cool to see all of us open up and even laugh at ourselves when we fall or cant do a pose correctly. It humanizes the practice and shows that its not about being perfect rather the effort and what you take away from the practice. The community of students makes me feel welcomed and unjudged with my yoga practice

Iyengar Yoga

In class this week we practiced Iyengar yoga. Much to my surprise it gave off a totally different vibe from Bikram yoga we practiced the previous week. The instructor gave off a very calm vibe and seemed to be very knowledgable in her practice. I liked how she instructed us to do the poses in the most comfortable way we could and how she came around to help us if we were struggling. The use of the props also made this practice easier than the Bikram yoga. It was a much slower pace and I honestly feel like this class was much more enjoyable. The instructor focused on a lot of breathing techniques that seemed ritual in her practice. I would honestly do another Iyengar class and would recommend it to others.

Fourth Yoga Experience

This week for my yoga experience I went to grow yogas power hour. Once again it was hot yoga and although I thought it would be easier second time around, it was not. I sweated and struggled but I have notice how energized I am afterwards and how I starts to not notice the heat as much. Each tim I am surprised by how long I can hold some poses and how I am pushing my body to the limit. I would have to say there is some ritual to my yoga experiences. Even within the very class itself there are rituals we follow and the positions we practice seem to be ritual. I think the ritual shapes the experience by making it seem structured and some formality to it. I do like how the poses are repeated in a series of three because I believe it allows for some mastery. I look forward to continue my practice.

Third Yoga Experience

As I had previously stated in my Bikram yoga reflection I was very unsure about hot yoga but this Friday for my weekly yoga practice I made the awful mistake of waking up too late and missing the early Yin yoga class. I was left with no alternative other than to go to a power yoga class that was held in a heated room. I was so nervous about this and didn't know if I would be able to do "power hour" to begin with, let alone in a heated room. I was actually pleasantly surprised by the class. I went to the 9:30 class at Grow yoga with Lou Fermonte. There were a lot of people there for such n early time and everyone "seemed" to know exactly what they were doing. Although I did have to watch other for a lot of the poses I felt as though I kept up. In the beginning I noticed the heat  a lot and almost felt as though I was having trouble breathing but as the time went on and I was sweating and doing all the yoga sequences I noticed that it bothered me less. The class was faster paced and often I felt like I was lagging behind but when I was finished I had a sense of accomplishment. i was proud of myself for keeping up and surviving my first hot yoga class. I also noticed I felt super energized after. I stretched my body a lot and expect to feel sore in the morning but I am glad I went to this class. 

To answer the question, I do believe Yoga is framed as more than just exercise. As we have learned in class there is a certain level of spirituality associated with yoga and I do believe the instructor try to bring this into their classes. All the instructors I have had classes with talk about accepting each others spirits and finding a calm within. Why not zumba or running? well those exercises seem to be sort of mindless. You go through the motions but your mind is someplace else, yoga forces you to be in the moment and to enjoy life right now. 

Bikram Yoga

This week in Yoga East Meets West we practiced Bikram yoga. First off, I was pretty nervous about this class. Partly because we were instructed to do our research about what Bikram Yoga is before the actual class. So, I had plenty of time to find out that it is fast paced class that is done in heated rooms. Thankfully since we were in a stockton classroom, the room we were practicing in couldn't be made to be 100 degrees. Never the less, I did sweat. When I was doing my research I started to have some preconceived notions about Bikram yoga because the founder, Bikram seemed like a terrible man. Yet, the class was sort of enjoyable. I would never go out of my way to do another one because it just wasn't my style but I did like that some of the poses pushed you and were repetitive. The instructor gave us some backstory on how he came to practice and it was interesting to hear how a lot of his body aches and pains started going away when he started this style of yoga. I think if this wasn't one of my first yoga classes then maybe it would have been easier for me but I did find a lot of the class challenging. I am glad we were given this opportunity to have a actual Bikram Instructor come to stockton because honestly I don't think it would have been anything I would normally encounter.

Second Yoga Experience

For this weeks yoga class I decided to shake things up and go to the studio I went to during the summer back home. Since I was going home for the weekend I figured I would save my practice and go to Yoga Peace Kula. I love this studio for many reason but mostly because it breaks the mold of the typical americanized studio we have been talking about. Yoga Peace Kula is a non for profit yoga studio and tries to make all classes accessible for single moms, college students and anyone else on a fixed income. They aim to focus on the practice and not over pricing classes. The classes are "pay what you can" and keep it very anonymous with a donations box in which you can put whatever you can before or after the class. They welcome drop ins, which is how I started. The classes have always had a diverse group of people, ranging from young to old, physically fit and some overweight participates. None of that matters really. They focus on the practice and how to make the most comfortable environment. This week I went to the mixed level vinyasa from 9:30-10:45 with Amy Budinich as the instructor. I really liked going to the mixed level vinyasa because it pushed me out of my comfort zone. Some of the poses were a bit more difficult and more weight bearing, they were also held for longer. In this class we really focused on connecting our breathing to our movements.

What made my practice a "sacred space" was the vibe that was given off by everyone there including the teacher. Everyone had really positive energy that they were giving off and made an effort to keep the place calm and quite. There was no conversation going on that didn't pertain to the here and now. The lights were dimmed and calm and soothing music was being played in the background. At the end the instructor ever burned some incense which brought another one of our senses to the forefront. I really enjoyed my practice and look forward to next week.