Write up: Anna gets (Anti)Social

 

Social Yoga

When: Tue 4 Feb, h 19.30-21

Where: The Albany Club, NW1

How much: 10 £

 

The more I study and practice yoga, the more of “a private affair” it becomes. I wonder if this happens to others and whether I should do something about it….Then one day I read on one of weekly London mangazines about Creative Yoga London (http://www.creativeyogalondon.co.uk/) and Richard Brook. Richard describes himself as “a true Holistic Health expert and also designs bespoke wellness programmes which also incorporate acupuncture, meditation, yoga and movement practices”. Social Yoga and Singles Yoga are two of his initiatives which are stitting up quite a lot of interest in London. How come? “People are obviously interested in finding more conscious ways to connect with others – even if it challenges some of their preconceived ideas. And i mean this in respect of people at both ends of the spectrum of the demographics who attend my class’. His idea behind this is that after class one feels positive and refreshed and integrated in body, mind and spirit – hence more receptive and more prone to connect with people.

 

The thought of Social Yoga does not exactly thrill me, but that of Singles Yoga totally terrifies me. So, I opted to experiment the former, I am too faint hearted for the latter. And I would have kept on finding excuses not to go, unless I had persuaded my friend Luca to come along. I am a woman of honour, no chickening out.

The classes are held in a gym, located in a former church a short walk from Great Portland Street tube station. Tonight tube strikes will commence, so there are only 14 people attending – I am told the typical audience is more than double this number. Even split between men and women, from early thirties to late forties, I would say.

Richard tries to offset the pumping techno in the background with some brit pop and starts the class with some ice-breaking coordination exercises. We are all running in a big circle, three balls floating around, depending on the ball you get, you need to say out loud either a type of food you like, or something you want to achieve in 2014, or a place you want to travel to. Where am I? After 5m of this, we all sit down in a circle for introduction time. What follows next is an accessible variation of a chakra meditation, some basic yoga sequences including a few partner yoga exercises, two rounds of kapalabhati and yoga nidra. By then the rest of the gym is empty so no background music – and within minutes a few people get pretty relaxed, I mean, snoring kind of relaxed….whatever works.

What usually follows, I am told, is a drink at the pub next door but this evening everybody is rushing due to the tube strike.

 

What can I say…this is not for me and it has not made me any more social. But people seemed to enjoy it, the atmosphere was indeed very friendly, and the intention is good…so who am I to judge it?