January Theme of the Month

January can be a difficult time of the year for many of us and can often leave us feeling low in energy and mood after the festive period… There can be a lot of talk around about making new years resolutions but a lot of the time they can set us up for disappointment if we set ourselves unrealistic goals that are hard to follow which are often focussed on the short term and specific outcomes.

The new year can be a great opportunity to reflect on last year and yoga can be a reminder to stay mindful, compassionate and open hearted as we move through a new year. If we’ve already been practicing yoga, the new year is a continuation of what we have already been doing but is also a great time to make a commitment to our practice.

The new year can be a time to fill it with peace, joy and growth, to set intentions, let go of what hasn’t worked for us, and connect to simplicity, basics and presence. Identifying and aligning with our core values offers an alternative approach to move with awareness of what is important to us which leads to more peace in our lives.

Each practice we can set an intention which is a practice of bringing awareness to a quality of virtue you would like to cultivate for yourself. An intention is something in yoga that we can make at the start of class, remind ourselves through the practice. and connect back to at the end of class. When we set an intention, it is also a way of carrying our yoga practice off the mat. and out into the world. Even when we aren’t in class an intention can be set at any time of the day or in the morning to bring more value to our lives and even others.

Align, Breathe and Let Go for the New Year

Week 1 - Centre
To centre ourselves in yoga is a key aspect of our practice. When we feel centred everything changes, and we may even find that challenging poses become more easeful. When we are steady in the body through engagement through muscles, strengthening our core centre and connection to the earth we feel steadier mentally and physically.

Week 2 - Align
Find balance and harmony on the yoga mat as we explore moving the body as a whole. Focusing on physical alignment in poses helps us to feel more present in each pose and cultivate balance of body and mind. Aligning with intentions and what we wish to cultivate in our yoga practice helps to find a deeper connection to our practice.

Week 3 - Creating Space
A yoga practice is great to create space not only in the body but also in the mind. Creating space simply means becoming more present to what is already in our lives then releasing what doesn’t leave us helping us to feel light, and at peace from one moment to the next. In yoga pose as we let go, we can feel release of physical tension from the body.

Week 4 - Focus and Concentration
Engage the mind with poses that require attention. Awareness of our breath in poses helps to focus the mind. The physical practice of yoga is all about linking breath with movement and becoming fully present in mind and body. Our practice itself is based on concentration – focus on the breath, the alignment, and the movement.

Related Videos

Yoga To Keep You Centred
Focus & Concentration
Core Strength
Steady & Strong Foundation
Strength In Yoga

This Month’s Music

Here’s a selection of the music Vicky has been enjoying this month.