Whilst I’ve practised yoga for many years, I was always the person at the back of the room, hiding from view, watching the people in front of me create incredible shapes with their bodies with their seemingly endless flexibility! Envious, and often feeling like I was definitely the ‘worst’ person in the class. My earlier years were plagued with knee operations (I think I had 9 in total) which meant there were so many poses I just couldn’t do. I constantly had to do modifications and move cushions on and off my matt under my knees as we flew through Vinyasas at high speed! Nope, the knees aren’t playing that game. Child’s pose? Nor that one. I wish I knew then what I knew now…. that yoga isn’t about the shapes we make with our bodies. Yes, of course, we must make sure our alignment is correct so that we’re keeping our bodies safe, but whether you touch the floor or not in a forward fold or get your heels to the floor in downward facing dog is irrelevant. As long as we are feeling the benefits of the pose, wherever we are in that pose today, and working towards finding stillness in our minds, we are doing yoga perfectly. If I’d known that many years ago, I would have even prevented a 3-year long hamstring injury which was the result of striving to achieve certain shapes, and not listening to my body. Today, my ‘restrictions’ (not that I see them that way anymore) that used to be the reason I hid at the back of class, are what drive me to teach others. I want my students to see that yoga isn’t about ‘picture-perfect’ poses like you see on social media, that being flexible isn’t what matters, that all of our bodies are different, and that yoga is for everyone. WHY YOGA IN THE CABIN? For me, the environment I do yoga in has become more important as I’ve got older. I’ve done classes at gyms, in community centres, church halls, inflatable domes, and whilst it is fantastic that these classes exist, I really wanted to create a unique place that offers peace and tranquility the moment you step inside. Plus, we are lucky enough to have a very long garden! So we built the cabin, and ‘Yoga in the Cabin’ was born. MY QUALIFICATION
My yoga teaching journey is rooted in a comprehensive 200-hour training certified by Yoga Alliance. This globally recognised organisation sets standards for yoga teacher training programmes, ensuring a strong foundation in asana (the physical practice), philosophy, anatomy, and teaching methodology, providing a benchmark of quality and credibility in the yoga community.
