Can You Get the Benefits of Yoga – even if you don’t have a “yoga body”?

Often we get inquiries from potential students about whether they can do yoga due to their age and physical limitations.  The answer is YES. The popular image of an American yoga practitioner is extremely narrow.

You do not need to young, fit, rich or white to practice yoga.  You can practice at Adeline Yoga no matter what your background or abilities are. Iyengar yoga is where people who come when they worry that they are too stiff, fat thin, old, young, stressed or uncoordinated to do yoga.  We encourage you to try out the studio and see how much you can really do!   We do our best to erase the barriers to doing yoga. Iyengar yoga is unique in that our training incorporates workingwith each individual on his and her own terms.

While you attend a group class, your teacher is trained to help you with specific limitations that you may have.  We are not doctors, and cannot treat you for medical conditions.  However, we are trained to address basic physical limitations such as neck and shoulder pain, back pain, knee pain and scoliosis.  Specific faculty members are also trained to deal with women’s issues related to menstruation, menopause and much more. We hope that Adeline yoga will feel like home to you no matter what your background is.

We have a diverse community, and encourage you to explore all that we have to offer. The trick is to find the right class for you.  It has to be with a teacher that you like, someone you feel you can trust.  And, the class has to be the right pace for you. Two places to start:

• Level 1 classes:  We offer one nearly every day.  You can drop in and see if that fits you well.

• Fundamentals classes:  We offer 3 fundamentals classes per week.  They are 10-sessions long and give you the basics of Iyengar yoga.  There are perfect if you have no experience at all with yoga, or you want to learn the Iyengar method specifically. The fundamentals classes are active and rigorous.  They include modifications for special needs, and homework so that you can practice at home.  We have a new fundamentals class starting every 3 – 4 weeks.  So, you can start whenever you are ready.

We also offer four specialty classes designed to help you start more slowly:

• Yoga for Healthy Aging:  This is an active class focused on how to age healthfully.  This class is a little more gentle that most of our classes, and moves a little slower.
• 50+ Yoga: This is an active class specifically for those who are over 50.  While it offers active postures, it also incorporates restorative and gentle poses at a somewhat slower pace than our other classes.  It provides a wonderfully supportive community.
• Yoga for People with Parkinson’s:  This class is specifically tailored for those with physical limitations.  There are always at least 2 teachers to help each participant.  It is an active class, though it is the slowest paced class that we offer each week.
• Restorative Yoga:  This class is intended for rejuvenation via supported postures. You can expect to use bolsters, blankets and other props to hold poses for several minutes at a time.  These poses particularly soothe the nervous system and alleviate chronic tension.  It is effective for those who go to active yoga classes who want to add in one relaxing class per week.  It also is good for students who are not able to do regular classes.

Check out our schedule for the specific class times and dates. No matter where you are in life, Iyengar yoga can help you build self-confidence and help you manage the stress in your life.  Often, it can help you with specific health concerns – helping you manage pain and increase your vitality. Each of our classes is built on the teachings of BKS Iyengar and his certified teachers.  BKS Iyengar is known world-wide for his interest in teaching everyone.  He has taught in prisons, taught the very ill, and the rich and famous.  He believes everyone should do yoga.  And so do we! See you at the studio!