Yoga with Melissa

Hatha Yoga to Cultivate Gratitude | Yoga Sutra 2.30 Ahimsa | YWM 675

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This full body hatha yoga class is focused on cultivating gratitude through the practice of ahimsa as outlined in Yoga Sutra 2.30 translated by Nischala Joy Devi in The Secret Power of Yoga.

In this 60 minute full body hatha yoga class for yoga, we delve into gratitude through the lens of reverence, love and compassion for all beings. We explore the depths of our True Nature as we embrace the principle of Ahimsa. This allows us to embrace a sense of interconnection with all living beings.

Through this full body hatha yoga class we uncover our innate capacity for reverence that resides within each one of us allowing us to connect with the spiritual vitality present in every living being.

The yoga postures in this class focus on heart opening to heighten your sensitivity to the spirit that flows through all life forms. Together, we will rediscover the beauty of the present moment and reawaken our natural state of reverence.

2.30 Yama, reflection of our true nature is experienced through:

Ahimsa: reverence, love, compassion for all

2.35 Embracing reverence and love for all (ahimsa) we experience oneness

Hatha Yoga to Cultivate Gratitude | Yoga Sutra 2.30 Ahimsa Sequence

Supported Fish Pose

Bridge

Reclined Twist

Side Bend

Cobra

Half Bow

Cat Pose

Gate Pose

Downdog

Tadasana

Dancer

Wide Legged Standing Forward Fold

Seated Twist

Supported Fish Pose

Poem: Lost by David Wagoner

Props Needed: Bolster

Attune to Autumn Energy Restorative Yoga | YWM 674 

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There is a dissonance between the overactive demands of our external world and the inner peace of our True Nature. In this restorative class, we slow down, allowing our awareness to settle within the present moment, reconnecting with the boundless and limitless energy that resides within us.

As nature transitions into a period of internal alchemy, we align our practice with the rhythms of the season, embracing the call for inner reflection and replenishment. Acknowledging the perpetual overactivity of our lives, our restorative yoga practice offers us the significance of dynamic stillness. Here, in this peaceful state of awareness, we allow our energy to renew and replenish, preparing ourselves for the nurturing hibernation of the upcoming winter. Join us in this restorative yoga practice as we gather our energy and embrace the seasonal rhythms of autumn.

Gathering Energy in Autumn Seasons Restorative Yoga Sequence 

Legs Up the Wall 

Restorative Locust 

Restorative Child’s 

Restorative Shoulder Stand

Savasana 

Poem: Fall Song by Mary Oliver 

Props Needed: Wall, 2 blocks, bolster, eye pillow, blanket

This Yin Yoga practice is designed to release your painful and aching neck and shoulder tension. In one hour yin yoga class, we'll focus on gentle yin yoga stretches and poses that target the connective tissues responsible for neck and shoulder pain.

Several of the yin yoga poses are chosen to open up the chest and shoulders. Opening your chest, helps in improving shoulder mechanics and reducing strain on the neck and shoulders caused by muscular imbalances.

I have also sequences in yin yoga poses that strengthen the scapular stabilizers, including the Serratus Anterior and Lower Trapezius. This will aid in stabilizing the shoulder blades and promoting better posture.

Yin yoga poses will stretch the shoulders, upper back, and between the shoulder blades. We will also focus on gentle decompression of the neck and upper back which can also alleviate neck pain and discomfort.

Throughout the practice, we will to focus on your breath and the principles of yin. I will encourage you to use props like blocks, chairs, and bolsters for extra support and comfort. Listen to your body and make adjustments as needed to ensure a supported and beneficial practice.

By the end of this Yin Yoga session, you'll experience increased flexibility, improved posture, and a sense of release from neck and shoulder pain.

Yin Yoga to Release Painful, Aching Neck & Shoulders Sequence:

Supported Fish

Sphinx

Child’s Pose

Broken Wing Pose

Heart Melting Pose

Thread the Needle

Reverse Prayer

Supported Fish Pose

Props Needed: 2 blocks

Poem: On a Day When Stillness Seems Possible by Rosemerry Whatola Trommer

This is an Empowered Beginner Yin Yoga class for full-body vitality! In this Yin Yoga class for beiginners, we will explore the transformative power of yin to create bring balanc to the deeper connective tissues of your body.

Yin yoga targets the yin tissues of the body, such as ligaments, bones, and joints. Unlike yang styles that focus on warming and stretching the muscles, yin yoga applies gentle pressure for extended periods, stimulating the deep connective tissues to grow stronger and more flexible.

In this yin yoga class, we will gently pressurize the tissues to strengthen your ligaments nad joints to increase your mobility as you age.

Additionally we will begin to explore some of the organs and meridians of yin yoga to empower your vitality. Overall we are focusing on connecting with yin qualities of yielding and allowing in a world of constant activity and achievement.

I will introduce you to the four principles of yin: finding an appropriate edge, softening, and being still, allowing the tissues to be gently stressed and nurtured.

This yin yoga class is designed especially for beginners with 3 minute holds. Modifications and Alternatives will be given.

