Making Space
Autumn Yoga Workshop with Amey Mathews
October 6-8, 2017
When we embark on a yoga retreat, we are “making space” in our lives for contemplation, deepened study, and quality time with ourselves. Every time we practice yoga we are making space in our bodies, learning to find new potential for movement and insight. Through self-study and contemplation, we make emotional space for personal development. Through study of the yoga teachings, we make intellectual space for new understandings and new perspectives. Together we can bring our whole selves: body, heart and intellect into the practice. Where there is space, there is resonance. Where there is resonance, there is vibration. Where there is vibration, there is prana, Where there is prana, there is vitality.
Make space for few insights, fresh perspectives, new abilities, and a fresh sense of self.
Open to students with all levels of practice and experience. Variations/modifications will be offered to help everyone feel safe and challenged.
Friday October 6th, 5-7pm
Restorative Yoga & Pranayama
The first class of our weekend together will provide an opportunity to mindfully enter into a new head space. We’ll gracefully remove the layers of the week and of the travel and tasks required to attend a weekend retreat, and create an atmosphere that is conducive to reflection and growth. This 2-hour session will include gentle postures to balance the energy in the body and mind, soothing pranayama, and probably a touch of yoga philosophy to establish the mood for rest of the weekend!
Saturday October 7th, 9am-12pm
Philosophy, Meditation, Asana
In early autumn, the leaves are changing colors, the natural world is simultaneously abundant and waning. Days are still bright and warm, but evenings are longer and have a little chill in the air. In our asana practice we also find that many qualities can exist at once: expansion and contraction, vitality and fatigue, clarity and uncertainty. By making space for all that we experience, we invite our whole self to the mat with us. In this way, we develop intimacy with ourselves. This 3-hour session will include asana practice with standing poses, core work, and twisting postures, as well as a talk on the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, and guided meditation.
Saturday October 8th, 3-6pm
Pranayama, Asana
To “make space” requires that we clear away obstructions and clutter, like getting rid of old books so that you can create room for new arrivals. In this afternoon practice, we’ll gently and fastidiously make space in the hips, spine, and shoulders for deeper back bends and soothing forward extensions. This clearing process can be done with mindfulness, playfulness, and care… so that the nervous system and the emotional responses remain open and unguarded. This class will also include a gentle pranayama practice.
Sunday October 9th, 9-11:30am
Integration, Asana, Meditation
Making space in our bodies and in our minds is a process that requires equal parts of action and inaction; this requires patience, courage, humor, and persistence. A willingness to return and breathe deeply. This will be a full-bodied class, integrating the poses, actions, and concepts that we’ve investigated over the weekend. Like when you’re traveling and you decide to go back to your favorite restaurant one last time before leaving town, we’ll revisit the teachings of the weekend, connect them together, and give our bodies an opportunity to reinforce what we’ve experienced.
Sunday October 9th, 1-3pm
Hiking Adventure!
Join Amey and our host Emily for a hike in the woods! Being in nature gives us a sense of wonder and perspective! We’re reminded of our place as part of an inter-connected whole. And also we can laugh and talk and have fun together!
Space is limited ~ Register in advance.
Info@TrailsWithin.com or (530) 836-1500
All sessions before 9/23: $140, after $160
One session before 9/23: $40, after $45
Traveler Plan: $30 admin fee (Amey’s students)
Group dinner Saturday: $30
Sunday Hike $15
Amey Mathews’ classes are filled with metaphors, stories, humor, ample variations, and lots of encouragement to feel both safe and challenged. She began studying yoga as a student at Stanford University in 1993, and is always searching out ways to continue her yogic education. Though she has chosen not to become a certified Iyengar teacher, Amey is a great fan of the Iyengar method – and the creativity, versatility, rigor and playfulness that it affords her as both a practitioner and as a teacher. She has also studied the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali with Kausthub Desikachar, and teaches with an emphasis on including yoga philosophy and concepts alongside the postures. She has been a devoted student of Kofi Busia since 2000, and more recently also began studying with Christina Sell in 2013. Amey is one of the owners of Yoga Within studio in Aptos, CA. www.yogawithamey.com
@ameyfm on Instagram
Cancellation Policy for Workshops at Trails Within
Workshops fill on a first come, first served basis. Your spot is not guaranteed unless you prepay for it.
Cancellations 7 or more days prior to start of a workshop will receive a full refund.
For cancellations less than 7 days before the workshop, we will only be able to issue a refund or studio credit if you are able to find a replacement for your reserved space.
Cancellations within 48 hours of the start of the workshop, if you do not show up, or if you leave an event early for any reason, no credit or refund is available.
Thank you for understanding.