ASHTANGA YOGA – STARTER COURSE

The foundations of ashtanga yoga
Startkurs – Ashtangayogans Grunder
Aloituskurssi – Astangajoogan Perusteet
6 x Tuesdays 10.1. – 14.2.2023 at 19.00 – 20.15
in Anandamaya Yoga & Wellness in Espoo, Kauklahti
Follow Alex on Instagram for occasional freebies 😉
Marichyasana C – Seated spinal twist. Picture from a led ashtanga yoga class in Raseborgs Yogaskola.

Start, or develop your yoga practice

During this course you will learn to practice yoga postures in the tradition of ashtanga yoga to the rhythm of your own breath.

You will progressively learn more and more of the practice series during this course, and you need to participate in the whole course (drop-in is not suitable for this course).

Home practice & health benefits

Ashtanga yoga is meant to be practiced individually as a personal and tailored practice.

Home practice is one of the biggest strengths of ashtanga yoga, and you will learn to internalise the practice more quickly, increase your concentration and focus, and strengthen your overall health, all on your own.

In best cases you will see improvements of strength, endurance, flexibility and digestion already after a few months of regular practice, and regulation of the nervous system. Maybe you’ll have easier to stay calm during a stressful day 🙂

For whom?

  • For new yogis who wants to learn to practice independently, and develop a strong foundation for yoga practice.
  • For yogis who have experience other yoga methods, and wants to broaden and deepen their practice.
  • For yoga teachers seeking more clarity and depth on the foundations of the practice in hatha and ashtanga yoga, and wants to develop a self practice.
  • For ashtangis who have had a break from practice, and wants to repeat the foundations.
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What is Ashtanga Yoga?

  • Yoga postures, asana, according to traditional practice series, which help you to remember the practice, to see your own progress, and gives a sense of belonging to this old tradition of hatha and ashtanga yoga.
  • The postures are easy in the beginning, and gradually gets more and amore demanding (vinyāsa krama).
  • The postures are combined with breath and movement, vinyāsa. This is how we enter and exit every posture.
  • Internal muscle and energy control, bandhas. Proper action in asana.
  • Practice on an empty stomach (avoid having dinner right before practice).
  • Heating ujjayi breathing, increased metabolism, sweat and inner focus (pratyāhāra). Helps to regulate your nervous system.
  • Gaze and focus, drśhti, gives concentration (dhārana), which you take further into meditation (dhyāna).
  • You learn progressively and develop an independent practice (mysore style) which is tailored to your own body, your needs and life situation.
  • Ashtanga yoga is meant to be practiced individually as a personal practice. During a Mysore-style class, everybody is practicing individually in a group setting, and the teacher helps all students individually. After this course you can go to any ashtanga yoga school and continue to practice and develop with competent teachers in their Mysore classes.
  • You get a life-long yoga practice to assist you in learning and growing as a human being.
  • A practice to gain more willpower and self discipline – good for us lazy people 😅
  • Usually the teacher doesn’t say how to feel in the practice. We want you to have your own experience. For the same reason we typically don’t have music in class, because certain music induces certain emotions. Let the internal sound of your ujjayi breath be your music.

Ashtanga yoga is unique

Ashtanga yoga is unique system of yoga practices where we learn traditional hatha yoga postures, asana, that we interlink into a flow, vinyasa, with our breathing, ujjayi.

We practice a pre-defined series of postures, that you will learn by heart when you practice regularly. Since the postures are always in the same order, you will be able to let go of your thoughts and gain focus and concentration quicker, and you will also be able to see your own progress already from the beginning.

Increased metabolism

You will get warm very quickly during the practice, so be prepared to get sweaty. Usually these practice increase your digestive power and have a purifying effect on the whole body. Please practice on an empty stomach if possible. Do not have a mig meal right before practice.

Better health and wellbeing is a common side effect of a regular practice. Usually you will see a change in your bodily functions, strength and flexibility already after a few months of practice.

