Ucele Yoga

08/07/2025

Lots of people aren’t crazy about Dragons. My own yoga teacher loves us to do them in pretty much every Yin class, and for a long time I just couldn’t understand why.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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For all of us there are poses we feel comfortable in: The ones where we’ve learned how to adjust ourselves to get those ‘not too much, not too little’ sensations, and know how to move our body parts if those sensations get more – or less – over time.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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For me, Dragon was not one of those poses. It simply didn’t feel like it embodied those yin-like qualities like gentleness, yielding, softness and receptivity. It felt quite the opposite of gentle so there was no way I could yield. And as for soft and receptive? Forget it.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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For me, Dragon is definitely a Yin Yoga pose that is more yang in nature. It can be easy to go in too deep too fast, but what I’ve realised over time is that’s actually where its beauty lies.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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In Dragon, I have no choice but to be fully present. Moving into the pose, I find I have to listen more closely than usual, especially to the sensations unfolding in my hip flexors. Whilst for most poses I go to my natural stopping point, for this one I’ll back off quite a lot, as I know now from experience how deep it can get as gravity draws me down. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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As Yin Yoga sage always says: “…don't use the body to get into a pose, use the pose to get into the body".⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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Which one do you do?⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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20/06/2025

Are you any of these…?⁣
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🧓 An older adult ⁣
💼 An office worker⁣
♿ Have limited mobility or disabilities⁣
🌱 A newbie to yoga⁣
😰 An anxious yogi⁣
🛌 Recovering from surgery or rehab⁣
🌟 Someone who wants to try something different⁣
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Then give some of these Chair Yoga poses!⁣
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Message me if you need any tips 😊⁣
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P.S. There are a few places left on my Summer Solstice Yin Yang Yoga workshop in Swansea on Saturday

Sign up at https://www.uceleyoga.com/service-page/fire-flow-ground-slow?referral=service_list_widget

13/06/2025

During the summer solstice, Yang energy reaches its peak in a zenith of light, heat, and outward expansion. ⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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The solstice marks the longest day and shortest night here in the Northern Hemisphere; light is expansive and pervasive, and there is no shadow in the midday sun - literally and metaphorically. The Fire element is also in full force at this time of year, manifesting as heat (oh how we hope!) joy, enthusiasm and movement.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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On 21 June, I’ll be holding a 2-hour workshop to honour the sun at its peak. Through movement and stillness alongside breathwork and acupressure, let’s attend to that most fiery of organs - the heart - and invite our inner fire to glow steady and soft rather than wild and consuming ☀️⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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Join me on 21 June at The Swansea Wellbeing Centre

Sign up at https://www.uceleyoga.com/service-page/fire-flow-ground-slow?referral=service_list_widget
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10/06/2025

One of the quiet gifts of Yin Yoga is time.

Time to feel.
Time to listen.
Time to notice.

And that’s not just the sensation of a stretch or a tingle, but those deeper whispers like a knot in the belly, a hollow in the chest, or a breath that suddenly shifts.

These aren’t just physical sensations however, but messengers. As emotions speak through the body before the mind catches on, then by turning inward we create a pause.

That pause is powerful, as it gives us space to respond rather than react (so very different!). It also allows to sense what’s really going on, and to meet ourselves where we actually are rather than when we think or believe ourselves to be.

In a world that feels like it’s constantly rushing forward, maybe this kind of sensing is a quiet, radical wisdom.

Just like Yin Yoga perhaps.

30/05/2025

When I first started paying attention to how I breathe, I realised that most of it was still happening in my chest and the front of my body. The omni-directional/circular breathing technique really helped me soften that habit and find more ease, so let’s move onto the next stage together…⁣⁣
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In Part 2 of our practice, we’ll continue exploring how to bring awareness down into not only the front, but sides and back of the body too. We’ll then gather the different directions of breath we explored in Part 1, and this time start to integrate them into one continuous, circular breath. ⁣⁣
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This practice should be gentle and accessible but deeply regulating. I use the technique quite regularly myself, especially when I feel a bit scattered or disconnected.⁣⁣
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🚩 ANOTHER IMPORTANT NOTE FROM VICKY! 🚩⁣⁣
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The way that we breathe, like the body, varies from person to person. Remember that your body is your responsibility, so if anything feels too strained or difficult then back off, go to a previous stage, or come out completely. The breath should be comfortable and relaxed, so if you start feeling anything ‘wrong’ such as dizziness, headaches or getting short of breath, then discontinue the practice.⁣⁣
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If something doesn’t feel right, it isn’t. Listen to your body.⁣⁣

