Harrogate Yoga

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Harrogate Yoga

Yoga classes for groups & private individuals at all levels in the centre of Harrogate, Yorkshire. Well-being in Mind Body & Soul at www.harrogateyoga.com

Amanda Latchmore RSME RSMT of Harrogate Yoga has practised yoga for over 40 years and has been running yoga classes since 1997. Initially these classes were Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga, gradually developing into a more creative, flowing style - Vinyasa Flow. In addition Amanda has been running yoga courses for Beginners for many years - these ensure that beginners learn how to practise yoga safely - with others at the same level. Also on offer at Harrogate Yoga are yoga therapy sessions - these are private one-on-one classes for individuals with health issues. Amanda is highly qualified and has Diplomas in the following:

British Wheel of Yoga Teaching
Integrative Bodywork and Movement Therapy (Somatic Movement Educator and Therapist)
Jabadao ‘Learning Through Movement’

Amanda also has Certification in Advanced Teacher Training with:
Donna Farhi
Erich Schiffmann

Amanda is a graduate of The Breathing Project in Embodied Anatomy & Kinesiology: Bones and Ligaments (online)

Amanda continues studying BMC® with Embody-Move Association (EMA) – the licensed BMC® program in the UK.

20/11/2025

Here’s an inquiry - a little exercise - to help your neck feel more comfortable, especially if you’ve spent too much time looking at your phone lately.

Place a couple of fingertips just above and slightly forwards of the tops of your ears. The fingertips are there to support a reach of the crown of your head into space. Imagine you’re smelling a delicious scent! Try it maybe three times.

I hope your neck has more ease from practising this, you may find you feel more alert also.

For my somatic minded friends out there - the reason for the placing of the fingertips in this particular spot is to gain support from the mamillary bodies - they’re located at the base of the brain - slightly below and behind the hypothalamus. In some respects they’re part of the hypothalamus.

The mamillary bodies govern primitive functions of taste and sense of smell. They underlie insight and perception. They help align head and body along their vertical axis. They can allow the top of the head to reach into space - giving rise to feelings of spaciousness, timelessness, a meditative sense. Theyre not traditionally recognised as endocrine glands but may possibly have endocrine function. They relate to Ajna Chakra.

10/11/2025

A somatic approach - what is it? It could be any movement … that involves an appreciation of all the layers of experience… it’s about presence and attention … it’s about presence and attention providing a context for movement… it could be dancing with another … it could even be a chat with a friend.

03/11/2025

Somatic - what does it mean? ‘Of the body, experienced from within’?

In my own experience, any movement can have a somatic approach but there are no specific movements/ exercises, where we could say - ‘oh that’s a somatic movement’. This is because, rather than the type of movement, it’s more about the language we use towards ourselves to elicit inquiry, interoception, inner awareness. And it’s about the language a facilitator might use towards participants to elicit inquiry, interoception, inner awareness.

For inner awareness and interoception to arise, movement needs to slow right down. Later… or sooner… the movement can speed right up again.

Practising in these ways can lead to embodiment. It takes a lot of time.

12/10/2025

Learn to create ease in hip flexion and core support with these fluid movements.

I learned this exercise from Janis Claxton back in 2001, on a dance training in Sydney - and named it after her!

Janis died in 2018 - long before her time. She was vibrant and inspiring. When she was teaching movements initiating from the core, she’d say ‘Teeter Babe, Teeter Babe’! Teeter babes were little seats that supported babies from around the core in order to bounce!

We’ll be practising the Janis Roll in my Moving from Centre workshop on 25th October. Details via link in Bio.

06/10/2025

Someone commented yesterday on an earlier post of mine about Making Mistakes. The person who responded to me on Instagram was feeling sad about having inadvertently offended someone. I was reminded of Aadil Palkhivala’s marvellous words on Being Offended in his book Fire of Love.

The passage I’m reading here, is from a chapter on Respect. The next passage is The Pretense of Respect!

29/09/2025

How many times have you heard people who DON’T practise yoga say “oh I couldn’t possibly do yoga because I’m not flexible enough!” But of course practising yoga is a means to BECOMING more flexible - gradually movement will become more pleasurable as a result.

But strength is just as important as flexibility (or mobility, as I prefer to term it) Strength maybe MORE important than flexibility even. Loss of strength is said to be one of the most common reasons for loss of independence in later life.

Here are three simple exercises/poses that strengthen the body. The Janis Roll is a flowing exercise that works the deep core muscles - in particular the psoas major, rather than the superficial abdominal muscles.
Horse pose otherwise known as Goddess or Asvatasana, strengthens the thighs, in particular the quadriceps and also the glutes. Dolphin pose strengthens the upper body - arms and shoulders, in particular the deltoids and biceps.

Happy Practising!
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16/09/2025

Come and join me on 25th October for a morning of luscious, exploratory movement leading to naturally good alignment in asana and a strong, mobile core.

There’ll be a tea break with Bettys biscuits. There’s more info in Bio, or message me.

alignmentyoga

08/09/2025

Sometimes I like to get off the mat and see how my body wants to move - dance with the floor even!

24/08/2025

It’s a common ambition to ‘get a strong core’. Often people will do strengthening exercises that focus on the superficial abdominal muscles - doing sit ups for example. The result can be restricted breathing. And sometimes that can become a habit. Also the muscles in the front of the torso can become shortened, alongside muscles in the back of the body becoming weak and long. In turn this inhibits good posture and sitting for any length of time may become uncomfortable.

In my teaching and in my own practice I encourage breath movement that radiates out all the way from the centre of the body, to the extremities - through shoulders and arms to fingertips, through hips and legs to toes, and also to the crown of the head and to tail.

My aim for my clients, my students and in my own practice, is for a mobile kind of a core - core support.

Then it becomes possible for movement to radiate out from centre in Trikonasana - that’s supported by the breath; in transitioning between Downward Facing Dog and Plank, there needs to be support from a mobile core; to balance on a ball on the front of the body, it’s imperative that the back muscles are strong and that there’s support from the underside.

Find out much more on my Moving from Centre workshop on 25th October. See the link in the Bio. Or direct message me.
I hope you can come!

18/08/2025

I've a workshop coming up on 25th October and hope you can come! It’s a morning workshop - we’ll learn how developing a strong, mobile core can lead to naturally good alignment. The ability to move from centre is fundamental to healthy movement in yoga poses – and in life! This kind of ‘strong core’ is very different to that acquired from doing sit-ups in the gym, or even a Pilates class. The strong core acquired from doing sit-ups, tends to inhibit breathing, thus inhibiting the ability to be grounded - amongst other things! Our aim will be to feel breath movement all the way through the body to our extremities, via the centre of the body. Our aim will be for our poses/asana to become more cohesive, limbs connecting into and out from centre, prana/breath movement travelling more readily through the body, thus creating a feeling of effortlessness.

13/08/2025

As it’s quite hot right now, here’s a pranayama that is said to help cool mind and body down. Sit in a comfortable position and for Sheetali pranayama, curl your tongue, protrude it a little, then suck air in. Exhale through your nostrils. Practise 9 times.
As apparently about a third of the population can’t curl their tongues, Seetkari is an alternative. Suck air in through your teeth - lightly together - then exhale through your nostrils. Practise 9 times.

The principle is similar to that of dogs panting when they’re hot!

Happy practising! Hope you keep cool!

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Address

31 York Place
Harrogate
HG15RH

Telephone

+441423565796

Website

http://www.harrogateyoga.com/, https://www.harrogateyoga.com/downloads/, https://www.youtube.com/harrogateyoga, https://

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