Recent Articles in Gentle

Duration: 1 hour 1 minute

Emphasis:  After warming up, you'll use a yoga belt to help stretch and mobilise the shoulders in Pyramid Pose (Parsvottanasana), Wide Leg Standing Forward Fold (Prasarita Padottanasana) and Warrior 1 Pose (Virabhadrasana). You'll then move to the floor for seated poses including Sage Marichi's Pose 1 (Marichyasana I), Sage Marichi's Pose 3 (Marichyasana III), Head to Knee Pose (Janu Sirsasana), Revolved Head to Knee Pose (Parivrtta Janu Sirsasana) and Seated Forward Bend (Paschimottanasana), then you'll lie down on your back for Half Plough Pose (Ardha Halasana), Reclined Straddle Pose (Supta Upavista Konasana) and Reclined Bound Angle Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana).

Props needed: A block, a blanket and a yoga belt.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 29 minutes

Emphasis:  If you've been driving or sitting for ages or maybe you've been digging in the garden and your back is a little stiff and achey, these poses will help to release and soothe it. You'll hold these simple, familiar poses for a while so that you can relax into them, letting go of tension. PLEASE NOTE: this class is not suitable if you have any sharp pain or have injured your back - please see a doctor/physio/osteopath to get a diagnosis and check that these poses are ok for you to do.

Props needed: A blanket to kneel and lie on, plus a bolster or 2 blocks and another blanket.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 23 minutes

Emphasis:  This gentle sequence will start with a simple breathing practice, then take you through some warm-ups done seated on the chair before you stand up and use it to assist you in some standing poses. Expect variations of Tree Pose (Vrksasana), Warrior 2 Pose (Virabhadrasana II), Warrior 1 Pose (Virabhadrasana 1), a Standing Twist and Half Standing Forward Bend (Ardha Uttanasana). The sequence takes you from one side of the chair around to the other and then it is repeated back again.

Props needed: A chair.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 35 minutes

Emphasis:  In this class you'll practise some of your familiar and favourite standing poses seated on a chair. Perfect for whenever you're feeling a little weary but still want to do your yoga, or if you are nursing an injured ankle or knee, for example. After some joint-loosening warm-ups, you'll do Reverse Warrior Pose (Viparita Virabhadrasana), Side Angle Pose (Utthita Parsvakonasana), Gate Pose (Parighasana), Wide-Legged Forward Bend (Prasarita Padottanasana), Eagle Pose (Garudasana), Sage Twist (Marichyasana III) and Staff Pose (Dandasana). You'll then sit and breathe for a while in Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose) before taking your legs up onto the chair for a relaxing and back-releasing Savasana.

Props needed: A chair, some blocks to put under your hands in the forward bend.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 10 minutes

Emphasis:  In this pranayama practice you'll deepen your breath and pause at the top of the inhalation (known as Antara Kumbhaka) and then pause at the bottom of the exhalation (known as Bahya Kumbhaka). This practice will help to increase your lung capacity and also calm the nervous system.

Props needed: None needed.

Mat direction: N/A.

Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes

Emphasis:  Enjoy a slow, easeful stretch with this floor-based class of supine and seated poses. Expect some supported backbends using the blanket and/or bolster, some hip openers and twists plus a lovely long Savasana.

Props needed: Blocks, blanket and a bolster (or 2 pillows rolled up in a blanket).

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 10 minutes

Emphasis:  In this short practice you'll combine the meditative experience of linking the breath and the movement together. It's simple - you'll raise the arms up on the inhalation and bring the hands together, down the centre line of the body on the exhalation - but effective. As well as encouraging you to focus on the present moment and deepening your breathing, it will gently stretch the muscles of the ribcage and encourage mobility of the shoulders.

Props needed: None required.

Mat direction: n/a

Duration: 7 minutes

Emphasis:  This is a lovely relaxing technique to calm and centre you when you're feeling stressed or anxious. Simple and easy to do anywhere (except, of course, if you're driving) the exercise traces the outline of your fingers in time with the rhythm of your breath - try it and see how you feel afterwards.

Props needed: None needed.

Mat direction: N/A

Duration: 14 minutes

Emphasis:  Sometimes you need a little gentle movement to oil the joints and stretch the muscles. This seated class will release tension and tightness and is perfect for days when you're busy working or not feeling 100%.

Props needed: A chair and possibly a blanket to sit on.

Mat direction: N/A

Duration: 1 hr 13 minutes

Emphasis:  This class is a little different to our usual yoga - you'll use a chair to practice some unusual, repetitive exercises that will help to increase your strength, flexibility and mobility plus they will also help to improve your yoga poses too.

Props needed: A chair and a blanket.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 23 minutes

Emphasis:  In this class we practice some variations of Mountain Pose (Tadasana). Often overlooked as a beginning/end of sequence pose, Tadasana is one of the foundational poses of yoga. The alignment that we learn in Mountain Pose sets us up for the rest of our standing poses - we are strong, steady and focussed. We'll practice Mountain Pose standing up and lying down to feel the difference, and we'll do some Downward Facing Dogs (Adho Mukha Swanasana) too, and use the wall to feel subtle differences.    

Props needed: Some wall space.

Mat direction: Whatever works best for your mat positioned with one short edge against the wall.

Duration: 23 minutes

Emphasis:  With most of the poses in this class being done lying down, and only a couple of gentle seated poses, this class is perfect for those days where you're feeling weary and under the weather but still want to do a little yoga. Expect gentle stretches for legs, hips, low back especially, plus a lovely long Savasana too.

Props needed: Two blocks and a rolled blanket (plus you might want another blanket under your pelvis as you'll be lying down for a while).

Note: I made an error in the supine twist - at 10 minutes 20 seconds, I tell you to bring your left hand to your left thigh - but I should have said right thigh .... you'll understand when you get there...

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.<