04/18/2026
WHAT IS OSTEYOGA?
Osteopathy is a holistic practice that is focused on optimizing healing in the whole body, not just part of it. Yoga is an ancient practice that is focused on balancing mind-body-heart-spirit to reach balanced state. When you bring these two approaches together on the mat, you get an experience that challenges you in unexpected ways, offers deep interconnection within your Self and provides a space for you move and breathe in safety and non-judgement. Over the past few weeks, we have explored a few enlightening themes and I wanted to share those here to give you a better idea of what I am trying to create with this class, as a stand alone experience and as a way to augment the work we do on the table during one on one treatments.
Week 1: BREATH - As a group we explored different forms a pranayama including box breath, yogi breath, alternate nostril breath and pyramid breath. We coupled these with a variety of asanas, using the way we move air in and out of our bodies to create space or tension and explore how our nervous systems responded to each.
Week 2: HONOURING YOUR EDGE - This class was a reminder that less is more. Learning to feel the body when it begins to shift from curiosity to vigilance is tricky. The ego likes to push us past our limits, but too often we forget that those limits are there for a reason. This class was designed as a challenge for each participant’s ego and served as a reminder that breathing should come free and easy, the body should feel comfortable and curious about what each asana is asking of it and honouring one’s edges always leads to better alignment.
Week 3: RHYTHMS - Interoception is our ability to feel, interpret and integrate signals from within our body. The body is interconnected by design, meaning that change in one area always affects the whole. Learning to feel the rhythms of the body - notice our hunger, heart rate, pain, thirst, urgency, exhaustion, etc. - and notice when something is out of sync is integral. Much of our lives, we have trained ourselves to ignore and even gaslight these natural rhythms, but at what cost? This class explored the art of feeling the way fluids move in our body and challenged the nervous system to adjust for subtle shifts and long held asanas.
Week 4: BALANCE - The human body is designed to self-regulate, heal and compensate to maintain function. And intricate system of checks and balances maintains equilibrium in the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual bodies. If one piece of the puzzle isn’t fitting, other pieces must adjust to fill the gap. Learning to feel when one of these bodies is out of balance within your Self and finding ways to connect those asynchronous elements, using asanas to ground into your foundation, exploring micro shifts in weight distribution and changing the breath to facilitate release were the goals of this class.
In every session, there is a hands on component where I apply Osteopathic treatment strategies to help participants connect to their physical, mental, emotional and/or spiritual body. This helps to reinforce the messages our breath and movements are sending to the nervous system.
With only one session left from the first round of OSTEYOGA (Friday mornings at 9:15am), I invite you to get a little curious and come join me in exploring the relationship that you have with your nervous system. If you can’t make the class next week, we are hoping to run another round starting in May (Fridays at 11:45am).
Take care and I hope to see you on the mat!
