Primary Series Made Available
As a teacher of the Ashtanga Yoga method I took it upon myself to reflect on the system as a whole and see how I can make it more available for students to practice safely and intelligently. This has been embedded into my teaching style from the beginning as I chose to teach the system in a non dogmatic way.
As much as I love the system in itself, it is obvious to see it has some flaws, especially for the modern western body and the dogmatic nature of it’s inherited teaching style.
I have written about this previously on another post you can check out here as well as many discussions on my podcast.
Bring back the research in Ashtanga Yoga:
The Yogi Within podcast.
What I have seen from teaching the system in a more holistic way for practitioners with less restrictions and more freedom is less injuries, a more varied group of students in terms of age and abilities who practice, and a more loose and playful vibe in my shala. The focus and intention behind the practice is not lost, but students have more control over their practice and how they feel day to day in the room and in general a positive energy that isn’t so authoritative in nature.
There are rules and boundaries in my space where I teach, and externally you would see practitioners practicing the system more or less as it is, but there are subtle differences.
Yoga is all about intention. The intention of my teaching style is to adapt the system to my students. Not the other way around.
Because of this I am making available a version of Primary Series that gives more options and alternatives to the standard sequence that allows for different progressions and more help with back bending and opening the hips for example. I have created a short version of Primary Series which is around 40mins, Half Primary and a Full Primary class so students can progressively extend their practices with each class guided and modifications shown and demonstrated.
Primary Series Made Available
Marchyasana D
Many of my students vary in age, abilities, and often have difficulty with the series because of injuries and strong muscular imbalances, so I have adapted this beautiful and powerful system to make it more accessible.
Additions to prepare for backbending
This sequence along with The Element Series are available as part of The Online Studio, my comprehensive study of Vinyasa Yoga.
Included in the guide are breakdowns on these series so practitioners can engage with it in an intelligent way to approach the system without it being so dogmatic and learn better progressions to open their body with less injuries without forcing postures due to a lack of options.
Baddha Konasana Breakdown
The Jump Back Breakdown and The Pranayama Guide are all part of my Online Studio aimed at taking students into these yogic traditions with a focus on balance and the philosophy of Bandha.
More on Bandha here:
For more information on how to join my Online Studio check out the link below.