Alex Lemberg – Father of two kids, and founder of Raseborgs Yogaskola. E-RYT & YACEP (Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher & Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider)

Trikonasana – Triangle Pose. Strengthening for internal back muscles, and to some degree hip opening. A fundamental standing posture (you will come to learn that this is Alex’s favourite ;)).
Picture from an ashtanga yoga class in Raseborgs Yogaskola

Baddha konasana – Bound Angle Pose. Hip opening seated pose.
Evening class in Raseborgs Yogaskola

Meet your teacher

Alex is a Swedish-speaking Finn who started to practice yoga at home in 2013, and has been practicing and teaching hatha and vinyasa yoga since 2014 (Seasonal Yoga). During the summer of 2015 Alex fell in love with the depth of the ashtanga yoga practice in 2015 with his teachers in Helsingin Astanga Joogakoulu in their summer camp in Houtskari (Petri Räisänen & Juha Javanainen). Since then Alex has been teaching over 3000 hours of yoga classes with a wide range of people, while managing Raseborgs Yogaskola, and has actively been practicing with different world renowned teachers on different workshop, such as Eddie Stern, Kino McGregor, Simon Borg-Olivier, and also online courses with David Garrigues.

“To me it’s important that the practices are taught in a safe, healthy and effective way for each student. As a yoga teacher it is important to understand that all people are different, and certain yoga postures and practices are simply not suitable for everybody.

In my teaching style you will learn to turn your senses inward (pratyāhāra), you will improve your focus and learn to practice to the rhythm of your own breath. The meditation and concentration makes the practice meaningful, and is a gateway to your inner dimensions. A yoga practice should be a practice in concentration and meditation. In ashtanga and hatha yoga we use our bodies to practice and achieve this.

We start simple, and the more you practice, the more you will learn at your own ideal pace while your body becomes stronger and softer, and your mind becomes more focused.”

Purvottanasana (Reverse Plank Pose)
Surya Namaskar A – Sun salutation A – This is the first sequence you will learn to practice (and your first homework ;))

CURRICULUM – KURSSIOHJELMA – KURSPROGRAM (click to read)

Curriculum – Kurssiohjelma

THREE INGREDIENTS OF ASANA

#1: Hip mobility & sthitih
#2: Vinyāsa – a pre-defined way
#3: Sthira & sukha – stability and softness – breath and bandhas
“A strong foundation and a calm mind is an advanced practice”
-Welcome to elevate your practice to the next level!

WEEK 1 – 10.1 at 19.00 – 20.45 – Introduction (don’t miss this class)

The introduction will be recorded in case someone cannot join – watchable online next day!
You cannot join the rest of the course without the introduction.

Ashtanga & Hatha Magic
Breath (ujjayi), Bandhas (mula, uddiyāna), Posture (asana) and Gaze (drsti)

The structure of your practice
Beginning, middle, end

Solar Power Part I
Heating up your sun salutations (Surya Namaskara A). Technique, vinyasa and flow.

Asana principle #1
Hip mobility & sthitih

Asana principle #2
Vinyāsa – a pre-defined way

First asana
Trikonasana A – The vinyāsa

Easy finishing sequence part I
Theory and practice

WEEK 2 – 17.1 at 19.35 – 20.35

Solar Power Part II
Surya Namaskara B

Asana principle #3
Sthira & sukha – stability and softness – breath and bandhas

The first two postures
Padangusthasana & Padahastasana, Trikonasana A & Trikonasana B

Bonus posture
Vrkśasana – experiment with the secrets of the spine!

WEEK 3 -24.1 at 19.35 – 20.35

New asanas
Parśvakonāsana A & Parśvakonāsana B

Seated postures part I

WEEK 4 – 31.1 at 19.35 – 20.35

New asanas
Prasarita Padottanasana A, B, C, D

Seated postures part II

PRICING – Early Bird Offer

EARLY-BIRD OFFER: 99€

Early-bird offer active until 24th of December 2022. Normal pricing: 110€.

WHAT YOU GET

– 6 weekly in-person group practice sessions in Espoo
– Strong willpower

LANGUAGE – OPETUSKIELI

Main teaching language is English, but Swedish and Finnish will also be possible.

TIME AND PLACE

Address: Emil Halmeen tie 1F, 02780 Espoo (Kauklahti)

TEACHER

Alex Lemberg

REGISTRATION – ANMÄLNINGSFORMULÄR – ILMOITTAUTUMINEN

Sorry, but the course is full. Next round starts at 28th of February (stay tuned for more info soon)

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