2 min read
Class Styles
at The Yoga Tree
Choose your Warrior…
At the Yoga Tree in Congleton, Cheshire we have a great variety of classes with something for everyone… but if you’re just starting out on your yoga journey - where do you begin?
We pride ourselves on the beautiful, welcoming community we create, and any of our teachers will make you welcome in their class.
But if you’re struggling to choose from the wide range we have on offer, this article will break down our class offerings, so you can find a yoga class that suits you exactly where you are right now…
Yoga for Absolute Beginners/Back to Basics
This class caters for the absolute beginner and anyone who wants a refresher on the fundamentals. It has a strong focus on the breath movement connection and breaks down the foundational postures to ensure good alignment for your body. Expect to move at a slow pace and learn to use blocks and props to support you as you gain in strength and flexibility.
Yoga (or Yoga Flow)
You may have seen this referred to as Hatha Yoga too. Hatha can be used as a general term to describe asana (postural) yoga. If you attend a Yoga, Yoga Flow, or Slow Flow class at the Tree, you can expect to be moving steadily, mindfully, and learning the foundational asanas. Each teacher will bring their own signature style and learning to the practice, so the class will differ in intensity and creativity, and it’s also suitable for beginners as you learn the postures and breath awareness.
Vinyasa Flow
Vinyasa Flow Yoga is one of the most intense forms of practice. ‘Vinyasa’ means ‘to place in a special way’, and is a carefully-sequenced, dynamic style of yoga. The ‘flow’ refers to the transitions between each asana, creating a feeling of moving continuously and gracefully between poses, linking the movement with breath. The creative nature of the sequences allows the class to be structured around a particular pose, body part (like the hips or shoulders) or a theme (such as the Autumn Equinox) meaning each class will feel varied and offer different benefits.
It’s strong, but accessible – a great class to try if you have a little yoga experience, or if you’re new to yoga but fancy a strong practice.
Ashtanga Vinyasa
Ashtanga Vinyasa is another of the more intense styles of yoga asana. It flows like Vinyasa but follows a more structured sequence called a series: Primary (which is the series you’ll most commonly practise in an open class), Intermediate (secondary series) and the more advanced series. You will likely see it advertised simply as Ashtanga or Primary Series. It is a structured, disciplined practice that links movement with breath and flows in sequences known as vinyasas. Great for those looking to try a strong, fast-paced practice.
Yin
A floor-based, slow practice, Yin involves holding poses for around 2, 3, 5 (or more!) minutes at a time. The intention of this practice is more about softening and lengthening connective tissue - fascia, ligaments and joints, as opposed to deeply stretching the muscle. It’s suitable for all levels - from beginners to seasoned yogis - and is a quiet, calming, introspective practice.
Restorative
Although this is a floor-based and slow practice, Restorative Yoga feels very different in the body to Yin. Restorative Yoga works to calm the nervous system by fully supporting the body with props, such as bolsters, cushions and eye pillows. This allows the practitioner to rest deeply and calm both mind and body. Suitable for all levels, and particularly useful to promote good sleep, and stress relief.
Adaptive Yoga
This class is perfect for those with limited mobility, health conditions, injury - or really anything that may stop you accessing other classes. This inclusive practice uses chairs, walls and props to help ‘meet you where you are’, so that you can access yoga safely and in community with others.
If you’re not sure which class would best suit you, please get in contact as we’re always happy to advise. Whatever style of class takes your fancy, you can be sure of a warm welcome to the Tree Tribe, click here to book your class.
How to book
You will be asked to create an account with your email address and then you will receive an email confirmation that your class is booked. You do not pay online.
Your specific teacher will receive your class booking and they will send you their bacs details to pay. We have many teachers at the Tree and we are all self-employed. Don’t worry if you do not hear from them straight away, your space is secured!
Mats
We have spare mats if you need one for now and we always recommend purchasing your own for hygiene reasons AND it encourages you to practice at home too!
We have plenty props (blocks/bricks/bolsters/straps) to support your practice.
We look forward to meeting you on the mat!
10 reasons to get back on your mat today!
Coming home to your yoga practice
There’s so many reasons why we might take a break from our regular yoga practice. An injury, house move, a change in your work or family life… and suddenly the class you love is no longer accessible. Sometimes classes change, teachers move… or something shifts and that style of yoga no longer resonates with where you are in your life.
Time passes, and coming back to your practice suddenly seems like a very hard thing to do.
Here’s why you should unroll your mat today...
You don’t need to sign up for a 2-hour full practice, just get on your mat today and do a couple of easy, familiar poses that help you reconnect with your body. Breathe. Feel the benefits for your mind and body, and remember why this little rectangle is a portable extension of home.
1. Benefits of familiarity
You already know the impact yoga can have on your body, your mind and your emotional wellbeing. If you have already harnessed the benefits before as part of your regular practice, stepping back on to your mat allows you to tap back into that feeling. Lean in to that familiar feeling.
2. Connect back to yourself
Yoga can bring that mental clarity and connection between mind, body and breath that is so often lacking in other forms of movement.
3. No progress to measure
You may feel that after some time away, your practice is somehow ‘less’. That you have lost flexibility, or something that felt easy before now seems hard. In truth, with yoga nothing is wasted, nothing is lost; meet yourself where you are right now. Yoga is a lifelong practice, never to be completed or solved, it will move with you through all seasons of your life, so you don’t need to compare or measure yourself.
4. Muscle memory
Having said that, you may feel that the learning curve is softer than before as muscle memory and experience will help familiar practices return more easefully than when you started from scratch.
If you’re trying other forms of movement, running, padel, pickleball, cycling, climbing and football - to name a few - then you really need to incorporate yoga as part of your regimen:
It promotes flexibility, recovery, healing and generally improves your balance - on the mat and off the mat!
5. Longevity
Yoga asana (the postures) isn’t about whether you can do a handstand. It’s about gaining and retaining the mobility, flexibility, strength and softness that allows you to love living in your body for as long as possible.
6. Try new things
Perhaps a change in life circumstances, or injury forced you to quit your last class. So try another one! Yoga has many different pathways, different teachers and intensities. Don’t be afraid to try something new and see if it feels right. Check out some of the different styles of yoga here to get inspired
https://www.yogatreecheshire.co.uk/classes
7. Meet yourself where you are
Your practice is ever-evolving, as are you. Meet yourself where you are - emotionally, or physically. You might fall in love with a gentle restorative practice whilst you recover from injury, get your heart rate up with vinyasa flow, or connect with your body in new ways during pregnancy with pregnancy/post-natal yoga.
7. Boost your brain
Trying something new stimulates neural pathways in your brain! This neuroplasticity gets the brain making new connections and boosting the existing ones. We adapt, learn and grow at all stages of our life, and our practice.
8. A positive change
Change is a constant in our lives. Sometimes that can feel scary, but yoga allows us to connect back into versions of ourselves that we appreciate – the focus, resilience, calm and ease we find on the mat can crossover into many aspects of our lives.
9. Easy access
You don’t need a new mat. You don’t need fancy leggings or a monthly gym membership. You just need a few minutes and time to sit with your breath. The rest will unfold from there…
10. But most of all, Community!
When the time is right, find yourself a class. Getting into a class allows you to step into a mindful group that offers connection, intention and holds space for each other.
The Yoga Tree has classes each day of the week, and boasts some of the best teachers in the area. With an amazing community and a cosy home-from-home feel, the studio is the best place to be this Autumn. Check out our timetable here and see where you might unroll your mat! Join the Tree Tribe…