For those who want to skip savasana

I couldn’t unsee it. The fidgets. The wiggles. The micro-expression on their faces…

I have always found humans fascinating, and figuring out why they do what they do…isn’t just what I wrote my MA thesis on, it’s how I designed my classes.

I’m extremely observant.

I see things you don’t even realize about your practice.

And one day, in Pasadena MD, I was teaching a class and this new girl attended “I’ve tried yoga before but I hated it!” she told me before class. The only reason she was in there was because I had met her on the gym floor and invited her to join. She did, mostly because we hit it off..as so many of my students.

Through class, I saw her expression go from confused to relief. The tension of “ugh what if I hate this!” disapeared by Sun-B, and by the end of class ..she was all smiles, working HARD, and thriving. Until…savasana. After about 45-seconds I she was fidgeting and looking wildly uncomfortable. I guided the class out, as I always do when I see it trigger someone’s trauma response. I used my words intentionally for the rest of the class.

And after.. “I loved it!” She came back for both my classes at that studio the following week. And suddenly she could do a whole song in savasana, fine.

She loved the peace she felt.

For this reason, the savasana in our beginner-level class is always short.

Because for most people in the western-world, and those drawn to “power yoga” … peace & stillness is something their body has to learn to be safe with. This may be shocking to you, but it’s real. A great teacher understands this nuance, and works with it. So that yoga gets to transform the lives of the student.

I just saw another student of mine graduate a TT, and WOW, when she first tried she hated it. Her friend made her come try. She got a month-pass and as the “perfect student” and over-achiever she was, she came back again and again with her friend, after all, she bought it. And then…her body started relaxing.

She was an avid student until we closed SWEAT by NPY.

And now, she’s deepened her journey since then. My heart is full.

NPY has a structure to it.

We don’t invite the student to experience ALL OF YOGA in every place. It’s simply not possible, and we keep the student, not the practice as our guide.

We break the “rules,” intentionally…so that people actually come back, because it was an experience they want again.

And then..we let them choose.

If they want to work the foundational physical aspects of yoga (asana) they start in POWER1.

If they want to build on their strength & stamina, POWER2 or POWER HOUR.

If they want to explore ARM-balancing, agency in their, and ego-work, AWAKE by NPY.

If they want an experience of yogic philosophy in a modern lens, coupled with moving meditation through yoga asana, in a wiiiild expression, SMWYP (Saturday Morning Wicked Yoga Party).

If they want to replenish on a body + soul level, Relax & Restore.

If they want to meditate, R&R The Meditation.

If they want more challenging poses, like up-side down etc. they are invited into a workshop space.

If they want more yoga philosophy, tradition, and understanding…teacher training is the step.

But in every day classes..most people just need to catch their breath, sweat a little (or a lot), and be reminded of the agency they have in their body..that they choose how they think and feel in every moment.

If you’re a self-proclaimed “not a yoga person” I dare you to try one class, and if you’ve never found a “yoga-home” where you take agency over your experience by choosing the formats..I dare you to try just one class.

Because it’s not just something I say..it’s something I know.

After just one class….if you choose the right one for you, you’ll know.

Because you’ll WANT to do it again. It won’t be a chore.

It’ll be a desire.

BIG LOVE,

May to take exactly what you need, from this, and every moment forward,

-C