Have you noticed the light of the moon against the dark clear sky the last few nights? I’ve found it spilling through windows into unlit rooms creating that soft luminous glow that only comes from the moon.
In the tradition of yoga there is a fundamental recognition of the impact nature, including the cycles of the moon, on our day to day experiences. The bright and warm daytime sun supports us in the active, outward focus that is needed to get things done. The moon, on the other hand, is cool and reflective with an inward focus that helps us to move toward rest and renewal.
According to Yoga International, “The aim of hatha yoga is to balance our lunar and solar energies…”. Our Full Moon Yoga classes are designed to do exactly that. During this 75 minute special class we take the full moon as our inspiration to balance the warm, active, and outwardly oriented sun energy of daily life with the cool, receptive, and inwardly focused moon energy that feeds our creativity and imagination.
Please join us for Full Moon Yoga THIS SUNDAY, October 13, from 6 – 7:15 pm in Studio A!To pre-register, email Carol at [email protected] or call 319-895-8060. The cost is one class card punch or $15 for drop-in. Full Moon Yoga is an all levels class appropriate for all abilities.
What sets yoga at First Street Community Center apart from yoga at other studios? The answer is our yoga teachers!
Collectively our teachers, Jen Zimmerman-Bronder, Ann Fleckenstein, Devon Olberding, and Carol Daly, have over 1300 teacher training hours, 10 years of teaching yoga, and experience teaching at local yoga studios in Iowa City, Solon, North Liberty, and Cedar Rapids and nationally/internationally at yoga retreats in Colorado, Costa Rica, and Indonesia.
Elliott’s Uptown Fitness hosts yoga classes at the First Street Community Center (FSCC). Yoga classes at FSCC range from Kids Yoga to Gentle Yoga to Hatha Yoga for all ability levels. The setting at FSCC is spacious with room for up to a dozen or more students to fit comfortably. Yoga mats and props are provided on site as well.
Devon Olberding – Photo by Lisa Lewis from Envisage Studios
Devon Olberding: Devon has been a spinning instructor at Elliott’s Uptown Fitness for over five years. She has also taught fitness and dance classes for several years in the Mount Vernon area.
As a mother of four active kids, she is passionate about mindfulness at a young age. Her kids yoga classes focus on movements, postures, and breathing that integrate mind and body in a fun and engaging way. She is certified in KAY Kids Yoga, TRX, and is also nearing completion of her Holistic Nutrition and Health Coach Certification.
Devon loves inspiring people of all ages to live happier, healthier lives.
Jen Zimmerman Bronder- Photo by Lisa Lewis from Envisage Studios
Jen Zimmerman Bronder, RYT-200: Jen teaches Hatha yoga which is influenced by two trainings, one in the Anusara Yoga style and the other in the Para Yoga style.
Her classes blend the physical poses with breath work and meditation. She continues to expand her knowledge by attending workshops and trainings that focus on the healing, therapeutic aspects of yoga.
Ann Fleckenstein – Photo by Lisa Lewis from Envisage Studios
Ann Fleckenstein, RYT-200: Ann specializes in Hatha yoga which focuses on physical exercise for flexibility, strength, balance, concentration and relaxation. Breathing techniques and meditation are also part of her class offerings.
Ann is a registered yoga teacher and completed her yoga instruction through the California based Cloud Nine Yoga Teacher Training (RYT-200). In addition to the practice of hatha yoga, Ann also brings insight and instruction into Patanjali’s eight limb path of yoga which offers guidelines for “yoga as an entire lifestyle”.
Ann enjoys teaching and learning, and being able to bring yoga to the community in a way that makes yoga attainable for all levels of students.
Carol Daly – Photo by Lisa Lewis from Envisage Studios
Carol Daly, DPT, RYT-200: Carol grew up in a home where her mom practiced yoga and meditation. Those early experiences influenced her own personal practice of yoga and established yoga as a life-time strategy for health and well-being.
As a licensed physical therapist, Carol has combined her understanding of movement science with the ancient teachings of yoga to help her clients learn and relearn how to move again. Carol completed yoga teacher training with Fannie Hungerford in 2015 and is a registered yoga teacher (RYT-200). She will complete an additional 300 hours of teacher training and receive her RYT-500 designation at the Himalayan Institute in October.
Carol’s yoga teacher training draws from traditional yoga theory and contemporary knowledge of the mind and body to encompass the complete scope of yoga. Carol’s strongest held belief is that yoga is accessible to all who are interested in giving it a try.
Why Yoga? Yoga is for everyone! New 6 week session begins the first week of April. Take a look at the schedule and choose a gentle class, and evening “time to unwind” class, or a more vigorous class. You’ll be glad you did!
Yoga, with its 5,000 year history, could be considered the “original” exercise program. Why, when other things seem to come and go, has yoga lasted this long? Perhaps the key is yoga’s unique combination of physical, mental, and emotional benefits.
On the mat, yoga improves flexibility, muscle strength, physical endurance, and balance while providing beneficial weight bearing exercise to help strengthen bones. Yoga has been shown to help lower blood pressure in those with hypertension and lower blood sugar levels in those with non-insulin dependent diabetes.
