Repair & Rebalance
Reiki, Massage and Yoga in Woking, Surrey

Yoga: The Antidote to Urban Life

"Yoga is evenness of mind - a peace that is ever the same." (Bhagavad Gita)

Yoga - the word means 'union' or 'unity' - has its origins in India, about 4000 years ago. It first came to the UK in the late 19th century but it was in the 1950s and 1960s that television really began to popularise it over here.

The most common type of yoga practised in the West is 'hatha' yoga; 'ha' refers to the sun and 'tha' refers to the moon, symbolising opposing forces within us which hatha yoga aims to balance through postures, breathing practices, meditation and relaxation.

Yoga postures encourage the balanced development of flexibility, suppleness and strength in the joints and muscles, and help the nervous system, glands and internal organs to function properly. Breath-work helps to increase lung capacity, while meditation and relaxation provide the perfect antidote to the stress that is such a big part of most people's lives today.

Hatha Yoga Classes in Surrey

My schedule of one-to-one and public classes is currently full.

If you are looking for a local yoga teacher, please check the local Adult Learning prospectus or the teacher listing on the British Wheel of Yoga's South-East Region website.

Yoga Class Testimonials

Teaching Style

My initial training was in the Satyananda tradition but I have had many other influences over the years and have done workshops in just about every major style of hatha yoga. I keep coming back to a fairly reflective style because I have found this to be the most satisfying and beneficial to me in my own life - and I can only teach from my own experience and heart.

A typical class with me will start with a centering activity (breath-work or relaxation), then move on to posture-work - often including sequences or flows alongside static postures -, and then wind down to pranayama (usually) and 10 to 15 minutes of guided relaxation/visualisation. Aspects of yoga philosophy are often covered. I encourage mindful awareness during classes because mindfulness (the practice of bringing the attention back to the present moment) is a great antidote to stress. If you think about it, our worries and problems are largely in the past and the future, as are our minds, and if we can learn how to keep bringing ourselves consciously back into the present, we teach ourselves how to live each moment of our lives more fully and in so doing find many of our burdens becoming just that bit easier to bear.