Hi there,
Yoga classes are ending next week for Fall quarter. I have given students the opportunity to post on my blog any reflections over the quarter about learning about yoga. It has been a great fall and I am very grateful to my students for practicing yoga with me and giving me the opportunity to share my practice of teaching yoga. Have a great break everyone....
Jai:)
I must admit that I was hesitant to enroll in a yoga class. My experience with exercise has been if you don’t sweat, you’re not exercising. I decided to embrace all concepts that were introduced and really try to enjoy the benefits of learning something new. I am the mother of four children and work for the American Red Cross. Needless to say, I have stress in my life. One of the wonderful things for me about yoga, was not having my Blackberry with me during class. I decided before the first class that I would leave my Blackberry in my car or in my office. The hour (or two) that I was not connected to the real world was very good for my soul. I was able to get lost in the movements and breaths of yoga instead of worrying about keeping up with emails and phone calls.
ReplyDeleteWhen I began yoga, I was not flexible. I continued to try each move as it was introduced and saw quick progress. I celebrated with my co-workers when I was able to finally do the “tree” and “dancer” moves without stumbling. I very much enjoyed the long stretches and always looked forward to the time I was able to get into “corpse pose.”
One of the most beneficial lessons I learned from yoga was the “Ujjayi breath.” During the quarter of school I had several stressful situations arise at work. I found myself closing my eyes and breathing deeply. I very quickly lowered my stress level. This is a skill that I will continue to use in my life. I keep my yoga mat with me at work and when I feel stress, I’ll take a break and stretch. This class has been very beneficial and I plan to continue practicing yoga.
Wow, you received a lot this quarter. Good for you! And, thanks for posting Jennifer:)
ReplyDeleteSo when I first signed up for this class. I extent of my knowledge with yoga was that you do certain stretches for different lengths of time. But, now that I have taken the class I know better understand what yoga is and how it benefits me. Firstly, overall flexibility has improved tremendously. Which was a big factor to why I wanted to do yoga in the first place. Than another key thing that I have gained from taking this class was my overall feel through my day after taking the class. After yoga I would feel more awake for the rest of the day. Which is really helpful by my standards. With all of these things in mind I would have to say that this class, and experience, with yoga was enjoyable.
ReplyDeleteBefore I came to CWU I had taken yoga and hot yoga classes in my home town and wanted to continue that here. Even though I had already participated in yoga prior to class, this style was almost completely new to me. This was quite an enjoyable discovery for me. I can't remember the name you told us but the one day a week when it was a workout to come to class and the other when it was a more relaxing class made me enjoy yoga so much more because it varied up the routine.
ReplyDeleteI've never taken a yoga class before so this class was very new to me. While i have gone to a yoga class once or twice with friends this was pretty new to me because i was consistently going. I loved it because it calmed me down and really helped me stretch out. This was an awesome class and because of it i hope to take another yoga class in the future!
ReplyDeleteAs a full time student I am always stressing about something, whether it is exams, assignments or simply not having enough time in the day, my mind is always racing. I choose to take yoga because I had heard from many friends how relaxing and beneficial it was for them. Let me tell you, it was one of the best class decisions I’ve ever made!! Yoga class was not only stretching, holding poses and balance; it was much more. It was a way for me to relax and focus on limiting the hold stress had in my day to day life. When we focused on nothing but breathing I was able to put aside the worries and future thoughts that had so dominated my mind before; instead for 50 minutes I was not only stress-free, which is a huge accomplishment for me, but also I was able to relax more throughout the week. Yoga helped me truly relax my mind by being able to sort my stressful thoughts into past and future. From there I was able to limit how overwhelmed my mind could be by sorting my stressors. Being able to identify the order in which I needed to attend to each problem or worry I was having took a huge weight off my shoulders. This class was simply amazing, and a wonderful instructor as well!!
ReplyDeleteMy name is Brittany and I really enjoyed taking Yoga two this quarter. I was under a great deal of stress with working a full time job, going to school full time and having to deal with my disease. At times I was unable to take attend class due to being very ill, but that days that I was able to attend class really made a difference. I could feel a difference in my energy level along with a reduction in my stress level. After I would leave class I would drive home and not feel like everything was going to fall apart that I can only take life day by day. The part of class that I really liked was the stretching moves and the balancing postures. The yoga postures that helped me the most were the cat, cow, and the downward facing dog because it seemed like I was always getting cramps when I was in class and it helped relax those muscles. In addition I really liked when we had the instructor come in from Central to teach class, because I liked when we used the rubber bands, they seemed to really help me stretch out better, especially in your legs. I really felt like the relaxation part of it at the end of class was what really calmed me down and I could just focus on the present and not what was going to in the future or what happened in the past. I felt like yoga helped modify by muscle tone especially when we had to do the chair position and the plank. It also helped with my stamina, self esteem, and my creativity especially when we had to picture places and listen to the music it really opened my mind up. I also want to add that it helped with my nightmares I started to see a decrease them towards the end of the quarter. All around the class was great and created a calm and safe environment. I know want to start doing yoga all the time and maybe try hot yoga.
