A Place For
Yoga and Health
Yoga for “Every Body”
Classes for All Levels and Abilities
250-878-1251
I have moved to the other side of the lake! Now living in Killiney Beach from Lake Country.
I am currently teaching in my new home studio.
Come check it out!
IN STUDIO AND ONLINE FALL CLASSES ARE AVAILABLE NOW!
Check the Classes/Fees Page for more information
WHY IYENGAR YOGA?
Structure
Iyengar practice is a progressive one where you learn to build a stable foundation before attempting more demanding asanas. Standing poses are emphasized and first taught to Beginners which introduce them to working their entire body. Then they are gradually introduced to a broader range of sitting and supine yoga asanas, forward extensions, inversions, twists, backbends and arm balances.
Supported
The Iyengar method will often utilize various yoga props such as blankets, blocks and belts. These props may be used to improve your understanding of poses or to offer support if you have difficulties or limitations. Postures in the Iyengar method are held for longer than in most other methods, allowing tight muscles to lengthen and relax, and helping to refine body awareness.
Diversity
No two Iyengar classes are the same. Iyengar teachers instruct each individual class by choosing asanas from the different groups of poses which will help emphasise the various aspects of the practice desired. Each group of yoga postures develops the body in different yet reciprocal ways and has different qualities such as grounding, energising, strengthening, stimulating or calming.
Accessibility
The Iyengar method is accessible to everyone. Through regular practice one will obtain an increase in suppleness, strength and stamina. The practice also improves posture and concentration and quietens the mind to promote well-being. Practising the yoga postures with awareness has an integrating effect and works to harmonise mind and body. Iyengar yoga has been described as meditation in action.
Integrity
You can trust that your Certified Iyengar yoga teacher has undergone a rigorous program of training which lasts years. Many teachers will have decades of experience, traveling regularly to India for instruction. They must uphold their own personal practice and study as well as ongoing teacher training in order to maintain their certification. Most teachers choose to progress to higher levels of certification.
Safety
Emphasis is on precision and alignment. Quality of movement is prioritised over quantity. You are taught to move with ease in your body while working within your limitations bringing safety to the learning process. Classes at all levels devote time to relaxation. Only when the body and mind are strong enough to sit or lie for extended periods without distraction, students begin to learn pranayama.
“Yoga is a mirror to look at ourselves from within.”
-BKS Iyengar
Our Classes
Join A Class Today!
Beginner
Here basic Iyengar poses are taught focusing on mobility, stability, strength, alignment and relaxation. Yoga philosophy is introduced so students understand the connection between body, mind and breath.
Students from other methods of yoga are also encouraged to start here in order to better understand and apply the basic principles of Iyengar yoga in the primary asanas.
Intermediate
In this level more challenging postures such as inversions and back extensions are introduced. Students must be prepared to work with more refinement in each asana and hold the postures for much longer.
A home practice is now strongly encouraged to help students deepen and maintain their understanding of Iyengar’s work. Classes will focus more on yoga philosophy.
Gentle/Senior
The Gentle class might be more suitable for you if you have an injury or if you are working with physical restrictions such as back, neck, knee, or shoulder problems, are overweight, weak, elderly, or if you simply want to participate in a slower paced class.
Modifications of the poses are offered and most postures are done with support.
General
Suitable for all students, even beginners. The classes will be taught so that all students work together to develop a deeper understanding of Iyengar yoga practice.
Students will be assisted to work safely and appropriately at their current level to build stamina and explore a wide variety of asanas including inversions.
“Regular practice of yoga can help you face the turmoil of life with steadiness and stability.”
-BKS Iyengar
Why Choose Us
Customized Instruction For Every Student
Iyengar Yoga teachers are renowned as the best trained yoga teachers in the world and must complete a minimum 3-5 years of rigorous and disciplined training for even a basic “introductory level” of certification. Many Iyengar teachers choose to move on towards higher levels of certification which can take at least another decade of continued personal practice and teaching.
“Training of mind and body leads to awareness of the soul”.
– BKS Iyengar
Expert Instructors
Your Instructor
“Lynne Bowsher is a devoted and competent teacher of Iyengar yoga. Every time I leave her class my body feels invigorated, realigned and restored.
Twenty years ago, I enrolled in a community ed yoga class in St. Paul, Minnesota. Being my first classes, I thought all yoga would be similar to these first classes. Not so. I soon learned Iyengar yoga was keen on precision, using props so all students can do the same poses, regardless of flexibility or strength.
I value that teachers are required to undertake rigorous and extensive training. I value the deep roots of Iyengar to the yogic tradition in India, and how Iyengar yoga holds true to these roots in the West. I have grown in strength and flexibility because of Iyengar yoga, yes. But I have become a more grounded and compassionate human being with the help of this tradition.”
Lynne Bowsher
Certified Iyengar Yoga Instructor
Lynne owns and operates A PlaceFor Yoga and Health. She loves to share her passion of yoga with her students, helping them to appreciate the benefits of the Iyengar method of yoga. Lynne consistently participates in on-going Teacher Training to upgrade her qualifications. She currently holds her Intermediate Junior II level of Certification. Lynne has traveled six times to Pune, India to study with the Iyengar family at the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute.
“I am very pleased to give a testimonial about my experience with A Place for Yoga. I live in the Lakes, but never took the time to check out this studio while I was working, I was just too tired after work I guess. Then I retired this spring and decided to give it a try.
At first I found the Iyengar method quite different from any other yoga class I had been to. With Lynne’s great instruction I soon found myself completely present at each class, feeling muscles I had forgotten I had.
I especially like that there is always more to learn, both spiritually and physically.
I now look forward to attending as many classes as I can.”
“All may be able to do yoga but only one in a million is fit to be called a yogi.”
– BKS Iyengar
Testimonials
What People Are Saying
“Yoga practice has made me able to deal with the inevitable ups and downs in life without too much difficulty. Although life still presents the usual things I have been able to bounce back from each experience. The practice is like a thread which simply has to be picked up again.” —CE
“Iyengar Yoga has brought a sense of stillness, an ability to appreciate the moment, and a sense of the vastness of consciousness in life.”—CT
“Doing Iyengar Yoga, I was able to focus and take care of my body with all its qualities and imperfections. This different approach to practice had an immediate effect on my state of mind. I felt calmer, more focused and engaged.” — JL
Are You Ready to Change?
Come take a class and bring Iyengar Yoga into your life. Be ready for the practice to change you on many levels. For the better of course!
9556 Winchester Road
Vernon, BC V1H 2E2
250-878-1251