by Kara-Leah Grant This came up in conversation this week - a new teacher expressing a fear that her yoga sequences weren't interesting enough and that she was going to be boring her students. She wanted to know how to make her sequences more interesting. However, there is a fallacy of logic here. The teacher has a fear arising - that of boring her students. Her approach to working with that fear is to ensure that the external circumstance triggering the fear is removed - bored … [Read more...]
Archives for June 2015
Donna Farhi on How to Find True Alignment in Your Yoga Practice
By Donna Farhi, Yoga teacher and author When I first began formal Yoga Teaching Training, yoga postures were taught as a series of check-lists, with a point-by-point focus on each and every body part. While this Simon-Says approach of monkey see, monkey do led to a pretty successful replication of a picture, it seemed to bypass the internal process of feeling one’s own body experience and learning how to find one’s alignment from that felt experience. As the years went on I began to feel … [Read more...]
I Give Up
by Kara-Leah Grant I just wrote some 700 words and I realised that I've been telling the same damn story on this website for the past five years. A story of struggling to earn money through teaching yoga and writing. And now, I'm dropping the story and simply saying: I give up. I've had enough. I don't care anymore. I'm going to stop trying to earn a living from writing and teaching. Oh, I won't stop writing, nor will I stop teaching. These things I will continue to do, always and … [Read more...]
Is Yoga Really as Dangerous as Downhill Skiing? High ACC Levies Hit NZ Yoga Teachers
By Laura Brookes If ACC’s got it right, all New Zealand yoga teachers should be on immediate hazard alert. They currently face the same risk of injury in their workplace as downhill ski instructors. Yoga instructors are charged $1.37 for every $100 earned in ACC levies, a higher rate than prostitutes ($0.40), firefighters ($0.92) and professional netball players ($1.31). ACC groups yoga instruction into the classification unit for Sports and physical recreation instruction, meaning they … [Read more...]
Home Yoga Practice Question: How do I Work with Alignment When I Can’t See Myself? {video}
by Kara-Leah Grant This week, Bianca had this question. I always find it difficult to keep my hips balanced without a mirror....where should I feel that I'm balanced? I often get corrected when it actually felt right to me. Seeing it though in a before and after picture I was way off. How do I know where balanced alignment is in my home yoga practice? - Bianca It's a great question and one that will apply to many people, so I thought I would answer it in this short article and … [Read more...]
A Review of the Shakti Mat – A Modern Bed of Nails
by Kara-Leah Grant Running a popular yoga website means I get all kinds of emails from people wanting me to review or share their yoga-related products and services. My favourite so far was the press release from a company launching a range of yoga shoes. Because we all know you wear shoes while practicing yoga right? So I was sceptical when Jonathan from Shakti Mat New Zealand emailed me ask said he'd send me a free Shakti Mat if I did a review about it. Road-testing, assessing and reviewing … [Read more...]
In the presence of Seane Corn: A Workshop With a Potent Yoga Teacher
By Michelle Jayne, Yoga Facilitator/Therapist/Coach I love teaching yoga but like any job, there are pros and cons. On the pro side, I go to ‘work’ everyday and do what I love. I usually see the best in people and the essence of possibility and growth, all interwoven into a well themed yoga class. I have freedom during my week, and there is a sense of irresponsibility that goes along with it. I feel like I never managed to ‘grow up’ get a ‘real job’ and ‘settle down’. This is a good … [Read more...]