TEACHER OF THE MONTH

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I began practising yoga in 2001 and was lucky enough to take my first class with an inspiring and very experienced teacher named Angelika Grohmann. My passion for this wonderful practice was ignited immediately.

I came to yoga for many reasons. I had an on-going health condition that I had heard yoga might help with, I also had a huge knot of tension across my neck and shoulders that I just couldn’t release, and my father had recently died quite suddenly and unexpectedly and I was trying to come to terms with this and understand a little more deeply what life might be about. Yoga has helped with all of this and much, much more.

From being an avid student, I qualified to teach in 2006 after a four year, 500 hour training with Aurolab Yoga. During this period I also became very drawn to and committed to the practice of Ashtanga yoga and developed a daily practice firstly under the tutelage of the amazing Eileen Gauthier and then under the expert guidance of Charlie Taylor-Rugman.

My teaching developed slowly and organically, during which time I still had a full-time job in book publishing. Eventually, as my classes grew, it came to a point where I could no longer really continue with both things and I finally found the courage to quit my day job to focus solely on my teaching – and I have never looked back.

Alongside my Ashtanga practice I have also explored other styles of yoga and have been fortunate enough to study with many great teachers. I have been particularly influenced by Dharma Mittra’s inspirational and dedicated approach to the path of yoga, and also by Sarah Powers, with whom I completed a further teacher training in Yin Yoga and Meditation.

I believe that all yoga, whatever the style, should be accessible to everyone and should help us to find more space, ease, stability and strength in our bodies, minds and hearts, and to feel more joyful and grateful for all that we have in life.

I continue to learn more about yoga with each day that passes, from my own practice, from my students and from other inspiring teachers, all of which feeds into my constantly evolving teaching.

Sarah Burgess

sarahburgessyoga.com

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BEGINNER’S POSE

Parighasana (GATE POSE)

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HOW TO PERFORMBegin by kneeling, knees together and arms by your side.Feel the connection between the knees and the ground beneath you. Take a few breaths here and really allow both the front of your torso and your spine to lengthen upwards, feeling an extension all the way through to the crown of your head.

On an inhalation extend your arms out the side, shoulder height and parallel to the floor, palms facing down, and at the same time turn and extend your right leg out to the side, pointing the right foot. The right foot should be in line with the left knee. Keep the right toes and sole of the foot on the floor, and the kneecap and shinbone facing upward.

Find your balance here. On another inhalation really elongate through the torso, turn the palms of the hands to face upwards, and as you exhale bend your torso to the right, folding at the hip. Keep extending through the torso and through the arms and bring the back of the right hand to rest on the right leg, and extend the left arm upwards and over alongside your left ear.

Resist the temptation to lean forward – keep the back of the body on one plane as if both buttocks and both shoulders were touching a wall behind you.

Turn your face towards the left arm and gaze along the underside of the arm towards your left hand.

Remain here for 5-10 breaths, continuing to extend through the right leg, both sides of the torso and along both arms into the fingertips.

On an inhalation come back up and on an exhalation release the arms back by your sides and bring the right leg back in to kneeling.

Pause for a few breaths, feeling the difference in length between both sides of the body, and then repeat on the other side.

BENEFITSLengthens the muscles of the extended leg Creates space and length along the whole side of the torso, shoulder and armStretches and extends the hips and abdomen in one movement, helping to keep the waist and stomach in shape

MODIFICATIONSIf it is challenging to rest the whole foot of the outstretched leg flat on the mat and keep your shin facing up, then rest the foot on a foam block.If the full posture feels too intense to begin with, keep the left arm extending vertically upwards rather than taking it over the head.

CONTRAINDICATIONSIf you have a knee injury or hypermobility in the knee joint, proceed with care in this posture. It may be more beneficial to practise a side stretch from a cross-legged position.

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INTERMEDIATE POSE

Virabhadrasana III (WARRIOR III)

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HOW TO PERFORM Sit upright with straight legs. Bend the left knee, and pull the foot against your right buttock. Then bend your right knee, lift the leg and support the heel and ankle with both hands. Take the leg over the right shoulder like a backpack, resting the back of the knee on the head of the shoulder. Take one cycle of breath here, feeling the sensation of your inhale into the right hip and buttock, and with an exhale, soften the right groin and hip, feel the femur drop slightly creating a little more space in the hip joint. Then grab the top of the foot with your left hand, holding the leg on top of the shoulder, and place the right hand on the floor beside you.

Slowly turn your torso left a little, pressing the right hand flat, arm straight, and extend the leg up slowly, flexing the heel. With each exhale, gradually work the right leg straighter, as the left arm gently moves behind the head. Keep your breathing slow and soft, avoiding excessive muscular force in the leg.

Stay in the pose for 4-6 cycles of breath. To come out, bend the straight leg, letting it slide off the shoulder to the floor. Straighten both legs and repeat on the other side.

BENEFITSStrengthens core abdominal muscles and spine.Tones abdominal organs.Creates heat in the body.Increases flexibility in the shoulders, hips, sacrum, and legs.

MODIFICATIONSKeep the upper leg bent and the back of the knee resting on the shoulder. With both hands supporting the heel and ankle, pull the foot gently towards the chest.

CONTRAINDICATIONSAvoid if the sacrum is unstable or spinal disks are injured or weak. Pre-existing shoulder, hip, or hamstring injuries require more acute attention and slower movements to avoid overuse and/or re-injury.

