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Going Solo with a Virtual Yoga Studio

June 3, 2020 by Keri

So. What a year it has been, right?

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world in ways no one fathomed. One way it has affected me personally, is that my yoga studio had to close its brick-and-mortar space for good. The studio had only been in that space for about three years, and that wasn’t long enough for the studio to survive the many months of shut-down. They’re attempting to do everything from a virtual yoga space instead, but I am not part of it at this time.

For now, the virtual studio can only support a few teachers and classes, which I understand completely. This is one crazy time, and no one knows what the future is going to hold for fitness studios. As such, I’ve decided to try out my own virtual studio.

I can’t believe I’m attempting to start a second business, but after seeing how a virtual yoga studio can work, I had to try. I’d never forgive myself if I never tried.

baby crow pose — baby steps…or in this case, baby crow

How is a virtual yoga studio going to work?

Well, so far I’m taking it one week at a time. Right now I have two Yin Yoga classes set a week on the same days and times as they were at my last studio. I’m also exploring options for a third weekly non-Yin Yoga class. Sign-ups for the classes are on the website itself. I thought about trying MindBody again, but then I remembered how expensive it is for every little thing. I have no idea how small studios starting out afford it. Paying a year subscription for the website tools I’m using is less than the lowest MindBody partnership MONTHLY subscription. That doesn’t even include their merchant processing system if you want to use credit/debit cards.

SO.

I have two options for classes:

Becoming a member
Dropping in a class and paying via Venmo

Memberships

I’m handling all memberships through Patreon. I have four tiers set up to join as a member. The upper tiers include private sessions, but the lower tiers are just for classes. It’s $10/month for one class a week and $35/month for unlimited classes. Once I get that third class finalized, the unlimited option will be a bit more enticing (I hope, anyway).

Drop-Ins

I’ve wrestled with pricing a lot. It’s so hard to come up with a fair price for both the teacher and students; harder than I thought it would be for sure. I’ve finally settled on $5/class for drop-ins. All you have to do is Venmo me at least 20 minutes before class, and I’ll add you to the email I send out with the class information.

Which brings me to…

The classes, woman. What about the classes?

I’m using Zoom for all of my virtual yoga classes. It’s a free app anyone can use on their laptop or mobile device, and most people have had to use Zoom during the pandemic at some point. Even if you haven’t, it’s super simple to set up and use.

About 15 minutes before class starts, I will email everyone who has signed up with the Zoom ID, link, password, and what props will be needed.

And that’s it! It should be rather easy peasy, lemon squeezy. Maybe one day, if I can get enough memberships, I can look at opening my own brick-and-mortar space. That really would be an incredible dream come to life.

New Yoga Obsession: Mysore Ashtanga

November 16, 2017 by Keri

I have only taken one Ashtanga class before, and it was NOT a good experience for me. Nothing was explained, and I essentially had my ass royally kicked for 60 minutes with no room for breaks. I started to laugh when I couldn’t feel my arms anymore and the teacher instructed more sun salutations. The teacher did not offer any modifications. She did not try to really teach the newcomers. I left feeling incredibly unwelcome and defeated. It’s one thing to have my ass kicked during a workout or yoga class but feel I have room to improve. It’s another when you feel like you were an embarrassment to the whole class, which is how I felt as I dragged my feet to my car. I swore I wouldn’t do Ashtanga again.

Well, you know what they say about never saying never.

I now teach Yin Yoga at Super Yoga Palace, a studio that really focuses on Ashtanga and Mysore Ashtanga (developed in Mysore, India). Since I’m trying to show that Yin Yoga is a perfect complement to an Ashtanga practice, I knew I had to take a class eventually just to make sure I’m addressing the right things. [Read more…] about New Yoga Obsession: Mysore Ashtanga

5 Daily Yoga Poses

May 12, 2017 by Keri

Whether or not you can make it to a yoga class, there are 7 yoga poses all yogis should do every day. We do so many things with and to our bodies each and every day, and we expect them to keep on keepin’ on. If you want them to do just that, these 7 yoga poses will help prevent injuries from rough exercise as well as old age.

I urge everyone do these every day even if you do make it to a yoga class for a few reasons:

Your class may not do any of these poses.
Your class may not hold these poses as long as needed.
All practicing yogis need their own personal practices outside of class.

Those who work at a desk, slumped over a keyboard most of the day (I like to call it keyboard-asana) will find incredible benefits to performing these poses each day. Steady yogi practitioners will also benefit greatly by adding in these asanas into their own daily practices, simply for the strengthening and stretching of key muscle groups in our bodies.

Cat/Cow – Chakravakasana

Start on all fours with a straight back. As you inhale, drop the belly, pull back the shoulders, and push the chest forward with the head up and facing forward. As you exhale, drop the head and arch the back. Do this for 5-10 breaths.

Hand and Wrist Stretches

These hand and wrist stretches help prevent Carpal Tunnel Syndrome as well as any arthritis caused by overuse of hands and wrists. Do you do a lot of typing on a keyboard or on your phone? You need these stretches each and every day.

