Mellow yoga is relative
It amuses me that my current “mellow day” is what my “working day” was 5 weeks ago. Practice, and all is coming. 
Took one hot class early in the am, did half an hour extra of my own, & have been working domestic chores since!
Yesterday’s volunteer kick-off class was also a great illustration of all yoga being relative. When you take yoga out into the world, especially to underserved populations, it is incredibly rewarding. It’s also a great reminder that the simplest practices are yoga. Breathing, hand stretches, neck leans, circling the shoulders — that’s enough for many folks to feel better.
After a fun talk about what yoga is, & what the peeps wanted from their yoga (same as everyone else — physical healing, stress release, focus, help with addictive behavior) we did a simple chair session for about 15 minutes, then a combo chair-or-floor round for an additional 10 minutes. It was a huge riot of fun. Much laughter, followed by snacks — perfect! 
Basic plan to work with the group & their needs/injuries is to just finesse the sequencing — chair work, then at the wall, followed by standing poses, poses on the floor that don’t require arm work, poses on the floor that do require arm work. As a person hits their stopping point, they can take rest, or stay in the chair/at the wall/standing etc.
I’ll be on the road next Tuesday, but after that, sky’s the limit with my new friends!!
February 4th, 2010 at 11:19 am
i’m so excited to read about your yoga-volunteering adventures! (wanting to do yoga volunteer work is my main reason for looking into teacher trainings over the next year)
February 5th, 2010 at 4:02 am
I think you’ll just be a great teacher, period!! Lemme know when you’re available & certified to volunteer if you want to hang with the peeps I’m working with.