Hamilton Yoga Blog

Is signing up for a 10-week Beginners Yoga Course too daunting for you?

We understand that. We get it. It is a big commitment over a long period of time. But we wouldn’t do it if we didn’t think there is value and justification in it.

That’s why, first of all, we want to make this commitment as budget-friendly for you as possible. For only $18 a week, you will be safely guided in a progressive course laying down the lifelong foundations for practising this style of yoga with the best possible introduction by a highly skilled and well-trained certified Iyengar yoga teacher here in Newcastle.

Following the NSW school terms and holiday times is obviously another reason for structuring our terms of courses similarly, but more importantly, our Beginners Course is progressing over that 10-week period to thoroughly cover all the essential basics of Iyengar yoga for beginners or students from other yoga styles. Our approach is systematic and aims to build confidence before progressing to more advanced-level classes. We also know from experience that to be able to make an honest assessment of what Iyengar Yoga is and what it can bring for you and your practice, you won’t find the answer in a one-off class.

In our yoga classes at Hamilton Yoga, we don’t pretend to be anything we are not.

As the owner and headteacher at Hamilton Yoga, I have a life outside of yoga, just as most of you do (hopefully). I enjoy my local football (soccer) club, am busy with my family and try to be active in the community. Teaching yoga in Newcastle has been my full-time job for the last three decades after leaving my trade as an electrician behind. And while I am passionate about it, it is not my only passion. Yoga does not make you a different person, but it can assist you in navigating aspects of your life better, and taking care of your physical health as our bodies change as we age, or as we need to heal from injuries along the way. It can help quieten the mind and be more focused on our daily tasks. Yoga is there to help you enjoy a fuller life.

In our yoga classes, we do not pretend to bring spiritual enlightenment. However, we believe that spirituality can be present during yoga practice when the mind and the body are engaged. B.K.S. Iyengar described yoga postures as ‘prayers’, and the body as our ‘temple’. So, in essence, we say that conscious movement is a type of meditation in motion.

We believe that 10 weeks of our beginners’ program will enable you to find out for yourself. Doing is believing. You will have the opportunity to discover how or if you feel differently with regular yoga practice, how you like the precision, the guidance, and the depths of our classes, and how you like the teaching style, the humour of the teacher, the challenges and the fun in the classes.

I am assertive in offering the 10-week Beginners Course because of the feedback I have received. What Iyengar Yoga encapsulates is quite unique to other yoga styles that can be more fleeting, are for the fit and young only, or have a bigger focus on meditation.

In our classes, you will potentially find a university student, a businessperson, a tradie, and a retiree all in the same class. Gender, age, and ability do not matter in this style of yoga. Iyengar Yoga is especially supportive of all abilities by using several props such as blankets, belts, blocks, chairs or ropes as needed to have the best support for each individual.

Each week, we progressively introduce the essentials of the most common asanas in Iyengar yoga. By the end of the course, you will be well-equipped for the next level of classes (Progressing Level 1) should you wish to move up.

As we all know, school experiences stand and fall with the teacher. I am trying my very best to be myself in all my teaching and to constantly build a connection with my students, and I hope that my type of teaching resonates with you. I am grateful for having been able to teach such a varied cohort of students over the last 27 years here in Newcastle, and to watch the growth of each student, and I am humbled by the loyal support of this community over the years.

Most importantly, we want to encourage you to give yourself a fair chance of getting a taste of Iyengar Yoga at this yoga school, and there really is no quick way of doing this.

What is it like for someone to get up daily and walk or run their 5 or more kilometres? Or to swim routinely x-numbers of laps? Or to pick up a paintbrush to create art on a regular basis? Will you be able to tell what it is like to be a runner, swimmer, or artist after only a couple of tries? Will you experience how you can deal with challenges, tiredness, stiffness and low moods if you are only trying it once or a few times? Yoga practice, and our Beginners Course, are not any different from that.

We would like you to have the opportunity of feeling your body and mind over an extended period of time, what it is like to practice Iyengar Yoga regularly. That is why we run our Beginners Course as a continuous and supportive 10-week program. We know that the true benefit comes with regularity.

“In the process of regular practice, we observe the tendencies of our mind and see how our thoughts, values and memories colour our perceptions. We gain greater clarity about ourselves and what is real.” (Alan Goode, ‘Yoga Sadhana’, 2015)

To find out whether we are a good fit for you, I invite you to see and experience for yourself. In the end, it is all about you. That’s why we are here - to support you as an individual!

To check our class options or to book into the next Beginners Course click here .

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Namaste and Thank You.

David

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