ReplyDeleteI was hesitant to take yoga at first because I had only practiced it a couple times and wasn't sure if I liked it or not. The type of yoga I had practiced in the past was much different than in this class, yet I forgot what it was called. Anyways, I thoroughly enjoyed this type of yoga and how the class was set up with more active poses on Mondays and calming ones on Wednesdays. I also really enjoyed how Kristin would speak about the benefits of the different poses and where yoga originated from, I found it to be very interesting. I now use things I learned in yoga in my everyday life. When I wake up in the mornings I like to practice the three-part breath to get my day going. I also like to do breathing exercises when I am stressed or going to bed. I definitely learned a lot about how my body works and what I can do to put it in balance. This class was a new and fun experience and I am glad I took it!
ReplyDeleteI am really glad I took yoga this quarter. My girlfriend and I thought it would be interesting to take yoga. Not only did I learn a lot but it was a fun activity to do with someone. I took yoga in the morning. I recommend this because not only do you feel great after words but you feel loose and awake for the rest of the day. Yoga is great for any type of person. I am not flexible but I found that even I could participate in the stretches. The teacher makes it fun and easy for everyone !
ReplyDeleteLast year I was very happy taking the yoga course you taught and wanted to take your Yoga 2 class to further myself in mind and body that I can focus on through yoga. Coming back and taking YOGA 2 was a huge enjoyment for me as I wanted to further myself in techniques that shown in class that's was different from the beginning level. Taking yoga for my first time was a great learning experience that made me more interested in practicing after fall quarter in 2010. Coming back this quarter to a once a week 2 hour session was great, I loved how we can experience an intense yoga session with a relaxing at the same time. Yoga has brought alot a peace in mind as what I learned from meditation and breaking last year has helped me to continue the practice to help create less stress in my mind. Coming back this quarter I wanted to make sure I was able to attend your class. I had great memories from the first course I took with you and had more memories made this quarter. Yoga 2 this quarter was more relaxing for me since I had learned from you before and didn't that much needed to look over to you to see what position was doing. My first course of yoga was a great learning experience. this quarter was more that I could concentrate on the true focus of yoga and myself. Thank you! You first introduce me to yoga as something I was only curious about and I have become very interested in now. Yoga has a great impact in my life.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Kristin, every class iv had with you has been great. Having a class that iv pre-paid for, forces me to get out of the house and move, which sadly i would not do other wise. I should do somthing all the time becuase of my back pain and joint stiffness. And i've found that these classes, warm ups, and back bends we do relay help my back feel better for most of the day, and make the rest of my day more enjoyable. I just wish i could convince my boyfiend that its worth it to go. :) but i'll have to try to get into some of your community classes next qt. because i need to keep myself active and work on getting back into shape. Thanks again
ReplyDeleteI took beginning yoga because I was curious if it would lower my stress levels during the quarter. I found that it kept the stress from building early on in the quarter. But unfortunately as projects piled up, the studio demanded my full attention and there was no room for relaxation. I think that participating in yoga has the potential to help me in the future, but for now, there is no escaping the grip design has taken on my life. Thank you for your time this quarter.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started yoga, I noticed how stiff my body was and how hard is was for me to transition smoothy through poses. I didn't have any trouble with the balancing poses, such as tree pose and dancer pose, because my balance is fairly good. As the classes went by, I saw how easier the poses were for me to do. I came out of each class feeling refreshed and relaxed. I love how the classes were set up with the energizing poses on Mondays to start off the week, and the relaxing poses that helped me deal with stress on Wednesdays. My favorite part of the class is the fact it gave me tools that I can use for the future. If I had the choice to take another yoga class, I would.
ReplyDeletePosted by Lisa Franz...
I first started taking yoga a few years ago at my gym in Seattle after I hurt my back during gymnastics. Upon enrolling in this class I was a little hesitant because I was unsure of how aggressive/intense the class would be and if it would continue to help, or if it would hurt my back. I was pleasantly surprised and can say that this was one of my favorite yoga classes that I’ve taken. The poses were easy to do but really stretched and targeted all the right areas. My back hasn’t hurt me since I took the class and I will most likely take another class because I enjoyed it so much.
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