Sit on your knees with hips on heels. Plant your hands on the ground in front of your knees, and turn your hands so that the fingertips are facing your knees and your forearms are turned outward to the front. To go deeper into the stretch, walk your hands out a little further. Hold for two minutes and don’t forget to breathe.

Flip the hands over, placing the backs of your hands flat on the ground in front of you. Your fingertips should still be pointing toward your knees. If you can’t get your thumb flat on the ground, move your hands closer to your knees. Straighten your arms as best as you can. If they bend and bow out too far, bring in your hands closer to your knees.

Tree Pose – Vrkasana

Most people recognize Tree pose without even taking a second of yoga. It’s an iconic yoga pose to be sure, but it’s also one of the most beneficial. It lengthens the spine and strengthens the feet and ankles. The stronger your feet and ankles, the better your balance. The better your balance, the lower the risk of falling and breaking a hip when getting older.

Stand perfectly straight, and start to lift one foot off the ground. Ground down the other foot through all four corners and spread the toes. Lift your foot and plant the sole against the standing leg. Do not lock out the standing leg, but still keep it strong. Do not use your hands to grab your foot and place it against your upper inner thigh. However high you can place your foot is where you are with your flexibility, and it will improve over time. However, do not plant your foot against your knee. It should be either above or below the knee. Press your foot against your leg, and your leg against your foot.

Hold for at least 10 -15 breaths with a goal of 2-3 minutes. Switch sides and repeat.

Feet Stretches

The feet are one of the most important extremities of the body. They hold us up while standing and moving. They contain the most bones and muscles in our bodies than any other region. It’s extremely important that we take care of our feet, and it’s something we rarely do outside of the occasional massage or pedicure. It’s incredibly important to stretch and strengthen the tops and bottoms of our feet.

Sit on your knees once again with the tops of the feet flat on the ground. Sit up straight, and simply sit and hold for 2-3 minutes. Then raise up on the top of your feet and toes for an even more intense stretch of the top of the feet and ankles. Goal is eventually hold this ankle stretch for one minute.

Lean forward to all fours and lightly tap the tops of your feet on the floor to massage them out. Sit back on your knees and heels, but this time, tuck your toes under. Make sure all five toes are touching the floor. Sit up straight and hold for 2-3 minutes. This pose stretches the bottoms of your feet and shins and strengthens the ankles.

Fish Pose – Matsyasana

Fish pose is another shoulder- and chest-opener, and it happens to strengthen the back and shoulders as well. If the legs are in lotus or hero pose, you’ll benefit from a hip flexor stretch as well. But since those are a bit more advanced, let’s go with simple and work up to that point.

Sit with your legs straight out in front of you, and then lean back, resting on your elbows. Let the shoulders fall back and rest the top of the head on the floor. Fish pose can be even gentler by propping up the back, neck, and head with blocks or blankets.

All photos are courtesy of Yoga Journal.

Online Private Yoga Sessions? How Does That Work?

April 10, 2017 by Keri

I admit when I started offering online private yoga sessions, I had no idea if they would work at all. The idea came to me when a dear friend living in Colorado said she’d love to take my classes if I could do it online. It was an interesting idea, one I definitely wanted to explore. She agreed to be my guinea pig, and after a few rough experiments, I created something solid that would really benefit her and future clients.

I have a TV set up in my studio so I can see the client in a far bigger screen than what my laptop can provide. I wear a bulky headset to cut out background noise when speaking to the student. Students must own a webcam. They’ll also need a proper space and their own props. Obviously, students will need a reliable high-speed Internet connection.

Is it weird? A little. Is it challenging as a teacher? Very. However, I love meeting challenges.

If I hated anything about it, it’s the fact that I can’t be in the room to physically adjust or even see every little piece of the pose formation. It’s a definite deterrent to be sure, but I’ve found ways to overcome it the best I can. For instance, I’ll tell the student to change which way she is facing me or to adjust the position of her camera if I can’t see vital points of the pose. If she’s facing me head on, I can’t see how she’s positioning her hips, back, and shoulders in downward-facing dog.

As a result, I’m not even bothering with teaching a Vinyasa Flow class online. Perhaps if the student is a seasoned veteran, I would consider it. For the most part students are newcomers or still need assistance with alignment. It’s been only Slow Flow and Yin Yoga, and both of those work amazingly well online. I would never think of holding a Restorative Yoga class or Iyengar class online simply due to the props necessities.

The classes aren’t perfect at all, hence the lower price. They aren’t for everyone either. For those who don’t want to attend a large studio class, are just learning yoga, or simply want the convenience of a practice out of their own home, online private yoga sessions are rather ideal.

Interested in checking out an online private yoga session? Contact me and we will set something up!

Why Yin Yoga?

