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I’m looking forward to holding some public yoga classes now that the leisure centres start to open up and schools return. I will continue to hold the Zoom classes as these are working out ok and will be on a donation basis, still recognising the financial hardships for some. Details on the website.

I have applied for my ‘free’ permit to Wokingham Borough Council, and aim to arrange an outdoor class in due course. Please let me know if this is of interest?

We are still waiting to hear from the schools where I teach, Finchampstead and Spencers Wood. I have an open mind on this, perfectly understandable if the schools decide not to open for lettings or that people prefer not to attend a class at a school. Class numbers will be capped, subject to the risk assessment and your thoughts welcome on whether this is viable for you?

I am starting again at Wellington Leisure Centre in September for club members. I hope that the 2 classes will now be Thursday and Saturday, both will be vinyasa flow. The downtime has enabled me to experiment and I have some really cool sequences to share with the classes.

And finally starting 1:1 in my studio where I can maintain 2m social distance. There are 2 flavours of instruction:

· I have revised the Range of Motion Assessment to be “hands off” and will still be able to assess and develop a personalised home practice plan that targets body constraints.

· FAB – Foundation, Alignment and Breath Instruction – this will help improve overall technique and enable students to go deeper into their yoga

'Yoga has your back'

Yoga, a mild form of exercise, is believed to be a useful prevention against back pains. When performed routinely and properly, it may also relieve the pain of those people who are already suffering from sciatica and other forms of back ailments. Also, experts have agreed that Yoga is useful for the early diagnosis of serious ailments such as Osteoporosis and Herniated Disc. Recovery and prevention for these diseases can also be achieved through Yoga. The poses in performing Yoga tone the muscles, resulting to an improved body posture. If you are ‘lumbared’ with pain, drop me a line to see if yoga can help.

info@richardsyoga.org

Live streaming yoga, in the comfort of your own space...

Not many would have envisaged the changes to our lives and routines that have occurred over the last 6 months. Sticking to the positives, it has been great to see more people outside walking, cycling exploring beautiful Finchampstead as well as people engaging with some online fitness programmes available.

On a personal basis, cancelling the local public yoga classes I teach was necessary but saddening. Whilst the essence is health and wellbeing, the social element is as much a part for my classes, getting away from the house and engaging with likeminded people in a pastime that gives so much back.

Rather than sit it out and hope to pick up once lockdown was over, I determined to teach online streaming classes. It is not the best medium for teaching a class that is as much about alignment and good position as it is breath awareness, but I felt that maintaining the routine in people’s lives was as important as the practice itself. Simply rolling out a yoga mat at home for even 10 minutes of yoga is a great way to distance your mind from the issues of the day.

At first it felt a bit alien, a totally different delivery approach is needed for a teacher, articulating the minutia of detail needed for people to engage with the movements, sequencing and postures, but it soon came together. We try not to take ourselves too seriously in my classes and people were very forgiving. Having the ability to ‘mute’ the class is something that is also new to me!

My intention as a yoga teacher is to get more people into yoga, men women, any age, any level of fitness. Lockdown and the economic impact to people’s lives was foremost in my mind so I offered my classes free to anyone, simply access the online meeting and join in. It has been great, and I have derived much satisfaction from seeing new people join in and getting great feedback.

It seems that now we are easing out of the restrictions, public classes are reopening, I expect my classes will resume in time, but I am going to continue with the online classes simply because they are so accessible. I will start to charge a modest price per lesson but please don't let that put you off. You don’t even need to leave home, simply create some space, lay down a mat and join in. People don’t feel self-conscious, they can decide which of the sequences they wish to follow or take a really long stretch and then join back in at their leisure.

There are so many online resources and classes now to help our health and stay mobile and fit. What may have seemed a bit odd 6 month ago is now well worth consideration and I encourage everyone to give it a go, if not mine, although you are very welcome!

Stay safe.