27/05/2025

New workshop alert!⁣⁣⁣
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I’ve really been starting to feel summer lately. Here in the UK we’ve been having some a-ma-zing weather, and both I and the cat have been racing outside at every opportunity to bask in our suntrap of a garden.⁣⁣⁣
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So as the solstice draws closer and the Wood element of spring transforms into the Fire of summer, I thought I would invite you to join me in balancing both our external and internal heat with a quieter kind of strength.⁣⁣⁣
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In my two-hour workshop on 21 June, we’ll be working with the Fire element from Traditional Chinese Medicine, which connects to the heart, circulation, and how energy moves and transforms in the body. We’ll be moving gently between long-held Yin shapes, softer yang-style flow, and some simple acupressure - all designed to the nervous system and enhance internal circulation, helping to sustain warmth and vitality without tipping into burnout.⁣⁣⁣
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Come join me for a steady, spacious practice to nourish your inner fire, cool mental restlessness and restore balance.⁣⁣⁣
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P.S. Part 2 of your circular breathing practice is coming later this week – I haven’t forgotten!⁣⁣⁣

With the arrival of the solstice on 21 June, summer reveals itself in full: bright, expansive and alive with energy. In this two-hour workshop, we will explore how to balance that outward intensity with inward calm by working with the Fire element, which in Traditional Chinese Medicine governs circu...

22/05/2025

Part one of our omni-directional (or circular) breathing practice is all about slowing down enough to actually feel where the breath is going - front, sides, and back.⁣

For me, this practice has become a way to check in, especially when things feel a bit tight or rushed. It helps me shift from ‘functioning’ mode into something more present and grounded.⁣ It’s not about fixing the breath or doing it perfectly, but about paying attention and seeing what space opens up when we do.⁣

In this 7-minute video, we will explore how breath moves through different parts of the torso. There’s no need for props or complicated instructions - just time to notice.

Part two is coming next week, where we’ll gather everything together into one, more integrated breath.⁣

*IMPORTANT NOTE FROM VICKY!*
The way that we breathe, like the body, varies from person to person. Remember that your body is your responsibility, so if anything feels too strained or difficult then back off, go to a previous stage, or come out completely. The breath should be comfortable and relaxed, so if you start feeling anything ‘wrong’ such as dizziness, headaches or getting short of breath, then discontinue the practice.

If something doesn’t feel right, it isn’t. Listen to your body.

20/05/2025

I learned how to breathe from the diaphragm quite early on, mainly because I played the saxophone.

So whilst I thought I was good at breathing (an achievement indeed), it wasn’t until much later that I discovered I was mostly breathing into the front of my body and not much else.

Learning to breathe omni-directionally - not only the front of the body but also the sides and back of the body - is a subtle but powerful technique. Not only does it support the nervous system, but can bring a sense of balance and centring as well as assist the diaphragm in moving more freely.

This week and next, I’m sharing two short videos to guide you through this technique:

✨ Part 1 (out soon): Bringing your attention the diaphragm and feeling the breath in the front, sides, and back.

✨ Part 2 (next week): Gathering together the different areas of attention into one breath.

Let me know how you get on!

06/05/2025

Looking for a theme for my class this week, I googled if there was anything special about today. It told me:⁣
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It’s World Laughter Day⁣
It’s National Lemonade Day ⁣
It’s International Firefighters Day⁣
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It’s also Audrey Hepburn’s birthday it seems, as well as Noah Becks (although I had to look him up. Which made me feel old).⁣
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But anyway! ⁣
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Today we shall laugh, we shall drink lemonade, and we shall sit around fires with people we love. ⁣
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Pretty good I reckon.⁣

01/05/2025

Fancy trying something you’ve always meant to get around to? Maybe even try something outside your everyday… just because?⁣⁣⁣
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Well this is your chance!⁣⁣⁣
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On Sat 17 May, the fabulous where I work is holding a 7-Year Celebration. It’s full of free (woo hoo!) tasters like Qi Gong, Feldenkrais, origami-making & crystal therapy and of course I’ll be there too 🙃⁣⁣⁣

https://www.wellbeingswansea.co.uk/open-day

23/04/2025

Who's joining me this summer then...?

https://www.uceleyoga.com/retreats

22/04/2025

Lately I’ve really been noticing some of my own not-so-desirable life patterns.

Like reaching for that ‘one last’ glass of wine even when I know perfectly well I’ll get restless at 4am.
Or spending too much time organising what I’m going to do when really, I just need to start.
(In fact, the constant planning in my head in general... for pretty much everything)

These habits aren't terrible, but they have a tendency to take over when I’m not paying attention. And that’s where my practice helps me - not to ‘fix’ anything as such, but to simply notice:

Notice when I’m in autopilot.
Notice when I’m planning in a useful way rather than as an automatic one.
And notice when I’m reacting out of habit rather than pausing and responding skillfully instead.

As you can see, noticing doesn’t mean getting rid of bad habits. Yet when I stop, pause and allow even just a few seconds to rest the mind, I am at least aware of what I’m doing, and allowing myself to take control of what I do next rather than letting it control me.

Next class: Yin Yoga for Habits this Thursday – https://www.uceleyoga.com/inperson