What to Expect in a Workshop

Workshops are a great way to learn more about yoga and to refine specific areas of your personal practice. Topics vary widely and include asanas (poses), pranayama techniques (breath and movement of energy) and meditation. Most are open to the public and to all backgrounds and levels of experience. Others are designated primarily for teachers and serious practitioners. Each is described in detail to ensure that you know what you are signing up for.

In most yoga classes, you simply do the practice that the teacher is instructing. In workshops, we pause to fully consider questions such as “why,” “how,” “when” and “what if.” In many workshops we go into detail about the functional anatomy of specific asanas, looking closely at how different people experience what it’s like and how anyone can find a more effective approach. We contrast different approaches, explore a variety of options and identify the modifications and variations that are appropriate for each participant.

Workshops vary from two hours to an entire weekend (usually 10-12 hours) or week. Check the schedule for details and prepare accordingly in your practice, nutrition and rest so you can get the most from the experience.

Around mid-morning there is a complete Vinyasa Flow class. We then break for lunch, which is usually the most substantial meal of the day. Afternoons are filled with options such as yoga clinics, one-on-one instruction, massage, spas treatments, excursions such as hiking, snorkeling, surfing, horseback riding, tours of local attractions, sailing, napping, reading or just sitting and doing nothing at all. In the late afternoon we typically gather for a deeply relaxing and restorative yin-style yoga class. After dinner, evenings might offer meditation, kirtan, satsang, a sweat lodge, dancing, entertainment,  full moon walks along the beach, hiking or just hanging out.

Location, season and theme gives each retreat a unique character that is further defined by who attends. Who attends? Just look around in your classes and you’ll see who is likely to be there. Retreats are a wonderful place to deepen your spiritual practice, to gain clarity amidst  life transitions, to heal, to grow, to meet  and connect with other amazing people. They are the perfect place for doing purifying cleanses, opening your mind, detoxifying your body, settling your emotions and opening your heart to all its infinite potential. Of course they are also a great way to deepen your yoga practice, to learn more nuanced elements of a yoga lifestyle, to get deep into meditation, to change your life.