What started as a hobby for me is now an integral part of my life. Teaching a variety of fitness

classes around Knoxville since the early 80s, I always incorporated some yoga asana in to my

routines...even in my water aerobics classes! Yoga instruction became my main focus in 1998

when I was asked to teach a needed class at the fitness club (Coursouth...back in the day) where

I’d been working for years.

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Through teaching yoga I came to fully realize the total overall health and wellness benefits of my

own personal practice. From there my teaching branched out and blossomed. Originally I was

certified to teach yoga through the American Aerobic Association International / International

Sports Medicine Association. In 1999, seeing the need to improve my teaching skills, better

understand transitions with proper alignment and to provide instruction for the use of supportive

props, I became a dedicated student of the Iyengar method and began taking classes with Ron

Felix at Knoxville Yoga Center.

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I am very much a detail oriented yogini! Over the years with Ron, I participated in over 18 weekend

intensive workshops with noted names in the Iyengar tradition including George Purvis, Dean

Lerner, Laurie Blakeney and Jan Campbell. I taught at the Knoxville Yoga Center for 12 years,

focusing on beginners and second level Iyengar yoga. Since the closing of Knox Yoga I have been

out teaching on my own, honing my skills and enjoying working with a blend of modalities including

Vinyasa style flow, Yin, Restorative and Kundalini. I am a student of Ajeet Kalsa’s, having taken her

Dancing Spider Yoga Training which has been offered in my yurt at Buckeye Farm. Beginning spring and summer of 2019 there I will be

offering additional classes at Buckeye Farm to include all of the above, plus a hot yoga flow and quite possibly ariel yoga, and an Energy Medicine series. The owner of Street Beatz is also interested in helping me add an ariel yoga class there in the Fall 2019!! So there’s a lot of excitement brewing!!

Here is what you can expect from my classes:

First and foremost you will meet this great community and enjoy some of the most incredibly supportive yoga partners, ever!! We do have fun!! Over time you will also experience increased strength, flexibility, and endurance; improved balance and concentration; stress reduction, relief from emotional trauma and more inward centered focus and personal awareness; a greater sense of well-being; harmony of mind, body and emotions to help you face the turmoil’s of life.

To help you understand a little more of my background.....here is information about my learning process over the years.

What is Iyengar Yoga? 

Named after and developed by B. K. S. Iyengar, this style of yoga is a form of Hatha Yoga with an emphasis on detail, precision and alignment in the performance of posture (asana) and breath control (pranayama). The development of strength, mobility and stability is gained through asana. B.K.S. Iyengar systematized over 200 classical yoga poses and 14 different types of Pranayama (with variations of many of them) ranging from the basic to advanced. His method helps ensure that the student progresses gradually by moving from simple poses to more complex ones and develops mind, body and spirit step-by-step. Iyengar Yoga often makes use of props, such as belts, blocks, and blankets, as aids in performing asana (postures). The props enable students to perform poses correctly for personal physical issues, minimizing the risk of injury or strain, and makes the postures accessible to both young and old alike. Iyengar Yoga is firmly based on the traditional eight limbs of yoga as expounded by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras.

The Asana that I focus on in most all my classes are the basic poses or variations of these, including, but not necessarily in this order or limited to:

• Tadasana (mountain pose)

• Urdhva Hastasana (hands over head pose)

• Utthita Trikonasana (triangle pose)

• Virabhadrasana I (warrior 1)

• Virabhadrasana II (proud warrior or warrior 2)

• Parsvakonasana (extended side angle pose)

• Half Uttanasana (flat back position at the wall)

• Uttanasana (standing forward bend)

• Prasarita Padottanasana (wide legged forward bend)

• Gomukhasana (cow face arms)

• Garudasana (Eagle Arms)

• Adho Mukha Svanasana (downward facing dog)

• Bharadvajasana (Bharadva’s basic seated twist)

• Bhadda Konasanan (Cobbler’s pose)

• Ardha Matsyendrasana (half lord of the fishes pose)

 

A list of books for your reference: (my references and favorites over the years)

• Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health / BKS Iyengar

• How to use Yoga: A step by step guide to Iyengar Method / Mira MehtaIyengar

• Yoga: Classic Yoga Postures for Mind Body and Spirit / Judy Smith

• 30 Essential Yoga Poses for Beginners/ Judith Lasater

 

Great source for watching videos of the yoga poses and transitions.http://www.yogajournal.com/

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Contact: jeanneleachman@gmail.com