Yoga Intensive: Yoga, Anatomy, In Practice

Session 1: The Most POwerful Breath You Will Ever Take
The most powerful breath you will ever take is your very first breath. It transforms your entire physiology from its non-breathing, non-eating fetal state to that of an independent entity that must oxygenate its own blood, seek out its own nutrition, eliminate its waste and navigate a world of gravity and space. For the rest of our lives, we will have to negotiate this intricate dance between our internal and external spaces.
A breath-centered yoga practice offers you the opportunity to take the second-most transformational breaths you will ever take, and that is the specific goal of this workshop. Through inspiration, education, and reflection, Leslie Kaminoff will lead you through a series of practices that will forever transform your relationship to your breathing body.

Session 2: Healthy Spines: Range of Motion, Support, and Breath
Are forward- and back-bending asanas about moving forward and backward in space or are they about changing the shape of the spine? What role does the breath play in entering into and supporting us these challenging poses? How we answer these fundamental questions will determine our goals and experiences when we practice. Unfortunately, some of the most common alignment cues do not produce evenly distributed spinal movement, resulting in a perpetuation of chronic tightness in the very areas the poses seek to release.
This workshop will provide a solid grounding in details of the anterior and posterior lines of the body from both an anatomical and a yogic perspective. We will practice a variety of breath-based movements and healthy alignment strategies.

Session 3: Less Talking More Doing – The Theory of Mostly Practice
This is a full-length practice session (2+ hours) with a minimum of lecture. Simple body and breath warmups will be followed by a session of seated breath/bandha practice. A standing vinyasa series will flow into floor work, modified inversions, twists, backbends and forward bends, concluding with a full savasana, followed by quiet sitting. Brief introductory and concluding remarks will frame the session.

Session 4: The Sage’s Seat – The Anatomy and Psychology of Yoga, Meditation, and Pranayama
Drawing inspiration from Patanjali’s royal eight-limbed path, this workshop will explore and illuminate the embodied basis of seated meditation experiences. When our relationship to gravity is at maximum efficiency, our body’s inherent structural equilibrium provides sufficient support so our metabolic requirements draw a minimum of resources from breathing. This eclectic session covers topics that range from anatomy and physiology to effective preparation for sitting postures to chanting and visualization techniques.