Anatomy, Alignment and Asana

PRESENTATION

Julie Gudmestad returns to London to share another weekend of essential yoga wisdom. Last year’s visit was extremely popular due to Julie’s informed, practical and inspiring teaching style, so you are advised to book early to secure a place.

Julie presents her teachings in a very clear and accessible manner. You will learn materials and skills that will be highly user friendly in both teaching and practice.

Julie addresses areas of the anatomy which are common areas of injury, acute and chronic pain and poor postural awareness, and shares knowledge and guidance to help you become more aware and skilled in the effective teaching and practice of yoga in a therapeutic context.

In these classes, you will receive much more than a traditional classroom lecture on anatomical terminology, bones, muscles and joints. In a hands-on, open for questions environment you will:

• Learn to “see” muscles in action, and correctly describe their movement.
• Understand how muscles interact to form movement patterns in yoga postures.
• See demonstrations of structure and function of muscles and joints.
• Practise postures which allow you to feel in your own body the actions of muscles and the dramatic affects of subtle changes in alignment.
• Understand how good alignment in postures can help prevent injuries and even facilitate healing, while “bad” alignment can actually cause or contribute to injuries and problems.

Satuday's classes will cover the foot, ankle, knee and hip. These joints are especially important when bearing weight on the feet, so there will be a focus on leg alignment and injury prevention in standing postures.

In the Sunday classes, we will work on the pelvis, sacro-iliac joints, spine, and hips again, with a particular emphasis on postures to prevent low back injuries and facilitate healing of back and pelvic problems.

Please note that the information in the classes is sequential, and the second day will build on the first. We encourage you therefore to take both days, if possible.

Sessions are interactive and will include both lecture and practical studies. Each day will begin with a overview of the subject covered and a period of clarity around correct anatomical language, followed by ‘hands-on’ sessions of lecture, asana practice and small group practical analysis and exploration.

+About Julie: Julie Gudmestad, P.T., has been active in Portland, Oregon, as a yoga teacher and licensed physical therapist for over 30 years. She has integrated Western medical knowledge with yoga training into a unique teaching style, and has taught workshops in Europe, Canada & throughout the U.S. She is a certified Iyengar yoga teacher and a member of the American Physical Therapy Association, and is the author of the Yoga Journal column “Anatomy of a Yogi”.