The term vinyasa means “to place in a special way”, often with intention and meaning. A vinyasa class usually involves moving breath-to-movement, every inhale involves a movement (generally opening movements), and every exhale involves a movement (generally closing movements).

Every teacher and class format will vary, some teachers/classes will hold the poses for more breaths. These tend to be Hatha style classes (a parent style of vinyasa). The classes that are more dedicated to moving quickly tend to be known as “Power Yoga”. My classes are somewhere in between!

And hey, don’t worry if you’re not breathing along with the cues, as long as you’re breathing - you’re in good shape! Yoga comes with consistency and practice. You will see what feels right to you in your body over time. 🙂

Poses you can expect in a typical vinyasa class:

• Downward dog (Ardha Mukho Svanasana)

• Plank (Phalakasana)

• Chaturanga Dandasana

• Chair Pose (Utkatasana)

• Forward Fold (Uttanasana)

• Halfway Lift (Ardha Uttanasana)

• Warrior Poses (Virabhadrasana)

• Surya Namaksar sequences A and B

• … and many more!

P.S. Don’t shy away from using Sanskrit, even if you pronounce it wrong at first. In ballet, they use French terms without even batting an eye!

Find the next class offering here.