Sample of workshops taught at regional yoga studios by Preston
Email to get his workshop schedule
Preston’s workshops articulate an embodied yoga practice steeped in an awareness of in-depth anatomy, physiology, alignment and skillfull movement. His background in yoga therapeutics, meditation, and the arts, helps students experience the healing and empowering art of yoga for themselves.
Fire in the Belly
Tapas refers to a burning enquiry and aspiration … the spiritual force of concentrated energy generated from within and manifesting creatively in life. Tapas is related to the word Agni or fire. According to the Vedas, Agni is the Divine Will, the sacred spark of divinity that lies within the individual that the practice of tapas, through yoga, stokes. In this workshop we will explore this Agni, the “fire in the belly,” where both the physical and emotional bodies are nourished and fortified. Our asana sequence will tone, coordinate, strengthen and make supple the organs, muscle and connective tissue of the belly. We will improve our ability to feel and engage the belly as a conduit for the flow of energy and communication between the lower & upper limbs and the brain, thus, enhancing our ability to translate the fire in the belly into the fire of knowledge in the mind.
Pelvic Prana
In this workshop we will explore the paradoxical and complementary movement of the life force as it is embodied in the pelvis through apana and prana. Respectively, apana is the downard flow of elemination and prana the upward flow of the life force into expanded consciousness. Our asana sequence will focus on the lower chakra area through pelvic alignment, hip opening and sacral balance — the keys to unlocking the prana of the pelvis.
Balancing on the Beam
For this workshop we will delve into the art of balance. Balance is the process of adapting to constantly changing conditions within and around us. Balance is active. It draws on conscious and unconscious qualities of awareness, fortitude and wisdom. It is evident in the subtle and dramatic responses to stress inherent in the poise of poses, such as, vrksasana and sirsasana, in the fluidity of surya namaskar and the athleticism of urdhva dhanurasana and koundinyasana. We will improve our balance. We will measure and modulate our body/mind as we seek equilibrium on the beam of a challanging asana sequence.
Unlocking the Heart Chi
The perceptive power of the heart, its radiance, its being open/closed to others, its effect upon the authenticity of self, its expression through speech, are all, in part, a function of the heart chi mediating circulation, relationship and awareness among the limbs, organs, self, others and the world. In this workshop, through asana, breath, sound, poetry and meditation, we will be exploring the physical and subtle energy sheaths or “koshas” of the heart and their radiant and perceptive qualities.
Spread Your Wings
The chest, shoulders and arms comprise a central focal point for identity and self expression. The shoulders and arms are among the body’s most mobile and expressive limbs. As such, they must be agile, strong and stable through their connection with the chest and spine. In this workshop we will seek to optimize alignment of the shoulders that they may become more open and secure, allowing for power and freedom in the wings of the arms. Our posture sequence will foster strength, flexibility and balance in the shoulder girdle, as well as help to release tensions in the shoulders and wrists brought on by todayʼs occupations and popular sports.
From the Ground Up
If the feet and legs provide the pillars of stability in yoga, then the hips are like a roundhouse for agile movement. In this workshop we explore the energetic and structural continuities between the feet, legs and hips. Through hip openers, forward bends, back bends and inversions, we will experience a greater awareness of how to root down, grow and blossom from the ground up.
Email Preston at pawjr@earthlink.net