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What is Yoga?

Yoga is for everyone.

Yoga is part of an ancient system of self improvement which is timeless and universal in its application. Through the orchestration of body postures, called asanas, attention to breath, and mindfulness, the yoga student learns to experience the present moment in the fullest and most authentic sense.

The literal meaning of yoga is to "yoke" or bring into harmony the body, mind, and spirit.

Yoga emphasizes the development of strength, stamina, flexibility, and balance, as well as concentration and meditation.

TOP 10 Reasons to Try Yoga

• STRESS RELIEF

• PAIN RELIEF

• BETTER BREATHING

• FLEXIBILITY

• INCREASED STRENGTH

• WEIGHT MANAGEMENT

• IMPROVED CIRCULATION

• CARDIOVASCULAR CONDITIONING

• FOCUS ON THE PRESENT

• INNER PEACE

Courtesy of Yoga Alliance

Things You Should Know:

All equipment is provided. However, it is strongly recommended that you invest in your own mat as it is much more sanitary.

If you have any health problems or injuries that are of concern to you, be sure to inform the instructor before class begins.

Pregnant Women: Do not begin yoga without permission from your physician. Birthing partners encouraged to enroll as well. Private sessions or prenatal workshops highly recommended before starting in 'group classes'.

Wear shorts or footless tights. The instructor should be able to see the alignment of your hips, knees, and ankles.

For your comfort, an empty stomach is best. Do not eat a full meal for at least 2 hours prior to class.

Remove shoes and turn off cell phones immediately upon entry.

If you are late for class, enter quietly after Meditation/OM.

If departing earlier than class is scheduled to end, kindly inform your instructor, and take a 3-minute Savasana (relaxation pose) in the waiting room before leaving.

See List of Instructors HERE

General Structure of Yoga Class

Centering. Taking the time to settle into your space and connect with the breath. You may hear poetry or readings that create a theme for the practice.

Warm-ups. Depending on the postures we will practice in class, movements will help to warm muscles, joints, fascia, propriorecepters (nerves that sense the position of your body) for more effective and safe movement.

Postures. Also known as asanas, these are poses that will teach us alignment as well as strengthen and cleanse the body.

Cool Down. Stretches to further improve flexibility, create space for more breath.

Deep Relaxation. Also known as yoga nidra or savasana (corpse pose). A time to practice withdrawal of the senses by focusing on the breath and releasing tension. Very important in closing our yoga practice and transitioning to external activities.

Yoga for Beginners

by B.K.S. Iyengar

Yoga is a light which, once lit, will never dim. The better your practice, the brighter the flame."

Yoga is for everyone.

You need not be an expert or at the peak of physical fitness to practice the asanas. The strain of modern life can lead to physical pain and illness, as we neglect our bodies in the race for material success. The stress of modern life can also lead to mental suffering: feeling of inadequacy, isolation, or powerlessness.

Yoga helps to integrate the mental and the physical plane,bringing about a sense of inner and outer balance, or what i term “alignment”. True alignment means that the inner mind reaches every cell and fibre of the body.

BKS Iyengar Yoga Image

During my 70 years of teaching and practicing, I have observed that some students pay attention only to the physical aspect of Yoga. Their practice is like a fast-flowing stream, tumbling and falling, which lacks depth and direction. By attending to the mental and spiritual side, a sincere student of Yoga becomes like a smoothly flowing river, which helps to irrigate and fertilize the land around it. Just as one cannot dip into the same river twice, so each and every asana refreshes your life force with new energy.

By using a few simple props, students with different capabilities can gradually build up strength, confidence and flexibility, without the thread of strain or injury. Regular practice builds up the body’s inner strength and natural resistance, helps to alleviate pain, and tackles the root, rather than the symptoms, of the problem.

With advancing age, physically vigorous exercises cannot be performed easily because of stiffening joints and muscles that have lost tone. The great advantage of Yoga is that it can be practiced by anyone, irrespective of age, sex and physical condition. In fact, Yoga is particularly beneficial in middle age and after. Yoga is a gift to older people when the recuperative power of the body is declining and resistance to illness is weakened. Yoga generates energy and does not dissipate it. With Yoga one can look forward to a satisfying healthier future, rather than reflecting on one’s youthful past.

Unlike other exercises, Yoga results in the concentration of immunity cells in areas affected by disease, and thus improves immunity. That is why the ancient sages called Yoga a therapeutic as well as a preventative science.

“Asanas keep your body, as well as your mind, healthy and active”

Yoga and fitness

There is more to practicing asanas correctly than merely the physical aligning of the body. The classic poses, when practiced with discrimination and awareness, bring the body, mind, intelligence, nerves, consciousness and the Self, together into a single, harmonious whole. Asanas may appear to deal with the physical body alone but, in fact, different asanas can affect the chemical messages sent to and from the brain, improving and stabilizing your mental state.
Yoga’s unique ability to soothe the nerves – the medium between the physiological body and mind – calms the brain, makes the mind fresh and tranquil, and relaxes the entire body.

The anatomical body comprises the limbs and the actual parts of the body. The physical body is made up of bones, muscles, skin and tissue. The physiological body is composed of the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, pancreas, intestines and the other organs. The nerves, brain and intellect make up the psychological body. To practice asanas correctly, you have to learn to bring all these levels together.

