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Foundation Course

aYs Foundation Courses Outline

This course is for those who wish to develop their skills and experience of working within a yoga framework developed from the work of Krishnamacharya, TKV Desikachar and Paul Harvey. It is for those who have some experience of yoga practice and wish to develop their knowledge in support of their own practice. This course will provide appropriate tuition for those wishing to train as teachers within this tradition, for example by taking the Sadhana Mala Teacher Training Course(http://www.sadhanamala.com), which is an aYs approved course.

Course Outline is as follows:

  1. BACKGROUND TO YOGA

    • Definition and role of yoga, and yoga practices

    • Time line revision (from Intro Course)

    • Origins review, overviews of HYP Karma, Jnana and Bhakti Yoga (linked to texts)

    • Yoga and Samkhya, (Purusha , Prakriti, Gunas)

    • Yoga schools and traditions (eg Viniyoga, Iyengar, Sivananda, Astanga Vinyasa)
  2. PRACTICE DESIGN

    • Breath and movement
    • SLIBS (review)
    • Counterpose
    • Sthira/sukha (review, covered in Intro Course)

    • Dynamic and static

    • Langhana and Brmhana

    • Vinyasa – bringing it all together, and linking of asana, pranyama, mudra and bandha in practice
    • Role of chanting and meditation
  3. ASANA

    • Overall view of asana and groupings, Standing, Floor, Inverted, Seated

    • Description of postures using headings,

    • Name, Form, Place in practice, preparation, counterpose, breathing, contra-indications, modifications, bhavana

    • Link postures: samasthiti, vajrasana, (+ dynamic), savasana, apanasana, chakravakasana

    • Forward bends: Uttanasana, paschimotanasana, janu sirsana

    • Backward bends: Dvi pada pitham, Bhujangasana, Virabhadrasana 1

    • Twists: jathara parivritti, Parivritti trikonasana, Ardha matsyendrasana

    • Inverted: sarvangasana

    • Seated: Sukhasana, padmasana, (vajrasana), siddhasana

    • Balances: Vrksasana
    • Side bends: Trikonasana
  4. PRANAYAMA

    • Natural breath

    • Length quality, rhythm (review from Intro Course)

    • Length, pauses and ratio

    • Directional Breathing

    • Techniques to include: Ujjayi, Anuloma Ujjayi, Nadi Shodhana, Sitali / Sitkari,

    • Vinyasa
    • Simple practice design
  5. YOGA PHILOSOPHY

    • Overview (based on timeline)

    • Yoga Sutra Citta vritti nirodha, Sthira sukha (review from Intro Course)

    • Mind and the role of yoga
    • YS 1-10, astanga yoga leading into Ch.3

    • Hatha Yoga Pradipika, - more detailed overview, structure and sequence of chapters, links between them

    • Kriya yoga, especially isvara pranidhana
    • Astanga yoga especially yama and niyama

    • Yoga sutra and meditation (outline concepts)

    • Relevance of these concepts today
  6. MEDITATION

    • Definition and Purpose from the Yoga sutra

    • Experience of meditational practice, such as breath awareness, use of external objects e.g. light source
  7. SOUND AND CHANTING

    • Sound in asana
  8. OBSERVATION AND TEACHING OF YOGA

    • What is the role of a posture, and how can it change?
    • Form and function – linked to asana discussions

    • Working with the spine, linked to A&P
  9. ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY

    • Functional breathing components (revision from Intro course)

    • Spine, form and function

    • The next two should be linked to kinesiology:

    • Vulnerable areas and safe practice – spine, especially neck, lower back; joints, especially knees

    • Functional stretching – targeted areas such as shoulders & upper back, chest, lower back / hamstrings
  10. KINESIOLOGY

    • Movement and levers

    • Prime movers and antagonists

    • Flexion and extension, of spine and major limbs (linked to forward and backward bends)
  11. HOME STUDY

    • Tutor set asana practice, later incl. pranayama
    • Preparatory reading from Heart of Yoga, Yoga sutras and handouts