Empowered Beginner Yin Yoga: Full Body Stretch for Vitality Sequence

Butterfly

Sphinx

Seal

Child’s Pose

Figure Four

Happy Baby

Dragonfly

Half Shoelace

Savasana

Props Needed: 2 blocks, bolster, yoga strap, folded blanket

Poem: Yin by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

This Yoga Nidra meditation for immune support will offer you profound healing and rejuvenation. Deep rest is the cornerstone of physical, mental, and emotional well-being, allowing your body to heal at its core. During this meditation, you will nurture your parasympathetic nervous system, lymphatic system, thymus, tonsils and spleen, enabling them to carry out their natural immune functions. This guided practice is especially beneficial during times of illness, discomfort, or emotional exhaustion, unlocking your body's innate healing potential.

Within this Yoga Nidra meditation, you will breathe and body scan through your cells, tissues, and organs, promoting the flow of vital energy along your body's pathways. By opening your awareness to various areas within, you'll activate your body's intrinsic healing power. This enhanced flow of energy empowers your body's innate capacity for healing, offering profound support for your immune system.

In this healing nervous system restorative yoga class we focus on the healing power of support through self-regulation. In this class, we create the conditions for support and nervous system healing with the wall. The wall and the earth together are the foundations that will invite deeper nervous system healing. When we find ourselves fully supported by props, such as the strap and the wall, a co-regulated relationship with ourselves emerges. This class invites you into a nervous system healing protocol that offers an easy step by step process for healing.

Legs Up the Wall Yoga for Nervous System Healing Sequence

Legs up the Wall

Hamstring Stretch R & L

Half Happy Baby R & L

Figure Four R & L

Twist Right and Left

Goddess

Legs up the Wall

An Autumn Day Perfect for Getting Things Done, But

by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

Props Needed: Wall, Yoga Strap

This 60-minute Restorative Yoga class designed to support your immune system. In this session, we'll explore therapeutic poses that are designed to activate your lymphatic system, thymus glands and vagus nerve.

By activating the parasympathetic nervous system, the restorative yoga poses encourage relaxation and reduce the production of stress hormones which suppress your immune system. There are several poses which support lymphatic drainage and production which aid in toxin removal and enhance your immune system's effectiveness.

Throughout the class we will also focus on postures and breath practices to support your respiratory health and activate your parasympathetic nervous system which will also improve sleep quality, and reduce inflammation.

These restorative yoga poses are designed to assist in improving lymph production and therefore toxin removal and support immune cell circulation in your body.

Restorative Yoga Immune Support Pose Sequence

1. Legs Up the Wall

2. Supported Fish Pose

3. Body Tapping

4. Breath Practice

5. Half Happy Baby Pose

6. Twists

7. Legs Up the Wall with Breath Practice

Our vagus nerve sends signals from our internal organs to our brain. When it is balanced and engaged we feel open and curious, compassionate and mindful, in the present moment, we are able to ask for help and offer it in return, we feel safe and connected (to ourselves and our environment). Sometimes we need to “reset” our vagus nerve if we are experiencing sympathetic arousal of our nervous system (anxious & irritable, angry, fight or flight, stuck in worry) or if we are stuck in shut-down (which can look like sleeping a lot, lack of motivation, depression, dissociation, numbness and helplessness). This yoga class is a great class to practice daily to bring you back into ventral vagal activation so that you can go with the flow, meet the demands of the day, be grounded in the present moment and give and receive help with and from others.

This gentle hatha yoga class will support you in dealing with information overload, overstimulation, overwhelm and nervous system regulation. By easing your way back into your body with gentle and grounding yoga practices we can support nervous system dysregulation symptoms like anxiety, energy drain, and releasing intense emotions. Gentle and supportive movements will reduce physical tension and the muscular holding patterns that often accompany nervous system dysregulation. Gentle hatha yoga practices like this support us in self-regulating allowing us to respond to the ongoing stresses of life so that we can increase our capacity to navigate this strongly transitional time.

Gentle Hatha Yoga to Soothe Overwhelm & Body Tension Sequence

Somatic Breathing with Grounding Touch

Reclined Somatic Embodiment

Sleeping Pigeon

Reclined Twist

Knee to Chest Pose

Cat Pose

Lunge Pose

Eye Yoga

Tadasana

Qigong Inspired Sequence

Dancer

Standing Pigeon

Cobra

Malasana

Reclined Twist

Somatic Breathing with Grounding Touch

Poem: Returning to Stillness by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

This is the second class in a 5-class series that will introduce you to 5 - element theory in 1 hour yin yoga classes. We will begin by describing what 5 element theory is. From there we will go into wood element, its organs, meridians, the emotions associated with it, the colour and direction.

Intro to 5 Element Theory Yin Yoga Wood Element Sequence

Centering

Butterfly

Bananasana

Hand to Big Toe Pose

Broken Wing Pose

Eye Yoga

Reclined Butterfly

Props Needed: Bolster, 2 blocks, yoga strap, meditation cushion

Poem: Forgiveness by Mary McCue