HOW TO PERFORMFrom Warrior I (Virabhadrasana I), exhale and bring the hands together in prayer position in front of the chest.

Inhale and step the back foot in a little closer to the front foot, whilst still keeping the front leg slightly bent. Pause here as you exhale.

With your next inhalation, press strongly into the front foot and begin to straighten the front leg whilst lifting the back foot off the floor until the back leg is fully extended out behind you.

Rotate the outer edge of the back thigh downwards, so that both hips remain level with the floor and the sacrum is fairly flat. Keep both legs strong and active and really press backwards through the heel of the lifted leg. Engage through your core to help with the balance.

If the posture feels comfortable and stable, then inhale and extend your arms out in front of you, palms of the hands facing each other. Gaze beyond the hands.

Stay here for 5 breaths, extending the spine, reaching forward through the arms and into the fingertips and backwards through the raised leg at the same time.

Feel a mental line of energy running along the whole back of the body, and feel the strength and balanced beauty of this powerful warrior pose.

To release, on an exhalation carefully lower the raised leg back to the floor behind you, as you bend the front leg, and inhale as your arms and chest lift back into Warrior I. Repeat on the other side.

BENEFITSStrengthens the legs and the abdominal musclesHelps to lengthen the spineAs a balancing pose, it helps to quieten and focus the mind

MODIFICATIONSIf the balancing is a challenge, do not extend the arms to begin with, but keep them in prayer position in front of the chest.

You can also stand with a wall one leg’s length behind you and press the foot of the raised leg into the wall for support. This can be a very useful way to find correct alignment in the posture before attempting it in the middle of the room.

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ADVANCED POSE

Bakasana(CROW POSE)

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HOW TO PERFORM Come onto your hands and knees with the hands shoulder-width apart, fingers turned out 45 degrees. Bend your arms, pulling the elbows in enough to support the side ribs, and slowly lower your chin to the floor.

Tuck your toes forward, lift the knees off the floor, straightening your legs. Slowly walk the feet forward, lifting the hips higher. Then raise one leg, pointing the toes, and swing the leg up. Simultaneously, press down into your hands and feel the momentum of the swinging leg draw the other leg up to meet - feet together, legs vertical. This may take several tries to develop more precision with your swinging leg to lift up and balance.

With your legs vertical, weight equal on the hands and chin, slowly bend your legs, feet dropping towards the head, and let the ribs drop a little between the arms. Notice as the feet drop, more weight is on the chin, as the ribs drop there is more weight on the hands, so move slowly keeping weight evenly balanced between the hands and chin. Breathe slowly and release any unnecessary tension in the shoulders, chest and throat.

Stay in the pose 4-6 cycles of breath, and when complete, slowly lower one leg to the floor and come down. Finish in Child’s Pose, knees and feet together, releasing the arms beside you, elbows bent.

BENEFITS Strengthens core abdominal muscles.Tones abdominal organs.Creates heat in the body.Strengthens the heart, lungs, shoulders and feet.Increases flexibility and strength in the spine.Increases circulation in the head and neck.

CONTRAINDICATIONSAvoid if suffering from cervical disk injury or arthritis of the neck. Avoid if suffering from lumbar disk injuries. Chronic imbalances in the pelvis, or moderate to severe scoliosis require more acute attention and slower movements to avoid overuse and/or acute injury. Pre-existing shoulder and neck injuries require more acute attention and slower movements to avoid overuse and/or re-injury.

HOW TO PERFORMTo prepare for Crow Pose it can be very helpful to do a few postures that allow the spine to round, such as Cat Pose or Garland Pose (Malasana), as the spine is required to round in Crow.

From Tadasana (Mountain Pose), inhale and raise the arms up and exhale and fold forward, placing the hands on the floor shoulder width apart, and about 10 inches (25 centimetres) in front of the feet, with the middle finger pointing forward and the other fingers spreading out from there.

With the feet close together, come on to tiptoes, begin to bend the legs, widening the knees whilst keeping the bottom lifting high.

Begin to bend the elbows a little, lift the heels higher off the floor, and shift your weight forward into the hands to bring the knees on the upper arms as close to the arm pits as possible.

Strongly press the knees in against the upper arms, engage through your abdominal muscles, and trust in the support of your arms. Once the weight is in the hands, lift the feet fully off the floor, and straighten the arms as much as possible. Keep the feet together and active, pressing through the ball joints of the big toes, and drawing the heels in towards your buttocks. Keep the bottom high and allow the spine to round upwards.

Stay for 5 to 10 breaths, engaging mula bandha and keeping the head up and the gaze on the tip of the nose to help with your balance.

To exit the pose, either carefully lower the feet back to the floor and inhale to come back to standing, or step or jump back to Chaturanga Dandasana and continue via your Vinyasa flow into your next pose.

BENEFITSStrengthens the wrists, arms, shoulders and abdominal musclesQuietens and focuses the mindHelps to face and conquer the fear of falling forward, which can help build confidence and courage in other areas of our livesHelps to build the strength and focus required for more challenging arm balancing poses

MODIFICATIONSTo begin with, do not try to straighten the arms but keep the elbows bent as you learn to balance.Practise transferring the weight back and forth from toes to hands, without actually taking the feet off the floor.If you are worried about falling, place a large cushion in front of your hands to relieve the fear.

CONTRAINDICATIONSNot suitable for those with current wrist injuries Those with a current shoulder injury should also proceed with caution

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