ADVANCED STUDIES COURSE IN YOGA THERAPEUTICS: Expanding Perspectives for Healing and Wholeness

Led by Roxlyn Moret, Laura Staton, Patricia Videgain, and Deborah Wolk, with guest teacher Neta Katz

These workshops, offered on weekends from October 2022 through June 2023, will help students understand the elements involved in healing the body and mind through yoga. Individual workshops and the full course are open to both teachers and students, and are led by acclaimed Samamkaya faculty. Participants will learn alongside each other in a dynamic and nurturing environment.

Course focus will include:

• Learning to see the body and the person before acting upon your expectations – in person and online!
• Self practice, with inner guidance to address your own needs
• Sensing the central channel and limbs through Body-Mind Centering Anatomy for a deep sense of self and internal space
• Seeing and understanding back issues and scoliosis to craft an appropriate practice for you and/or your students 
• Increasing postural strength through the muscular system
• Employing the three paths of Yoga Philosophy – Jnana, Karma, and Bhakti – to facilitate healing 

Our esteemed faculty draw from many traditions: Iyengar Yoga, Yoga & Occupational Therapy, Body-Mind Centering, Yoga for Scoliosis, and Yoga Therapy.

To register for the entire course or any individual workshops please complete our application online here.

DATES FOR 2022-2023 ADVANCED STUDIES PROGRAM:
NOV 19 | Patricia Videgain | Applied Embodiment—Exploring Yoga as Self-Practice (hybrid)
JAN 4, FEB 8, MAR 15, APR 12, MAY 17, SEPT 13, OCT 11, NOV 8, DEC 6 | Deborah Wolk | Adjustments, Modifications, and Verbal Instructions In-Person
JAN 7, 2023 | Patricia Videgain | Create the Environment to Find Inner Guidance in Practice (hybrid)
JAN 18, FEB 15, MAR 29, APR 26, MAY 31, SEPT 27, OCT 25, NOV 15, DEC 20 | Deborah Wolk | Adjustments, Modifications, and Verbal Instructions Online
JAN 28 | Neta Katz | Jnana Yoga: It’s Not Personal—Identifying without Identification (in-person only)
FEB 4 | Deborah Wolk | Anatomy of Back Care (hybrid)
FEB 5 |  Deborah Wolk | Yoga for Back Care (hybrid)
MAR 3-5 | Deborah Wolk | Yoga for Scoliosis Weekend (hybrid)
MAR 18 | Neta Katz | Karma Yoga: Action/Reaction—Reflection with an Eye Toward Freedom (in-person only)
MAR 25 | Roxlyn Moret | Connecting Self to the Environment through the Embodiment to the Limbs (hybrid)
POSTPONED | Laura Staton | Working with Anti-Gravity Muscles to Increase Postural Strength & Resilience (in-person only)
JUN 3 | Neta Katz | Bhakti Yoga: It’s Personal—The Wonder of It All (in-person only)

Adjustments, Modifications and Verbal Instructions

with Deborah Wolk

In-Person & Online!

Wednesdays, 2:15-4:15pm

In-Person Dates: 1/4, 2/8, 3/15, 4/12, 5/17, 9/13, 10/11, 11/8, 12/6

Online Dates: 1/18, 2/15, 3/29, 4/26, 5/31, 9/27, 10/25, 11/15, 12/20

One class for: $40 teachers, $30 Samamkaya Teaching Assistants, $20 Students
Sign up for IN-PERSON CLASSES here
Sign up for ONLINE CLASSES here
Any 3 classes for Teachers/Assistants/Students:  $105/80/54
Any 6 classes for Teachers/Assistants/Students $180/150/100
Any 12 classes for Teachers/Assistants/Students  $300/275/170
This course is approved as an IAYT CE Course and is included in Advanced Studies! Take any 6 classes (12 hours) +  one 1 hour mentoring session for $240

Students with scoliosis have very specific needs with the nervous system, proprioceptive system and with pain patterns.  One must avoid muddled information.  Using prop set-ups, hand on adjustments and verbal instructions, Deborah Wolk will guide you in how to better teach your students with scoliosis.

This class is appropriate for all yoga teachers and for students with scoliosis. Teachers of other modalities (Pilates, personal training, etc.) may attend as teachers with Deborah’s permission. This class is not recommended for brand new beginners to yoga.

