the THREE 'A's

Awareness* - Alignment - Action

The Three As are the power behind my sequencing, teaching and personal practice, and are the foundation of Yoga Creative’s purpose.

They distinguish yoga from physical exercise or stretching of localised parts of the body.

Yoga, when practiced with these three As, has the intention of extending awareness, precise alignment and balanced, energetic action evenly throughout the whole body.

Awareness: Setting the Intention

Yoga literally means ‘union’. Yoga’s intention transcends the mere physical in order to reunite with our human qualities of kindness, courage, compassion, forgiveness, strength, acceptance, wisdom, love, peace.

In daily life, we flow in and out of balance with our true selves and can lose sight of these qualities. At times we can feel stuck, blocked, fearful, lonely, angry, uncertain, disconnected.

At the beginning of class I invite you to observe how you are feeling, in your body, heart, mind, breath. Then set an intention that reflects with what matters to you most, a quality to cultivate in your practice. This quiet moment of self-awareness and introspection at the start of class helps align your actions with your values, creating a more meaningful practice.

My advice is to keep it simple.  Choose one word to focus your intention such as:

Presence: Use your practice to cultivate present moment awareness. Focus on being fully present in each moment, connecting to the sensations in your body, in your breath, and letting go of distractions and worries.

Healing: Use your practice to support your physical and emotional healing. By focusing on nurturing your body and mind you create a safe space for healing to occur.

Peace: Use your practice to cultivate inner peace and tranquility. Focus on finding stillness and calm within your body and breath, even amidst chaos and stress.

The power of self-awareness allows you to set an intention from a place of acceptance, meeting yourself exactly as you are, in this moment, on the mat.

It can be a liberating, enlightening, empowering experience.

Alignment: The Foundation of Safety and Exploration

Let’s be clear on one thing… optimal alignment is different for every. single. body. There is no ‘perfect’ expression of a pose. Your back foot does not HAVE to be at a 45% angle in Warrior One. The optimal alignment for you is where there is a healthy flow of blood, of lymphatic fluids, of energy. It’s where there is opening, strengthening and releasing of tensions in fascia, joints, muscles, bones.

Alignment offers a stable foundation for a safe practice. I invite a steady, focused awareness and observation as you move and breath of how the various parts of you are integrated and aligned. This allows your body to open in new ways, and to reduce your risk of injury.

For me, one of the most important aspects of teaching is observing my student’s alignment individually, ensuring that your practice is holding you safe. I use clear verbal cues, assists, and props to help find your own optimal expression of your pose. I look for what is most important for each person, celebrating that every individual is unique, and different and equal.

This inclusive, compassionate approach to teaching is at the heart of Yoga Creative.

Action: The Path to Radiant Health

One of the most effective aspects of Yoga is the principle that for every action in one direction, there should be a balancing action in an opposite direction. Balanced action creates the optimal amount of both stability - muscular action - and freedom of movement - organic action - so that energy can flow freely.

My favourite of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras is 2.46: ‘Sthira Sukham Asanam’, which can be translated as ‘balanced action between effort and ease’. Too much effort blocks the flow of muscular energy, too much ease dulls the organic energy.

Through intelligent sequencing and expert guidance, I can help you develop a practice that balances effort with ease, harnessing the transformative and healing power of balanced action.

Put together, the Three As are the secret of yoga's power to create radiant health.

(*With gratitude, I acknowledge the roots of these 3 A’s in Anusara Yoga philosophy where the first A is Attitude.)