Yoga East, Provincetown

It is always good to step out of your comfort zone. Stepping into a yoga studio can be genuinely stressful; a new space, a new teacher and in most cases an unexpected series can be intimidating. However, those thoughts melt so fast once my feet hit my mat and my toes spread, standing in taadaasana (aka samasthiti, mountain posture).

This morning Charlotte and I tried a yoga class at Yoga East here in Cape Cod, MA. I feel pretty bad for forgetting my instructors name, especially after hearing what Tom has to say about how important names are for someone wanting to teach. What she said that I do remember, though, is that she is a teacher of Anusara Yoga. That being said, I will refer to her as Sara. Sara started the class by telling us about herself. She is a journalist and has relocated from Boulder, Colorado. Anusara Yoga is a branch of Ianygar Yoga, it foucuses on alignment, she told us.

The class went as follows (roughly, what I remember)
Seated Sequence:
Seated posture
Neck Stretch (forward, back & side to side)
Reach for Toes
Seated twist (right & left)
Table (wave breathing, cat/cow)

Standind Sequence:
Downward Facing Dog
Right leg up and back
Stack hips, Bend Knee
Flip over, one arm backbend
(other side)
Meet in downward facing dog
Shift forward into plank
Flow through a few vinyasas
Right leg up and back
Bend knee toward chest
Lay it down into pigeon (eka pada rajakapotasana)
Twist in pigeon, hold back foot
Untwist, reach forward
Shift back into downward facing dog
(other side)

Jump up to the top of the mat
Straight legs, flat back
Bring arms up, reach up
Swan dive forward
Utkatasaana (x2)

Stand, face the side
Triangle Pose to the right
Lunge, side warrior (?)
(otherside)
Yogi toe grip, head to floor

Face the front
Standing shoulder stretch (right & left)

Bridge pose (sarvangasana)
Wheel pose (urdhva dhanurasana)

Child pose
Headstand/handstand
Happy baby
Shavasaana

The class was lovely, the instructor was very friendly and very insightful. My only critique is that the movement from one sequence to another was a bit choppy. However, this made the class feel more like a workshop. I was able to ask a lot of questions about headstand/handstand that I had been curious about. Of cource I look forward to returning to Eyes of the World but I am pleased to have been able to try out a new studio.