Workshops with Patricia Videgain

HYBRID Applied Embodiment—Exploring Yoga as Self-Practice with Patricia Videgain

Saturday, November 19 2:30–5:30pm ET $65
Click here to sign up for the in-person workshop
Click here to sign up for the virtual workshop

In this workshop, we will look at the practice and the experience of yoga asana. 

Building on the concepts introduced by Advanced Studies instructors Deborah Wolk, Roxlyn Moret and Neta Katz, we will explore how to practice while taking into consideration such realities as a student’s back pain or scoliosis. 

We are each unique individuals with personal stories, body stories that sometimes trace back to our time in the womb. Yoga speaks to our layers of being and sometimes to past lives. Practice must be modified for the individual and how the person feels in the moment. That means checking in with one’s body and mind to see if one has the time to practice, how much energy is available, and the current level of pain or discomfort. 

Listening to the body’s innate wisdom requires taking the time to learn and practice the art of paying attention. As we do that, with patience and dedication, we learn to approach yoga asana not so much as an exercise strategy but as a tool for inquiry or self-exploration.

HYBRID Create the Environment to Find Inner Guidance in Practice with Patricia Videgain

Saturday, January 7 2:30–5:30pm ET $65
Click here to sign up for the in-person workshop
Click here to sign up for the virtual workshop

In this workshop we will learn classical Iyengar yoga asana strategies for back pain and scoliosis.  We will explore the dynamics of the practice, working with several concepts which can be labeled either extrinsic or intrinsic:

Breath, Principles of inner observation, Capacity for attention, Following instructions, Alignment principles, Anatomical principles, Posture, and Gesture:  these skills could be referred to as “extrinsic” practices.  

Breath, inner observation and inner focus, felt-sense, checking in with oneself how the practice of a pose at hand translates into our inner experience, tracking and following how the body and our selves change, ideas of innerness and embodiment. We could bundle these concepts in a group called “intrinsic” practices. 

The practicalities of asanas will also be addressed—getting into the pose; being in the pose; coming out of the pose; muscle action; breathing action; what body parts are supporting so others can move; different rhythms of practice as well as different rhythms of the body and the breath. 

Focus on these principles will promote self understanding and healing in your practice and in that of your students.

Patricia Videgain grew up in Santiago, Chile, and lived in Denmark before settling in New Jersey.

She is classically trained and certified in Iyengar Yoga, is an E-RYT 500+ Yoga Alliance instructor . She has been practicing yoga since 1995 and teaching since 2002. She has also taught Experiential Anatomy since 2010 and guided Somatic Meditation group classes since 2017. She received her certification in Embodied Anatomy and Developmental Movement and Yoga from the School for Body Mind Centering. She completed Advanced Studies in Yoga Anatomy under Leslie Kaminoff at the Breathing Project; Embodied Anatomy and Kinesiology under Amy Matthews; and Mindful Self-Compassion Training from the Greater Good Science Center.

In-Person Yoga Philosophy with Neta Katz

January 28, March 18, June 3
Saturdays, 2:30-5:30pm $65 each
All 3 Workshops: $185

Yoga philosophy, beyond its awe-inspiring wisdom and humbling beauty, is effective and practical. 

Three paths in Yoga philosophy are Jnana, Karma, and Bhakti. Are these paths relevant to an asana practice? Are they useful perspectives, or tools in our healing processes? 

In these 3 sessions we will explore how the paths of Jnana, Karma and Bhakti can inform our understanding of asana, healing, and beyond. 

Session 1 – Jnana Yoga: It’s not personal – identifying without identification
Saturday, January 28 2:30-5:30pm $65

Inquiry is an essential tool for understanding one’s patterns. Identifying asymmetries, and imbalances is necessary as we take an active role in our healing process. Examining our unique particularities is fascinating! 
But, as we dedicate ourselves to identifying pattern, are we boxing ourselves in, limiting our experience of who we are? Is it fair to define yourself by your pattern? Your injury? Your pain? Is it useful?

“Who am I?” Is an essential question in the path of Jnana Yoga. 
How can the process of inquiry be used to expand our awareness of who we are? And how can we practice inquiry on the mat in such a way that both zooms in to examine particular detail, but also zooms out to see the big picture, one that’s free and vast.

Session 2 – Karma Yoga: Action/reaction, reflection – with an eye towards freedom
Saturday, March 18 2:30-5:30pm $65

If you’ve been practicing asana, you’ve been experimenting with karma. “When I press my knuckles down in dog pose, then the sides of my body lengthen”. Action/reaction. “When I project my scull forward in tadasana, then my chest withdraws”. Action/reaction. Which direction should I go? What’s the correct action? Reflection. 

The Yoga texts tell us that the correct action leads to freedom.

When practicing asana, we take specific actions that promote an ease-full, spacious and free experience in the body. 
Is this freedom limited to resolving the restrictions of the body? 
Again, let’s zoom out. How far reaching is the potential of action/reaction and reflection. 

Session 3 – Bhakti Yoga: It’s personal – the wonder of it all
Saturday, June 3 2:30-5:30pm $65

Yoga tells us that the source of all, and all its manifestations are one and the same. This singularity and multiplicity are forever linked in cosmic dance. What does that mean? What does it mean to have a particular body, condition, experience, if we reflect on our interconnectedness with perfection? 
Could my particular form be one worthy of wonderment? Be perfect, beautiful, and filled with the potential for self-discovery?  
Can I maintain this perspective as I work with challenging conditions?

Neta Katz has been teaching Iyengar Yoga since 1998 (certified Junior 1). Her style of teaching is deeply rooted in her architecture background, and her love of anatomy. With thoughtful understanding of structure and space, Neta guides students towards a profound understanding of the body and its potential.

With over 20 years of teaching experience, Neta has worked with a wide range of students from beginners seeking an encouraging introduction, to longtime practitioners looking to deepen their practice and understanding.

Having recovered from severe and chronic back pain herself, Neta is dedicated to helping others on their healing journey. Always fascinated in how balance is experienced differently in each and every body, Neta encourages students to go deep into their own particular set of body conditions, and find a center that is unique and individual. A place of balance, harmony, and equilibrium. In addition to teaching asana, Neta is a Licensed massage therapist. To learn more about neta please visit yogawithneta.com

Yoga for Back Care Weekend with Deborah Wolk

February 4 & 5
Saturday 3-5pm
Sunday 10am–1pm & 3–6pm
Full Weekend: $175

ONLINE ONLY Anatomy of Back Care

Saturday, February 4 3-5p $45

This workshop on spinal anatomy and the pathology of back issues will prepare Advanced Studies students and those wishing to learn more about their own back pain for the Back Care workshop on February 5.

Through lecture, visuals, and touch Deborah will cover the following topics in this introductory workshop.

The sagital curves of the spine (neutral spine)
The structure of the spine, vertebrae and spinal disks 
The spinal cord

Physiology of such back issues as: disc herniation and other disc issues, kyphosis, lordosis, spondylolisthesis, sciatica, neck and shoulder issues

Physiology of degenerative bone diseases: osteoporosis, arthritis

HYBRID Yoga for Back Care

Sunday, February 5 10am-1pm & 3pm-6pm $135
Click here to sign up for the In-Person workshop
Click here to sign up for the Virtual workshop

Deborah will teach a direct approach to relief and awareness addressing all types of chronic back pain and alignment issues such as disc herniation, spondylolisthesis, swayback, whiplash and kyphosis. The Yoga poses practiced in this workshop with a specific focus can be the key to alleviating pain and creating more balance in the body. This workshop is for students of all levels who wish to work on any issues related to pain and discomfort in the back and for teachers wishing to learn more about how to work with these issues: 

• How to “see” and correct postural problems and return to neutral curves of the spine
• Defining and describing pain 
• Asana and modifications for acute back issues and pain
• Asana and modifications for chronic back issues and pain 

This workshop is part of the Advanced Studies Course.   It is geared towards yoga teachers learning to teach students with back issues and towards yoga students with back pain or structural issues who would like to deepen their practice by understanding their own patterns. Teachers and students will learn from each other.

 

HYBRID Yoga for Scoliosis Weekend with Deborah Wolk

March 3-5
Friday, 4-6pm: Anatomy of Scoliosis $45
click here for in-person
click here for virtual
Saturday 2:30-6:30pm: Yoga for Scoliosis PRACTICE $90
click here for in-person
click here for virtual
Sunday 10am-12:30pm & 2:30-5PM  Understanding your Student with Scoliosis/Principles of Teaching Yoga for Scoliosis (must be taken with full workshop)
Sunday 5-6pm Optional Q&A (FREE FOR PARTICIPANTS!)
Full Weekend: $240

In this 11 hour workshop weekend, Deborah Wolk, renowned Yoga for Scoliosis teacher, will introduce participants to the anatomy of scoliosis and how it affects oneʼs physiology and health. Yoga asanas and principles of sequencing will be practiced and modified for different curvatures and pain issues. 

On Saturday participants will learn how to develop a yoga practice which specifically addresses their own patterns and needs using awareness and alignment.

On Sunday, through practice, demonstration and discussion participants will learn how to see and understand their student with scoliosis, and understand the principles of teaching yoga for scoliosis.  

The following material will be covered throughout the weekend:

•  Defining scoliosis and asymmetry through spinal anatomy
•  Understanding and “seeing” lateral asymmetry and rotation
•  How scoliosis affects spatial and balance issues
•  How scoliosis affects the nervous system and can create joint issues and pain
• Asana to realign and connect with the limbs.
• Asana and breath techniques to create awareness, relieve pain, balance the nervous system and possibly stabilize the curves themselves.

This workshop is part of the Advanced Studies Course. It is geared towards yoga teachers learning to teach students with scoliosis and towards yoga students with scoliosis who would like to deepen their practice by understanding their own patterns and structure. Teachers and students will learn from each other.

Friday evening’s Anatomy portion and Saturday afternoon’s practice portion can be taken individually. Sunday’s teacher portion must be taken as part of the full weekend. IAYT CE credit will be available to teachers who attend the full weekend course.

Hybrid “Connecting Self to the Environment through the Embodiment to the Limbs” with Roxlyn Moret

March 25
Saturday 2:30–5:30pm $65
In-Person Registration link
Virtual Registration link

Using BMC methodology and her decades of experience with Yoga, Roxlyn Moret will integrate knowledge of embryology with asana, exploring both the process and practice of consciousness while moving through layers of tissue and experience to help all students reach their potential. 

The limb buds start to develop in the 5-week-old embryo. Living cells carry the imprint of this highly energetic potent part of their embryological development. The bones and joint space spiral out. Experiencing how the bones of our limbs articulate and integrate – from our fingers and toes to our Central Axis – can allow our joint spaces to be more fluid  and supportive.

Roxlyn Moret has been exploring, practicing, and teaching movement and the healing arts for 40 years. She is a Body Mind Centering ® teacher; a certified Laban /Bartenieff Movement Analyst; an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher with the Yoga Alliance; and a Registered Somatic Movement Educator with the International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association. She teaches yoga, BMC℠ and Chi Gung.

Her background includes dance, studying Tai Chi Chuan with Maggie Newman; Shiatsu; Cranial Sacral therapy; and touch for healing. She co-coordinates the Embodied Developmental Movement and Yoga program by her longtime mentor Bonnie Cohen (founder of BMC℠). She teaches teachers, corporate groups, co-teaches annual workshops in the Swiss cities of Basel and Lucerne and has an active yoga practice in New York City.

In-Person Working with Anti-Gravity Muscles to Increase Postural Strength & Resilience with Laura Staton

POSTPONED NEW DATES TBA

Part One:

Part One will explore which 6 muscle groups comprise the antigravity muscles, their localized function, and what roles they play in maintaining posture and flexible, healthy alignment. This material will be learned verbally and non-verbally, with the class exploring how their own bodies respond to differing postural positions including standing, sitting, prone and supine. We will  work as partners and/or small groups to feel our own and others postural adaptations to gravity.

Part Two:

Part Two will explore the 6 antigravity muscle groups in the context of yoga practice. We will problem-solve which prone, standing and seated poses utilize anti-gravity muscle groups and how to specifically engage the antigravity muscles through traditional asana practice and during transitions in and out of poses. We will also problem-solve on different types of postural challenges such as kyphosis and lordosis and will continue this work in partners and/or small groups. 

Laura Staton holds a master’s degree of science in occupational therapy from NYU and is a C-IAYT Yoga Therapist specializing in injury rehabilitation. She works as a yoga therapist and occupational therapist and her recent book bridging these two disciplines, Yoga Bones: A Comprehensive Guide to Managing Pain and Orthopedic Injuries Through Yoga, was published in 2021. 

Laura is passionate about yoga’s powerful effect on physical and emotional well-being and how it interacts with daily life. She teaches continuing education and professional development courses for Yoga Alliance and IAYT in addition to teaching at Yogi’s and Yogini’s in Brooklyn and Adaptive Yoga at Samamkaya Yoga Back Care & Scoliosis Collective in Manhattan. For many years, Laura was a dancer and choreographer in NYC. She received her BFA from The Juilliard School and is the co-author of Baby Om -Yoga for Mothers & Babies.