February 24, 2017 by Keri

When I decided I was going to teach group classes, I knew Yin Yoga was a must. I only had one experience with Yin Yoga before finishing my teacher training, and it only took that one experience to show how much I needed Yin Yoga in my practice. As such, I knew that I needed to spread this wondrous style of practice with my own students.

Oddly enough, it was my Yin Yoga class on Sundays that brought in my first students. They were my friends, but neither of them knew what Yin Yoga was. As I passed out the bolsters, blocks, and blankets, I told them that Yin Yoga focuses upon increasing flexibility, mindfulness, and meditation by holding a few poses for 3-5 minutes. It was easy to instantly see from their expressions that this was not what they expected.

But we carried on.

At about halfway through that first class, I could tell that my girl friend was not amused. Her husband, however, was loving every second. It was hilarious to watch.

Yin Yoga obviously isn’t for everyone, but it is a style of practice more people need than they think. I’m fairly certain that the reason why my friend didn’t like it is because she was expecting more of a flow. Her husband loved it because he had run several miles the day before, and it stretched out his hips. I recommend Yin to all my running friends as well as anyone who wants to deepen their flexibility. I personally am not that flexible, and I never have been. Yoga has done so much for me in improving my flexibility, but Yin has boosted everything I get from my regular vinyasa flows.

On a physical level, holding these deep stretch poses for 3-5 minutes taps into the inner muscles and fascia, stretching them. After about one minute of holding a pose, you can literally feel your body relax further into it as the fascia give way to join in the stretch. After teaching Yin for two weeks now, I can already detect an increase in my hamstring and hip flexibility.

But Yin is more than a simple deep stretch practice for 60 minutes. When you hold these intense stretches for this length of time, it’s not comfortable. Sometimes you shake. The thoughts of “I can’t do this” readily creep in. The only way to get through the discomfort (note I didn’t say pain!) is to breathe. Focus on your breath. Notice how your body takes in each breath and expels it. Notice what is tense. Check your jaw. Your eyebrows. Your neck.

Are you breathing? Breathing makes it so much easier, as ridiculous as that may sound to those who feel like they’re dying on the mat. Instead of focusing on the discomfort, focus on the length of your inhale and exhale. Lengthen the exhale, and as you do, you will feel your body relax even further into the stretch.

Do you know what you’re really doing all this time in this one pose? You’re becoming in tune with your body. You’re not thinking of your to-do list or what the kids did this morning at breakfast or that awful thing your boss said to you that day. You’re devoting your attention to you, your breath, and your body. Nothing else matters during this practice.

Without even realizing it, you’re having a spiritual experience and meditating. You may feel like you’re dying during every pose, and yet when the practice concludes after savasana, you can’t help but notice how clear your mind is and how free your body feels. It’s beautiful to experience, and even more beautiful to witness in my students.

That’s why I teach Yin Yoga.

The Best Laid Plans…

February 6, 2017 by Keri

Yesterday, February 5, 2017, I received my 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training certificate in psychotherapeutic yoga. It was going to be an amazing day. LISPY had a fun day for us, including a morning yoga practice, a homemade lunch from our teachers, a little graduation ceremony with our family and friends, and then a chai latte gathering afterward. Then I was going to come home and finish filing all of my paperwork that had to wait for the certificate and watch the Superbowl.

Well, Robert Burns said it best.

The best-laid schemes o’ mice an ‘men
Gang aft agley,
An’lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!

The morning started off great. I woke up early (which is huge for me, I must add), showered, and dressed like usual. I was even inspired to write a new poem, which happened while I was in the shower. I then had to repeat the lines over and over again so I wouldn’t forget them. As soon as I wrapped a towel around my hair, I ran for my poetry notebook to write it down. After I sat with my family for a few moments, I headed off to the bathroom to dry my hair. That’s when the bed kicked me.

Yes, IT kicked ME. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

My last three toes on my foot took the brunt of it. The pain was incredible, and the little piggies did start to swell. After I dried my hair, we decided that I jammed them pretty good. I texted my teachers to tell them I couldn’t fully practice this morning, and then limped my merry way to my car. I was not going to let this spoil my day. Yes, my toes hurt like a sonofabitch, but that was no reason to not have fun with my fellow colleagues.

I didn’t take my sock off until I returned home. I was afraid to look at it, to tell you the truth. The fourth toe was swollen like a cocktail wiener. It was also black and blue. Surprise! You broke your toe right before you’re opening a new yoga business! Don’t you feel like a genius?

I had to laugh. For starters, what else could I do, and secondly, it’s rather Murphy’s law, wouldn’t you agree? A few friends asked if I was going to delay opening because of my toe. My answer is OH HELL NO. You don’t need to stand to do yoga. You can get plenty out of sitting, lying on your back, or lying on your stomach. To prove it, I recorded a brief 30-minute yoga session and posted it on Facebook.

That’s one of the beautiful things about yoga. When the best laid schemes of mice and men do gaft agley (translated as “go oft awry”), then you adapt and carry on. Modify the poses. Honor where you are that day, accept it, and most importantly, embrace it.