Healium Yoga and Movement Evolution!

I'm so excited to announce our new classes, schedule and teachers as we head into spring! The teachers and I have been working diligently all winter, and we're so psyched to provide something new and fresh, something we've never come across before in the yoga world!

At most yoga studios one of two things typically happens: either (1) the owners determine the sequence/style for all the classes or (2) the teachers operate completely independently, teaching whatever they want. At Healium, however, the teachers have come together as a group to create consistent, cohesive sequences across all of our classes.

The really cool thing is that the teachers have a lot in common but also slightly different expertise and "takes" on the material - with the result that our new classes really just "riff" off of what we're already doing. Each class takes elements from different directions and builds on the great yoga you know and love.

And we have two more exciting developments:

• Pilates! Starting Monday, 3 September we'll be offering Pilates mat classes twice each week.

• Saturday Yoga! Starting 6 October we'll be offering 75-minute classes on the first and third Saturdays of each month. Mark your calendars!

So here are the new schedule and class descriptions effective Monday, 27 August:

Power Yoga and Power Yoga Basics will be as they have been so far - no changes there.

Power Yoga Elements goes into the small details of our postures and deep, intrinsic muscles by developing awareness of and support for safe mobility in the joints.

Power Yoga Dynamics emphasizes the connection between breath and movement, the flowing dynamic of Power Yoga.

Power Yoga Explorations is longer than the other classes by 30 minutes, giving us more time to explore the postures we know more deeply as well as expand into new, complementary postures to develop new strengths and flexibilities. Held the first and third Saturdays of each month, starting 6 October.

Power Yoga Theory is our special free class (formerly "Power Yoga Exploration"), also 75 minutes long, for those who have been practicing at Healium for six months or longer. Held the second Saturday of each month.

Gentle Yoga is our only yoga class without the word "Power" in its title, but don't let that fool you - it's still a deeply powerful practice! Using props, this class develops deep flexibility through supported long holds, releasing tension in muscles and joints.

Pilates. A series of mat-based exercises which cultivate beautiful posture, strength and flexibility, from the core to the extremities. Starts Monday, 3 September - watch this space for details!

Feldenkrais is a mindful practice that creates new connections between body and brain, leading to greater self-awareness and more graceful movement.

Group Private Class is a private movement class designed specifically for your organization or team.

Finally, the nitty-gritty fine print:

• All of the classes Monday-Friday are available under the normal pricing structure ($12 drop-in and monthly concessions). This includes all 45-minute yoga classes, Pilates and Feldenkrais!

• The Saturday Power Yoga Explorations will be held on the first and third Saturdays of each month. Drop-in rate only at $18 per class.

• The Saturday free class, Power Yoga Theory, will continue on the second Saturday of each month, so long as we have eight or more confirmed people. Class time moves to 9.30 am. 

Coming soon: our new teachers!

Services and Pricing at Healium

From time to time we are asked just what we offer at Healium and what these offerings cost. Fair questions. The latter is covered on our website, but we've opted not to post the former there simply to minimize updates to the website.

We also have two new offerings you should know about:

The 45-minute massage. This is a great option for you busy professionals who want some bodywork but also have tight schedules. In 45 minutes you'll receive a substantial treatment but still be able to get to Healium and back to your office in under an hour. All of our massage varieties are available in the 45-minute option. Of course, if you're not pressed for time, there's still the 60-minute option; and if you want to focus on just one area (say, upper back or calves), then the 30-minute massage is a great way to go.

The 30-minute private yoga lesson. This is a great option for the busy person who can't squeeze the scheduled classes into their lives or the perfect "touch up" to explore a specific posture or area of the body and take that information back into your regular classes. It's $65 for the half-hour lesson, with package rates available if you'd like to commit to a series of these lessons.

Here, then, is our current pricing scheme:

Yoga & Movement Classes (All Yoga classes + Chi Power + The Feldenkrais Method)

$12 drop-in for 45 min. or

• 1 class per week for 4 weeks: $40;
• 2 classes per week for 4 weeks: $72;
• 3 classes per week for 4 weeks: $96

Yoga Private Lessons | Thai Yoga Massage

$100 for 60 min. | $65 for 30 min. (packages available)

Acupuncture

$75 - initial consultation for 60 min.
$60 - follow-up session for 60 min. (ask for pricing on Qi Gong)

Breath Repatterning | Hands-on Energy Healing | Process Work

$80 for 75 min.

Massage Therapy (Deep-tissue, Pregnancy, Relaxation, Tension-release, Trigger Point Therapy, Tui Na)

$80 for 60 min. | $65 for 45 min. | $50 for 30 min.

