Kripalu Yoga

Tonight I tried Kripalu yoga at Twisters, a class advertised as gentle yoga.  The room itself was very nice - plain walls, shiny hardwoord floors like you'd find in an old gymnasium, and modern track lighting.  Unfortunately the sound system wasn't functioning properly so we did the session without music.

The instructor, Teri, was a substitute and so this class may not have been representative of the usual one.  Regardless, it was a good class with a mixture of flowing movements and static poses.  The session definitely lived up to its name - the poses were simple and not strenuous on any joints, and Teri showed us ways to make them more or less challenging depending on our abilities.  There were many familiar poses as well as a few that were new to me.  The class ended with Savasana, during which Teri actually massaged everyone's feet.  This was truly an unexpected treat (and from what I understand, not what the regular instructor does).  Although the class was less challenging than my Wednesday sessions with Rena, I did leave feeling relaxed and centered - mission accomplished.  

Afterwards I did a bit of research on this style of yoga.  To my untrained eye, the only differences I noticed were the absence of sun salutations (which I really missed) and the simplicity and ease of the poses.  Turns out that in addition to the gentler poses, this style of yoga emphasizes meditation, physical healing and spiritual transformation.  Kripalu also tends to appeal to seniors (in fact, a couple women in the class jokingly referred to it as 'old lady yoga') as well as the overweight. 

So there you have it, my report on my first Kripalu yoga class.  I will most likely give it another try when the regular instructor returns - just to see what, if anything, she does differently.  Honestly, the class was very nice but I think in general I enjoy a slightly more strenuous practice.