Beth's yoga practice began when she was diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with a Rheumatoid Arthritis crossover at the age of 19. The amount of pain and joint inflammation from RA, and the exhaustion caused by Lupus transformed even the most basic movements into painful overwhelming chores.
Thankfully, it was recommended that she try Yoga as a solution for her illness.
More than a decade has past since that first initial step into a yoga journey. Today Beth enjoys a medication free remission from her symptoms. In that time she has earned her Master's Degree in Education from Pepperdine University and has completed a 500-hour ERYT program through Yoga Works in Santa Monica.
Beth attributes a large part of her recovery to her yoga practice. She continues to study Therapeutic Yoga under her mentor, Jasmine Lieb and draws upon her Iyengar studies with Lisa Walford and Ashtanga practice with Sonya Cottle to bring a balanced approach to the physical aspects of her classes. She has a heart for introducing Yoga to those new to the practice, especially those who are looking to discover the powerful healing effects of Yoga. Beth knows the transformative effects of Yoga first hand, and is inspired to educate others about the amazing mental, physical and spiritual benefits a yoga practice can provide.
This instructive practice for beginners demystifies yoga asana with step-by-step pose break downs and tips for avoiding common areas of compensation or injury with a focus on torso and core stability in a yoga practice over-all. The class begins with breath and core awareness, a gentle warm-up, and then continues with an arc of warming poses, standing poses, and an explanation of classic Surya Namaskar A. The class ends with a balancing cool-down including a gentle backbend and twist.
This class is full of suggestions for avoiding and working around knee pain in your yoga practice. Injuries can become a frustration and can keep us away from our practice, so this class aims to give tools and suggestions for continuing to practice yoga even with knee injuries or issues.
This practice is a gentle practice which I used to re-connect with my body during recovery from a chronic illness. The poses move gently on the breath without long holds. The focus is on feeling good in body, mind, and spirit. The class ends with legs up the wall pose, a gentle inversion that soothes the entire body.
This gentle practice is for healing from auto-immune disorders, particularly those who are coming out of a period of severe inflammation or joint pain. This class is a path to get back in touch with the body and the breath after a period of illness, or even if you are currently experiencing pain or exhaustion.
Struggling with wrist pain in Yoga? This tutorial helps by investigating common reasons for wrist pain: 1-It may be the hands are in an awkward position, 2-Fingers are simply not spread wide enough and weight is being poorly distributed into palm 3-The arm and core muscles are not doing their job - putting pressure on wrists. Alternatives for Plank, Down Dog, and other troublesome poses are explained
This practice strengthens the legs as it warms and prepares the shoulders and spine for backbends. We build strength with standing poses including Chair Pose and Warrior 3. Then, the class peaks with an intermediate version of Locust Pose.
This practice uses revolved poses and functional shoulder movements to bring vitality to the spine, shoulders, lungs, abdomen and nervous system. The sequence also includes basic core work and standing postures in order to move deeply and safely into twisting postures. We end the practice with supported Dolphin (Headstand Prep) and Savasana.
Today's practice lays the foundation for creating both strength and flexibility in the legs. We use the wall to add resistance and illuminate how to engage the leg muscles in standing poses, twists and back bends.
This class uses the wall, body-weight and gravity to build stability and strength. We do most of the class at the wall, using it as resistance to strengthen arms, abdominals and legs. The peak of the class is Hand-To-Big-Toe Pose and challenging variations on Warrior Three.
This practice is focused on supporting healthy posture, which includes core-strengthening, heart-opening, and shoulder stretching. Starting with your choice of a block or blanket backbend, we then warm the body with modified sun salutations and standing poses and peak the class with a big backbend at the wall, that will eventually lead the body into a practice of "drop-backs."