The Feldenkrais Method - Functional Integration (One-on-One Session)

$70 for 60 min. (waged) | $60 for 60 min. (unwaged)

Flower Essences | Homeobotanical Therapy | Homeopathy | Rongoa

$80 for 60 min. | $45 for 30 min.

Intuitive Coaching

$80 for 60 min. | $65 for 45 min. | $50 for 30 min.

Prices valid 16 July 2012 until further notice.

New Yoga and Movement Classes at Healium!

This week we've been sharing the results of our yoga survey and all the exciting new developments happening at Healium. Today we have a first look at our newly expanded class schedule, which goes into effect Monday, 2 April.

And now - apart from the Group Private Classes - you can use your concession (4 classes for for $40, etc.) for any class on the schedule! Mix and match your classes, times and teachers - have fun and go crazy! Just be sure to book your classes through our Ezybook page.

Over the next week or so we'll be going into more detail on our new classes - stay tuned! For now, here's a quick summary of all our class offerings:

Chi Power. A blend of conditioning exercises, martial arts including tai chi, qi gong and karate, and moving meditation that strengthens your body, enhances your mobility and develops your internal energy for greater health and vitality. With Algernon Williams.

Elemental Yoga. Explore the energetic elements of Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Ether through yoga postures that release, invigorate and rejuvenate the whole person - you! With Elissa Jordan.

Feldenkrais - Awareness Through Movement. A mindful practice that creates new connections between body and brain, facilitating ways to move with greater freedom. With Oli Wiles.

Fertility Yoga. Explore yoga postures and breathwork that support fertility. Postures focus on the endocrine system, and you'll have time to discuss your unique situation and gain insight from other students into the process of supporting fertility naturally. All women welcome! With Jenifer Parker.

Gentle Yoga. Using props and a gentle sequence of yoga postures, this class is designed to release tension and develop deep relaxation. With Valerie Love and Jenifer Parker.

Group Private Class. A private yoga (other other movement) class designed specifically for the needs of your organization. (If you'd like one of these for your group, let us know and we'll work something out!) With Jenifer Parker.

Postnatal Yoga. Bring your babies and enjoy a fun yoga class where we work on realigning and strengthening the hips and pelvic floor, reducing the "mummy tummy" (including healing the diastasis recti) and relieving tension in the neck, shoulders and upper back! Mothers and babies up to one year old are welcome; breastfeeding and laughter encouraged! With Jenifer Parker.

Pregnancy Yoga. While all of our classes are prenatal appropriate, we now offer this special women's-only pregnancy yoga class to facilitate your body's comfort and balance during pregnancy, as well as prepare for labor and birth. With Jenifer Parker.

Power Yoga. A flowing sequence of postures and breathwork to develop physical and mental integrity and agility. With Jenifer Parker.

Power Yoga Basics. This class offers the benefits of power yoga but goes into greater depth on the alignment of postures, breathwork and philosophy. Great for everyone, perfect for beginners! With Jenifer Parker.

And finally our special free "off-the-grid" class, held the second Saturday of every month, starting 14 April:

Power Yoga Exploration. Deepen your practice! A 75-minute class for exploring how yoga works, having fun with your postures and relaxing. Held the second Saturday of every month; available free of charge to any student who has been coming to the studio for six months or more and is on a current concession or is a regular drop-in. With Jenifer Parker.

Free Stuff!

Hi, all!

This is our second blog post in response to the yoga survey, and while you didn't ask for it, I was thinking about ways to THANK YOU! for being such amazing clients - dedicated to your practices and providing us with the opportunity to do work that we love!

So, I thought I would create opportunities for you all to get some more yoga and other movement offerings at Healium!

First, as I said in the last blog, we'll be offering a Free Yoga Class once a month to any student who has been coming to the studio for six months or more (October 2011 or prior) and is on a current concession!

This class will be one hour and 15 minutes, held on the second Saturday of the month. The first one is 14 April at 9:00 am until 10:15; and if that class fills (18), then we'll hold a second class from 10:30 to 11:45!

Please let me know if you are coming to this class so I can book your spot!

Second, so many of you are inviting your friends to join in class, we thought we'd give back to you for your recommendations.

If four of your friends sign up for four classes for $40, then you'll get four classes free (one per week for four weeks) in addition to your current concession! This means you'll be on your normal concession, but you'll get one free class per week!

And third, as the classes have gotten larger and we are adding more to the schedule, I need a bit of help making sure that our studio stays neat and tidy! I'm looking for volunteers who will dedicate themselves to a given class each week to tidy the mats and vacuum the room, if needed, at the end of class. The job should take only a few minutes - 10 at the most - because the teacher will also help you sort it out. The class that you work is the class that you get for free.

