Dear First name / friend, 

 

As I wrote in my recent blog post, I've adopted the mantra (motto) for 2023 of “Subtle Movement is Advanced Movement”. We could also phrase it “Subtle is the new advanced”, which I like equally well - depending on context.  

 

For now, let's stick with ‘Subtle Movement is Advanced Movement’. I think I've been on this track in my teaching, just never thought of it this way until I spent a weekend with two of my many teachers, Christina Sell and Desiree Rumbaugh. A great workshop, with familiar faces and crowded enough that our 60+ mats were 6" apart from one another – a blast from the past.  

 

Let's define ‘subtle’:

In our asana practice, every pose deserves subtle action and attention to move it to a level where one notices what is happening in their own body. Often this is a bit more challenging and some might argue ‘whatever feels good' is what you ought to be doing. I'm not so sure about that – if I raise my arms while standing in Mountain Pose, do I allow the arms to remain in the front plane of the body or the elbows to bend, just because it feels good (or easier).  Unless I have an injury or compromised shoulders/arms, maybe I should be working a bit harder and smarter UNTIL the arms ascend vertically and the elbows are straight. Just my thought.  

 

If you attend my classes, be prepared for ‘subtle’ movement to shift us towards a fuller, more satisfying expression of the poses.

 

Enough . . . 

 

My schedule at Sage Yoga Studios remains the same. 4 public classes each week for all levels of practitioners:

 

  Monday/Thursday   10:30am  Aligned Yoga at Fallbrook Studio

  Tuesday                   9:00am  Therapeutic Yoga at Bonsall Studio

  Friday                       9:00am  Yoga Basics at Bonsall Studio

 

JUNE 10, 2023 - I will offer a 2-hour workshop at Sage Yoga in Bonsall. Title is ‘What’s Breath Got To Do With It' – we'll talk about the breath, add some movement, maybe laugh a bit. All levels are encouraged to participate. Registration information is available on the Sage website.

 

I am available weekday afternoons for individual appointments. For more information, visit my website.

 

Yoga for Healthy Aging by Baxter Bell, MD, & Nina Zolotow. Another re-read and a great guide to aging with strength, balance and flexibility. The result? Agility – the ability to stumble and right oneself. On the yoga mat, the ability to move with ease (also known as dexterity). The book offers reasons these skills are needed and includes mindfulness, heart health and nervous system information, plus practice ideas. Great for all ages, since we are all aging.

 

This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger. A fiction story (based in part on fact) of a foursome of orphans running away from one of the resident schools established for Native Americans. Offers a picture of their lives, and the lives of those they encounter on their journey to find family at the dawn of the Great Depression.

Until next time,