Stages of learning Yoga

Arambhavastha

Newcomers to Yoga approach asanas with “uncultured” minds. They have to learn that at first asanas are practiced at the level of the anatomical body alone- the stage called “arambhavastha”. This beginner’s stage is important and should not be hurried through, in order to learn the asanas, beginners should be primarily concerned with getting their movements right. Beginners have to grasp the whole asana, and not lose themselves in the finer details. It is more important for you to start by striving for stability within a pose. This provides a strong foundation.

Ghatavastha

You will then enter the intermediate stage, or “ghatavastha”, in which the mind is affected by changes in the body. When you reach this stage, you are practicing the movements correctly, your body is under your control, but you must learn how push your mind to touch every part of your body. Students of Yoga at this stage must practice the asanas with reflective and meditative attention. You must become aware of your tissues, organs, skin and even individual cells. Your mind must flow along with all of these parts.

Parichayavastha

The advance stage, comes next. This is the stage of intimate knowledge, when your mind brings your body in touch with your intelligence. Once this happens, the mind ceases to be a separate entity, and the intelligence and the body become one. Your adjustments are more subtle and discriminating now, and are in the realm of the mental and physiological body, rather than merely in your muscles, bones and joints.

Nishpattyavastha

The final stage is the state of perfection. At this stage, asanas, become meditative and spiritual. This may be termed “dynamic meditation”.

Yoga Instructors

Paducah Yoga Center's Yoga Teachers are all registered with the National Yoga Alliance or are in the process of receiving their registered certification. The National Yoga Alliance registers teachers who have met specific training standards and exists to support them in their professional development to promote quality instruction for the practicing public.

Teaching Method

Most of Paducah Yoga Center's instructors teach Hatha Yoga and emphasize posture and the development of balance and alignment. To support students' explorations of postures, teachers make use of a wide variety of props: rope wall belts, blocks, bolsters, blankets and chairs. The use of props responds to individuals with varying limitations and capacities for accomplishing 'Yoga' in postures.

You will be 'taught' rather than 'led' so that you will have the knowledge of safe alignment to practice in any type of class, whether it be in another Yoga Style or exercise system. Ultimately this knowledge will transfer into your everyday life, bringing more stability and 'freedom' in the body, mind and spirit.

NICOLE BROWN (निर्मला)

Purna Yoga, Prenatal Yoga, Kid Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Partner Yoga

RYT 500

Nicole Brown is a certified, registered yoga teacher. Yoga has been a part of her life for over 15 years. Nicole began teaching Yoga in June 2000, and continues to study more in depth the science of yoga to ensure the best instruction to all she teaches.

Nicole received her professional training in 2002 at the prestigious Southern Institute for Yoga Instructors where she was awarded a 1000 hour yoga teacher certification. Through SIYI, Nicole had the opportunity to train with, and continues to train with, highly respected teachers in the Iyengar Tradition. The program covered asana (postures) and pranayama (breath exercise), anatomy and physiology, yoga philosophy and ethics, Sanskrit and Ayurvedics (natural health care).

"I teach yoga to encourage self-realization and healing within the body, mind and spirit. The practice of Hatha Yoga (asana and pranayama) every day can promote a state of mental and physical well-being. It will also improve flexibility, circulation, strength and stamina. Come and get comfortable in your body."
– Nicole Brown

For Private Instruction or more information
Contact nicole@paducahyogacenter.com

or call PYC at 575-0211

registered yoga teacher 500 hours, Yoga Alliance

BARB CONYER, MSN, RN

Private and Semi-Private Sessions Available

RYT 500

Nicole Brown, RYT 500 Barb is a graduate of the Southern Institute for Yoga Instructors. She brings to the yoga community a holistic philosophy of health, seeing yoga as a complimentary alternative modality for maintaining wellness. Barb's focus is in Restorative Yoga. She continues her studies in Yoga by attending yearly workshops under respected teachers in the yoga community.

For Private Instruction or more information
Contact bjconyer@comcast.net

or call PYC at 575-0211

registered yoga teacher 500 hours

ELENA FORESMAN

Vinyasa Flow Yoga

RYT 200

Nicole Brown, RYT 500 Elena was born in Moscow, Russia. Trained from early child hood in Ballet and Rhythm Gymnastics. Elena competed nationally as a Rhythm Gymnast until the age of eighteen. In 1989 she received an Associates degree in Physical Education from Moscow Academe of Sports. In 1996 she moved to New York City to pursue a career in Dance. Elena gratefully found Yoga shortly after her move to the big city, and has been practicing ever since. In 2003 she became certified in the Vinyasa style, and taught at several studios in New York city. She is a registered Yoga Teacher with the national Yoga Alliance. In March 2005, Elena moved to Paducah, Kentucky. She wants to thank Nicole Brown and is honored to have the opportunity to teach at her studio.

For Private Instruction or more information
Contact elenaforesman@aol.com

or call PYC at 575-0211

registered yoga teacher 200 hours

CONNIE HEIN

Every'body' Yoga

RYT 200

Nicole Brown, RYT 500 Connie was born and raised in Paducah. Her interest in health and wellness started at Murray State University, where she earned her bachelor's degree in 1991 in physics. Since then, she has researched various aspects of health and wellness - including nutrition, exercise, meditation, breath work, and imagery. In 2002, she began to learn about yoga and found it to be a way to merge together her former studies. She received her formal training in yoga with the Omaha Yoga and Bodyworks Center. Through this program, she has received training in Raja Yoga, Anatomy and Applied Kinesiology, Chakras, and Ayurveda. She teaches Hatha Yoga, which primarily focuses on asanas (postures), pranayama (breath work), and relaxation.