Volunteers must be students for three months or more as well as still maintaining a concession.

All classes are eligible, so if you are curious about Chi Power or Feldenkrais, those are options for you too!

This is a great way to extend your practice into a second, third or fourth day!

Be sure to let me know if you want to participate in any of these programs. If you have recommended a friend, be sure that your friend tells me your name so I can keep a record. If you're coming to the free yoga class, let me know as soon as possible - as we already have a couple of spaces booked! And if you want to volunteer, you can start next week with one of the classes currently on the schedule, or I can set you up for a class that's coming in April!

Healium Yoga News: Updated Class Schedule

Hello, and welcome back to yoga, to Healium, and to a new year. We're really excited to see everyone returning after the holidays - as well as lots of new faces - and eager to hear of your adventures.

We've been busy too. If you haven't already seen, we've expanded the studio, doubling the space and adding a bunch of beautiful new Manduka mats for your use. And our full yoga schedule has resumed with teachers Jennifer Parker (Power Yoga) and Elissa Jordan (It's Just Yoga). Here it is:

Remember, if you've bought a class concession, you can attend any class listed except for the Group Private classes (marked with an asterisk). If you'd like one of these for your organization, however, let us know and we'll work something out! As always, we recommend booking your classes through our Ezybook page.

Finally, if you're into Feldenkrais, the next session of Awareness Through Movement group classes starts up on Thursday, 9 February. These are led by Oli Wiles.

We'll see you soon!

Pimp Your Stretch

How Feldenkrais Can Make a Stretch More Effective

It's not just about a stretch, it's about how you do it. If you "pimp your stretch" with Feldenkrais you can transform a crude muscle extension into an opportunity to let go of tension.

Think this is cool? Check out the video below.

The worn-out approach

"It's a bit of a stretch" implies taking something too far, beyond what's reasonable. But is it reasonable to "feel" a good stretch? Often we look for some sort of resistance, as if finding tension reassures us that we are doing the stretch properly. But isn't tension what we're trying to get rid of?

When we push hard into a stretch, we often stretch out what's already flexible, but the tight parts get the message "work hard" and just tighten more. When stretching hard, the tight parts work to resist the stretch. It's like untangling a mess of string by pulling on the loose ends - more often then not, the knots just get tighter.

Tangled up in blue.

The smart solution

With a Feldenkrais approach, you'd first look at the tangle carefully. Then you'd slowly and gently try pulling and pushing little by little, bit by bit, changing angles, going to the middle, then working further out. By observing how the knots start to tighten and loosen, you'd slowly work out how to untangle the string.

This approach doesn't necessarily ensure quick or straightforward solutions. The aim is to pay full attention to the process and to let go of any expectation of an immediate outcome.

So when it comes to stretching, instead of feeling for the stretch or pain or resistance, we feel for a sense of ease. Comfort lets us know that we're not simply pulling the knots tighter, and it helps us to learn how to move without pain.

Here's an example of a simple stretch for the wrists, shoulders, and upper back, which you can do in your chair. You can "pimp" it by playing with aspects of the movement and looking for connections through your body.



Find out more about Oli Wiles and Feldenkrais at www.freetomove.co.nz.

Kicking the Habit? Look Both Ways - and Free Your Neck

Today Oli Wiles, Feldenkrais^® practitioner, questions the idea of kicking the habit and shows you some quick Feldenkrais tricks for releasing your neck.

Habits are a hot topic in Feldenkrais, and I've been thinking about them a lot as I've been cycling around Wellington this week.

Downtown, several one-way streets have recently been converted into two-way streets. The change has been front-page news, mostly because it hasn't gone smoothly. Many people have found it hard to kick the habit of looking in only one direction to cross those streets. A few have been hit by buses.

Check out the Stuff article: Blood on Wellington's new bus lane.

Replacing compulsion with adaptability

And maybe look left too . . .

Obviously, the habit of looking in that original direction - be it right or left - still has its place, and we shouldn't be aiming to kick it altogether. Otherwise, we'll just get hit by a bus coming the other way. Also, it's too easy to replace one limiting habit with another that may leave us equally unprepared for the next change.

Not all habits need to be eliminated. Many simply need to become less rigid or compulsive and more adaptive. We need to build a new awareness on top of them.

Good or bad?

Labeling a habit as "good" or "bad" can also be unhelpful. Things aren't always that clear-cut. For example, running every morning could get you fit - or it could wreck your knees. Drinking coffee obviously doesn't benefit your adrenal system - but it may get you through an important meeting.

