The Hackney Project

 

The Hackney Yoga Project (HYP)

When: Sat 22 Feb, from h 9.30

The Hackney Project


Where: Hackney City Farm, E2

All of us whose life has been touched by yoga knows how transformational this journey can be, once the channel is open there is no way back. After all, we all know how yoga can result in people feeling happier in their own skins. But not all of us may have realised, for this exact reason, how important making yoga accessible can be.

The Hackney Yoga Project is bringing to London and its yoga community something incredibly noble, brave and valuable. The HYP 's goal is to make the lives of refugee and asylum-seeking women a little brighter through yoga. They work mainly with survivors of human rights abuse, teaching them yoga and English, providing a hot lunch, travel refund, moral support and signposting to other activities. And they provide all this for free, helping these women increase their confidence, bring a little light and lightness in their lives, and make friends. There are many ways to support the HYP, starting from simple donation which are always welcome. When I asked Emily, the HYP founder, how one can concretely help, she pointed me to their Mala programme, which all of us should consider. In fact, with this programme yoga teachers and studios, and everyone else really, are enabled to help directly, holding a class or any other event and donate any money raised to fund the project.

This Saturday though I went to the Hackney City farm - their main site, currently - for the Bead not Bullets initiative, run by a team of graduates from the YogaLondon school. The day started with a morning practice guided by a YogaLondon graduate (quite a curious sequencing, indeed) and followed with a joyful and heart-warming mala making session. Thanks to the donation a beautiful collection of vintage beads by a local yogi artist, about twenty volunteers gathered together and spent the day making the prettiest meditation malas ever - the idea being that the malas would be soon available for purchase in selected locations and on the HYP website. The proceeds will fund travel expenses for the refugees. I have never been into beading at all, but the cause was worth the challenge and the atmosphere so lovely that the day flew. And before you ask, yes, I dreamt of beads…loads of beads...

Help us spread the word and support the HYP - it is worth it.

http://www.hackneyyogaproject.org

https://localgiving.com/charity/yoga

Broga!

When: Feb 26, h 13:15 – 14:15

Where: Blue Cow Yoga, Moorgate, EC2R

How much: £ 18 for 45-60m class

The Broga Code

I have been quite curious for a while about this Broga thing. Especially since that day I happened to walk by a studio room where a Broga class was held: the overly keen ‘inhale, exhale’ that could clearly be heard from outside did raise some attention.

So, what is Broga? Yoga for men (bros or even dudes, if you rather). Well, not only - I hope.

So here I am today in this City yoga & pilates studio located in a basement in Moorgate for my first lunchtime Broga class. The class schedule is predominantly filled with flow classes. And given the location, Broga definitely seems to fit in. This time, I have done a bit of research beforehand. Matt Miller, the (big) guy behing Broga in the UK, has a very interesting bio: a former American football player (Miller the Pillar was his battlefield nickname), body builder, sports training and physiology graduate, fitness instructor and, dulcis in fundo, yoga teacher. Matt makes no mystery of his yoga muse, Rachel Okimo – one of the most creative teachers on the London scene – who is also his business partner.

I can see the idea behind this – nowadays, yoga seems to be predominantly a women affair. Too often I hear from men that they are not flexible enough and hence yoga is not for them. Left aside that the point is not to be able to cross your leg behind your head or touch your toes with your fingers in Pashimottanasana, this seems to be enough to prevent most men I know from stepping on the mat (not to mention the spiritual side of the practice, that equally scares them). Broga tries to demistify this adapting traditional asanas and sequences to those who may be strong and fit, but struggle with agility and flexibility.

It is only five of us today, great size for a class – and despite guys being the majority, I am not the only girl! Matt starts by introducing today’s theme – legs (at which point, I confess, I have swallowed). What follows is a strong, slow flow class, with a remarkable focus on alignment and the best anatomy cues I have come across in a long time. While weak on philosophy (pourquoi?), I have found the class pretty well rounded and varied – offering options and raising awareness on common ego-driven mistakes. As we roll the mats at the end of the class after a savasana-meets-yoga-nidra, I ask my neighbour if he enjoyed that. ‘Very much! This is no-nonsense yoga’. I am not too sure about that. I can see though why Broga can be an attractive yogic entry point for the so-to-speak ‘male athlete’.

www.broga.uk.com/

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/features/its-yoga-for-dudes-one-busy-mans-guide-to-broga-8709917.html