11/12/2025
𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 – 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐀𝐝 𝐀𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚 𝐘𝐨𝐠𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬?
I’ve seen lots of new members join Ad Astra Yoga and Pilates in the recent months and it occurred to me that I’m likely to meet new people as we approach New Year resolutions, so I thought it would be a good time to reintroduce myself and my brand of teaching…
𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗶𝘀 𝗝𝗮𝘆𝗻𝗲, 𝗔𝗱 𝗔𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮 𝗬𝗼𝗴𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗶𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿?
If you know me at all, you’ll know I’m not keen on talking about myself, so for this bit I’m handing the reigns over to my able assistant and long s̷u̷f̷f̷e̷r̷i̷n̷g̷ serving class member, Hilary.
‘𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘨𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘗𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘑𝘢𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 11 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘈𝘥 𝘈𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘑𝘢𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦, 𝘢𝘴 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺, 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 ‘𝘻𝘦𝘯’ 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰 ‘𝘰𝘮’ 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦.
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘑𝘢𝘺𝘯𝘦!
𝘑𝘢𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴; 𝘸𝘦’𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘥, 𝘸𝘦’𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥, 𝘸𝘦’𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 – 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴! 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘑𝘢𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵, 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦…’
OK, so that’s what you can expect from me in class, but you might also like to know about my credentials…
My teaching passion is yoga, it has always been a help to me personally, and to pass on the same help to others feels just great.
And I am very proud of the qualifications I have gained since starting in 2010:
• Level 3 Yoga Diploma + Advanced Vinyasa, Yoga Nidra & Level 1 Yin Yoga
• Level 3 Mat Pilates Diploma
• Pilates for Orthopaedic Conditions Diploma
• F L E X Instructor
• Level 2 Exercise to Music
• Indoor Cycling Advanced Instructor
• Pump FX
• Cold water immersion coach.
I believe I am a genuine, down to earth (despite the Ad Astra name), fun yoga and Pilates teacher, who will listen to your ‘pains’ and adapt every and any class to suit you.
𝗬𝗼𝗴𝗮 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀
I’m a relaxed yoga teacher, but I do have the guiding mantra of ‘challenge the body to calm the mind’, so you can expect to put the work in! My yoga class content is guided by what my members need – every 7-8 weeks or so we have a poll in the private Facebook group, asking them what niggles they have in their bodies and what they would like to work on. I then build the vinyasa (flow of movements) around the most popular requests.
However, as well as building the vinyasa from gentle to strong over the weeks, I like to have a bit of fun and add in some challenges or peak poses. These might make you sweat, they might make you fidget but they will definitely make you feel fabulous as you progress over the term.
At the end of term, I like to treat my members to a Yin and Nidra class, consisting of deep lengthy stretch poses, followed by an extended meditative period. Members have dubbed this ‘sleepy yoga’ and are encouraged to bring pillows and blankets – one member once brought a full-on sleeping bag!
𝗣𝗶𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀
There are two Pilates classes a week. On Tuesday mornings it’s Pilates for All - A class designed for beginners or those returning to exercise, including seniors. All you need to be able to do to join this class is get up from the floor. Then on Wednesday nights it’s Pilates FLEX which focuses on strength, mobility and flexibility. This is definitely the stronger of the two classes, but I do have members who attend both with great results, and I always offer progressions of every move, so you’ll find your own level of ‘challenging’.
I teach mat Pilates, so there’s no fancy machinery, and only the occasional bit of extra kit such as balls, bands and blocks. You don’t need to buy these items as I bring plenty to share.
𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 | 𝗪𝗮𝗹𝗸𝘀 | 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗮𝘀 𝗟𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁
Ad Astra Yoga and Pilates doesn’t end after class finishes. I’ve hosted weekends away in the Wye Valley for retreats that include cold swimming or dipping, hiking and of course loads of yoga and Pilates.
Madie’s Mental Health Mates is a local group that shares members with me, and we take gentle walks around the local towns or villages to find physical and metaphysical space.
And I do enjoy a good celebration – My 'Pilates for All' group has an annual Christmas get together after the last class of the year, and I do try to organise a Christmas event for everyone, even if it does sometimes land in summer!
𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘀, 𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗼𝘀
I have to say, there’s always someone giggling in my classes – normally at the bottom end of the hall, but I try not to take myself or the moves too seriously – life’s too short not to have a laugh!
Hilary is usually in class taking photos for social media, but only if you’re happy to feature – she’s very careful not to incriminate anyone, or share ‘delicate’ angles, and you’ll generally see those on Facebook, Instagram and in the private Facebook group. That group is available for anyone to share in, including a joke they’ve just seen, or to ask a serious question, it’s also where you’ll find class updates.
So, if you’re looking for a really good full body workout, that doesn’t take itself too seriously, maybe Ad Astra and is the place for you.
Seniors can claim a discount, first timers get a freebie – just message me before booking to make sure you get it.
You can join me online via Zoom or in person in - don’t forget to bring a mat, a drink and some cosy socks, everything else you can borrow…
See you soon, Jayne 🙏