The labeling may just send us into denial or make us feel bad. That's because our habits are often bound up with our sense of self.

Choice through awareness

So how does all this link to Feldenkrais?

The Feldenkrais approach to changing movement habits that cause pain or limit performance is to first slow our movements down. That way, we can become aware of - and accept - how we currently move. We can then explore other options from that starting place.

We look to expand our movement choices rather than replace or correct. After all, aping the "correct" way to move or stand, or using mindless repetitive exercises to elicit change, can often overlay tension on top of other tension or result in another compulsive habit.

Look both ways - and free your neck

Assuming that you're sitting at the safety of your desk right now, away from any moving traffic, let's begin a small exploration. Check out the movements in the video below.

A few weeks ago, I suggested similar movements to a woman who'd come to me before yoga class with a crick in her neck. She had woken up like that two days before and had not been able to turn her head to the right at all since. After less than four minutes of doing the movements, she had restored around 70% of her turning ability in her neck and was on a much faster track to full recovery.

You don't need to have such an extreme restriction to feel some benefit. Try out the sequence to improve the quality of movement in your neck and upper back and to relieve tension.

Obviously, this sequence is not intended to replace medical advice. Only do movements that feel 100% comfortable and safe. Go slow and easy - and enjoy!



Find out more about Feldenkrais at www.freetomove.co.nz.

On the Way!

Hello, Readers! We have a really fun Feldenkrais blog from Oli coming your way. It even has a video. But, we've been beset by all manner of technical difficulties, including (but not limited to) broadband shenanigans, excess wasabi and the solar wind. Fortunately, no malevolent forces have been involved.

So hang tight and we'll resume our regular blogging early next week. Have a beautiful weekend!

Free to Move with Feldenkrais

The first time I met the near-famous Oli Wiles at last year's Global Mala (I later discovered that nearly everyone in Wellington already knows him), he told me that his practice, the Feldenkrais Method, is hard to put into words.

Some would say that it's also hard to pronounce. It's not, really: /ˈfel-dən-ˌkrīs/. But since our initial conversation Oli has described Feldenkrais quite eloquently on his website, and I thought I'd also share my experiences with this subtle and deeply affecting practice.

One of the qualities unique to the Feldenkrais Method is its openness. It doesn't prescribe ideal states for the human musculoskeletal system. It doesn't say that you have to move in this way and not that way. It doesn't say, for example, that your rounded shoulders are bad and that you need to balance your pecs with your traps, or your ability to extend and depress your shoulder blades. Instead, it recognizes where you are, how your body is moving now - without concerning itself with past circumstances, or the stories you may have invented around perceived limitations or injuries - and asks you to try something new. To listen and "tune in" to how your body feels. To consider your options.

In a group class, for example, Oli might have you lie down on your mat and then ask you to very slowly raise your right hip off the ground. You do that, and then let it down. And then you elevate the left hip and let it down. Very simple. Then you do those movements in varying combinations: with the soles of your feet on the ground, while also moving your head left and then right or elevating one or both shoulders. Again, very simple stuff taking very little coordination or skill, like rubbing your belly and tapping your head at the same time!

What happens through these gentle movements, however, is an integration of both sides of your body. I realized very clearly, after only a couple of Oli's Awareness Through Movement group classes, that my body positioning was actually quite asymmetrical. This is a common experience, apparently, and can be a first step towards taking some "corrective" measures.

Sometimes, however, the experience is hard to put into words. Oli stresses that you are in a feeling space here, trying to tune in, and you may not be able to consciously articulate - yet - what it is your body is learning. You will be keenly aware, however, that you're taking in new information and processing it, integrating it. It's like you're five years old again and learning how to ride a bike! You're engaged in a holistic process, a subtle art that takes time and patience to fully appreciate.

In a one-on-one, or Functional Integration, session, pretty much the same thing happens, only the movement patterns and choices are specific to your particular needs. What if you tried this? What if, in my case, I squatted not by tucking the pelvis and focusing on the hips but by allowing the knees to rise? By bringing my attention to my knees I could suddenly squat without the usual tension. I was literally free to move in a way that had not been available to me.

In my experience, the Feldenkrais Method is about cultivating inner awareness, listening to your body and identifying and owning the choices you make with it as you move through the world. It's about bringing consciousness and intention to your movement . . . which leads to grace.

As Jenifer put it - and she's an experienced yoga teacher - "I haven't felt my skeleton in this way . . . ever!" Here's a clip of Jenifer and Oli working together: