A Yoga Therapy Intensive (London)

What Will the Intensive Cover?

You will learn classic Viniyoga techniques and tools to work with your condition such as breath-centric āsana,breath adaptation in āsana, prāṇāyāma, mantra japa, and meditation in order to:

• improve physical and mental function
• manage your energy
• reduce and manage pain
• root out, address, and reduce causes of your own suffering

‘Yoga therapy treats the whole person, seeking to change attitudes and actions that inhibit the natural healing process, and cultivate attitudes and actions that support it.’ - Gary Kraftsow, MA, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT
 

Day 1: Yoga Therapy for Structural Health

In these two sessions, Gary will cover several common structural issues and introduce participants to a set of basic Yoga Therapy tools adapted to address them. These sessions will give participants the opportunity to experience how these tools work in their own bodies, and an understanding of how they might use them when working with their clients.

• In the AM session, we will focus on the lower back & sacrum – Issues of the lower back and sacrum are very common. We will explore the most common problematic conditions that impact these areas of our structure, their contraindications, and the Yoga Therapy tools we can use to support healing.
• In the PM session, we will focus on the neck & shoulders – As with the lower back and sacrum, issues of the neck and shoulders are also very common. We will explore the most common problematic conditions that impact these areas of our structure, their contraindications, and the Yoga Therapy tools we can use to support healing.

Our practices in both sessions of day 1 will focus on adapted, breath-centric āsana.

Day 2: Yoga Therapy for Physiological Health

• In the Am session, we will focus on stress – Stress is a pervasive symptom that can be both a causal and a complicating factor in almost any physiological condition. We will explore the mechanism of the stress response and how to apply yoga therapy tools to effectively manage it.
• In the PM session, we will focus on fatigue – Like stress, fatigue can be both a causal and a complicating factor in almost any physiological condition. We will explore the nature of fatigue and various factors influencing it, and how to apply yoga therapy tools to effectively manage it.

Our practices in both sessions of day 2 will focus on adapted, breath-centric āsana, breath adaptation in āsana, and prāṇāyāma.

Day 3: Yoga Therapy for Mental Health

We will focus on aspects of mental health with an emphasis on how to manage our emotions and our internal dialogue, particularly in the face of stressful, changing circumstances.

• In the AM session, we will focus on anxiety – Anxiety is a pervasive condition that manifests in a variety of ways, ranging from an intermittent to a persistent psycho-emotional state, and even as a more serious psychiatric condition. We will explore the more common types of anxiety and the theory and practice of adapting the tools of Yoga Therapy to manage them.
• In the PM session, we will focus on depression – Like anxiety, depression is a common condition that manifests in a variety of ways, ranging from an intermittent to a persistent psycho-emotional state, and even as a more serious psychiatric condition. We will explore the more common types of depression, and the theory and practice of adapting the tools of Yoga Therapy to manage them.

Our practices in both sessions of day #3 will focus on adapted, breath-centric āsana, breath adaptation in āsana, prāṇāyāma, mantra japa, and meditation.

Who is This Course for?

• Yogis interested in levelling-up their knowledge
• Yoga Teachers who want to expand their knowledge and who have an interest in YT
• Yoga Therapists with an interest in Viniyoga methodology who appreciate learning from a Master Teacher

Certification
 

You will receive a Yogacampus e-certificate of attendance for 18 CPD hours.

The course is also eligible for IAYT APDs (Continuing Education Credits) and Yoga Alliance Continuing Education credits.

Meet the Teacher

Gary Kraftsow has been a pioneer in the transmission of yoga for health, healing and personal transformation for over 40 years. He began his study of yoga in India with T.K.V. Desikachar in 1974 and received a Viniyoga Special Diploma from Viniyoga International in Paris, France in 1988.

Gary graduated with a BA, Magna Cum Laude, from Colgate University in 1976 and received his Masters Degree in Psychology and Religion from the University of California at Santa Barbara in 1983. Around that time, he opened the Maui School of Yoga Therapy. In 1999, he founded the American Viniyoga Institute™, LLC. Since then, he has become a renowned speaker and teacher of the Viniyoga methodology at many conferences and schools nationally and internationally.

Gary has successfully developed the protocol for two National Institutes of Health studies: “Evaluating Yoga for Chronic Low Back Pain” and “Yoga Therapy for Generalized Anxiety”, as well for the “Mind-Body Stress Reduction in the Workplace” clinical trial for Aetna Insurance Company.

He is the Director and Senior Teacher of the American Viniyoga Institute (AVI®), the author of two books published by Penguin: Yoga for Wellness and Yoga for Transformation, and author of four educational DVD’s: Viniyoga Therapy for Low Back, Sacrum and Hips and Viniyoga Therapy for Upper Back, Neck and Shoulders, Viniyoga Therapy for Depression, and Viniyoga Therapy for Anxiety. He has also produced several online workshops: Pranayama Unlocked, Meditation Unlocked, Yoga Therapy for Depression, Yoga Therapy for Better Sleep, Yoga Therapy for Anxiety, and Āsana Unlocked.