In November I spent a week at Ashtanga Yoga Paris. It was going to be a 30-hour workshop, but instead I got to take a variety of classes. In order to get the most out of it, I assigned myself some reflection on what I took away from practicing here.
I took a variety of classes, and naturally I had thoughts.
- Vinyasa + Yin (Sat, 75min) – Fast paced but completely familiar, mostly this one was about me remembering vocabulary enough to follow. I’m glad I started with familiar poses and style, although this was also my first indication that this was a ‘touchy’ studio – honestly welcome because I did not have sufficient anatomical vocabulary to understand all the cues.
- Vinyasa 2 (Sun 90 min but went an extra 10min than scheduled, troublesome since I was going to Restorative next.) This one was probably my least favourite, the teacher seemed irritable, started late, and then savasana started with 1 minute to scheduled class end time. Rather than be late to the next class, I did the UNCONSCIONABLE(!) and quietly walked out during savasana. Not only that, I left my blocks because I could not put them away without stepping over someone. Main takeway: it does not matter how creative your sequencing or enlightened your savasana poetry if you can’t do the basics of sticking to the schedule.
- Restorative (Sun 75 min) – gentle and chill. The direction around props was less instructive and detailed than ideal for 5-10 minute holds (getting it right matters when you are there for that long). This would be a good class to circulate and assit, but the teacher did all the postures as well. This class was good but made me miss Marie.
- Vinyasa 2 (Mon 90min) – Fun and fast sequence. This class had a lot of keeners (like 5 people practicing handstands before class even started and felt a little competitive or show-off-y. I took my time to breathe at my own pace, which put me a little behind the class pace sometimes; I wish I could say this felt enlightened and not defiant.
- Yin & Restorative (Mon 75min) – this was a chill evening class in a smaller room with better instruction. The vibe was ‘blissed out’.
- Mysore (Tue 60min) – this class was low-key bananas. I’ve been hearing about Mysore and the idea of being able to practice at one’s own pace is and with one’s own modifications sounded very appealing. However, there is only one accepted sequence of postures in Mysore – you can modify each of these for your level but the practice is always the same (picture Bikrams without a teacher cueing each posture and keeping time). That is not to say there is no instruction, because there is one head teacher and 2-3 assistant teachers circulating to give corrections and assistance. Once it became clear I did not know the exact sequence I was assigned a great assistant teacher, who stood beside me and led the postures. When I responded ‘yes’ to touching, she went all in with the Mysore-style adjustments -some were subtle, but lots were more like Thai massage – slow but with real force behind them. She was skilled and mostly it felt good and gave me some insight into little postural habits I have settled into while practicing on my own. However, it really made me think about the goal of yoga practice and the purpose of instruction. I oscillated between wanting to learn more and judging the teacher-centered approach. This was interesting, glad I tried it, but I’ll probably avoid it in the future.
- Yoga for women’s health (Tue 60 min) – This one was lovely! The teacher was very skilled and the practice felt really embodied and connected. There were lots of props and lots of small refinements of posture and forces and alignment. I feel like this really depends on the teacher, and this one was a winner.
- Iyengar (Wed 90min) – Probably my favourite of the week. Really interesting work with props and a very skilled teacher who emphasized that the props are not ‘crutches’ that make things easier (like when Neesha Zollinger says ‘props are not a demotion’), but rather tools to help you find better alignment and more connection with your breath. I will absolutely take some of these practices and postures home with me, and probably seek out some Iyengar or Anusura workshops next.
- Reforcement et Alignement (Wed 90min) – I was really curious about this one. With this title I expected something Iyengar-adjacent, and it was. The teacher was trained in the De Gasquet method, with really clear instructions and fantastic new-to-me exercises. This was probably my favourite, and I will definitely learn more about De Gasquet!
Altogether that is about 12 hours of yoga in 5 days. Some of it was relaxing and breezy, but I can say I’ve done more chaturangas this week than is typical (enough that I have zero regrets about not picking up a kettlebell this whole week.)
Except for the Mysore, all of it was in French which is a special challenge – it gives me some insight into being a beginner and feeling like I don’t know what the teacher is talking about – and since I teach in English in Sweden, it gives me some first-hand experience about how important it is to speak slowly and clearly and avoid negations. It also gave me an interesting insight into my inner dialogue during yoga. Interpreting instructions in English takes little cognitive effort….. interpreting in French took a lot! It did wake up my long dormant French neurons, and I did find myself thinking in French as a result: repeating what the teacher said, personalizing it ‘I am breathing’ etc. and explaining why I am adjusting or modifying (no one ever asked me to explain s not really any reason to do this except for anticipatory performance anxiety or maybe impostor syndrome).
It wasn’t the intensive workshop immersion I expected, but there was definitely some value in trying so many different kinds of classes, and so different from what I usually do. It help clarify why I teach and how I’d like to teach. Academic promotion files (to be full professor etc.) typically require an essay on one’s personal educational philosophy, and while I’ve always thought a lot about what feels ethical/useful as a teacher, I have to say it never occurred to me until now to document a teaching philosophy for teaching yoga. I can’t say that the notes I have now is an immutable forever document, but I do have some starting reflections. ॐ
Since I did this week on my own and without my usual yoga comrades, I missed having someone to ‘talk shop’ with after the sessions. Have any of you taken any of these style of classes before? How was it for you, what did you think?