Student of the Month - September 2024 - Claire

🌟🌟🌟𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄🌟🌟🌟
👩‍🎓🧑‍🎓🎓𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐇!!!!👩‍🎓🧑‍🎓🎓

I hope you will enjoy my new feature, ‘Student of the Month’, where you can find out about how Iyengar Yoga fits into the lives of all sorts of people that attend classes. First up is Claire, (also known as Queen of the Crash Helmet - but that's another story🤣) who is a very dedicated and determined student, full of enthusiasm with a brilliant sense of humour. She is a great friend to everyone, rarely missing a class and when she does always manages a bit of practice wherever she is - as you can see from the photos!

❓Tell us a bit about yourself…..
🧘‍♀️My name is Claire. I work and live in South Somerset with my family, which includes 2 guinea pigs! I attend one yoga class a week and would really like to do two a week. 

❓How long have you been practising yoga?
🧘‍♀️I started practising yoga in 2000 when I lived in Salisbury. I found an Iyengar teacher who held evening classes and was able to attend these for 3 years before moving from the area. When I moved there were no IY teachers nearby so I did some other types of yoga for a little while. I re-started my IY practice properly in later summer 2022 with Lisa and haven't looked back.

❓What made you start yoga?
🧘‍♀️The reasons I started yoga originally may have been all the 'wrong' reasons but actually they turned into all the right reasons! I wanted to meet people and make friends in the area I was living; I wanted to 'do' something - be active and exercising. When I re-started two years ago it was not only for my own wellbeing, fitness and health but because I missed the IY way and practising with instruction. I'd been wanting to pick it up again for a long time and was thrilled to find Lisa's classes.

❓What’s your favourite pose?
🧘‍♀️Favourite pose is a tricky one - I have several that I really enjoy and some which I can't do yet but aspire to be able to do (Like Pincha Mayurasana and Bakasana!). Favourites for me can change too depending on season and how I am feeling and how I may be developing or improving poses. I always enjoy Prasarita Paddotanasana, Sarvanganasa, Sirsasana and the Marichyasanas.

❓And what is your favourite yoga prop?
🧘‍♀️Favourite prop has to be my new foam bricks! So much nicer to use than the original wooden bricks I have from when I started 24 years ago!! Also love my uber sticky mat which replaced my original mat last year.

❓How has practicing yoga benefitted your life?
🧘‍♀️Its benefitted my life in lots of ways! Physically in terms of strength, tone, fitness, mobility. Mentally in terms of learning to focus, relax and meditate and learn more about me, as well as practically by giving me tools and techniques to help in daily life. Bringing amazing new friends into my life and having wonderful experiences. It's true ' yoga citti vritta nihrodhah'. It keeps me balanced in every sense! 

❓What makes you keep practicing?
🧘‍♀️The need for my own sanity and to bring some calm and chill into my life. To spend time learning and practising; to see friends and to get my 'fix' for  my yoga addiction! 

❓Anything else you’d like to add?
🧘‍♀️Lisa is an absolutely fantastic and inspirational teacher. I have learned so much from her about yoga in the last two years (there is much more to yoga than just doing poses). My practice and skills have developed because of Lisa's excellent instruction and unwavering support and encouragement. 


🙏❤ Thank you Claire for sharing your yoga journey with us!

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#iyengaryoga
Iyengar Yoga UK