My offerings to you
- 1on1 or Duos - individually tailored to your needs/goals
- Kids, Teens, Adults & Seniors
- Group mat classes - see the Timetable
- Introductory session - the foundation of mindful movement and breath connection
- Yoga - inspired by the Satyananda lineage combining Hatha, Vinyasa, Yin and Restorative Yoga
- Creative and educational Pilates mat session with small props
- Bodylight® - a unique method combining Yoga, Pilates, and Qi Gong
- Guided Relaxation, Meditation, Mindfulness, Yoga Nidra
- Massage therapy - combined or individual techniques, e.g. Shiatsu points, Trigger points, Reflexology, deep tissue, myofascial release, Reiki, Thai Yoga massage and relaxation massage
- Rehabilitation - pre and post-surgery needs, chronic pain, scoliosis and other
In our sessions, we focus on your body signals, habitual patterns, lifestyle, emotional wellbeing and other holistic contributors. These indicators are important for assessment, and for me to provide you with:
- Individual teaching and treatment according to your needs on a specific day
- Respecting your restrictions or medical conditions
- Safe environment, trust and respect
- Calm mind and energised body after you leave
DETAILED INFORMATION
Private sessions 1on1 and Duos available to anyone of any age (from kids to the elderly) with any injury limitations, rehabilitation requirements, or special needs or simply to deepen your current practice with a mindful approach.
An introductory session is essential to understand the basic principles of breath and movement coordination and for me to learn about you. If you are new to this, we will break down exercises to understand the purpose and modify positions if needed. If you are an experienced yogi/yogini or Pilates practitioner we'll take the journey further. With injuries to rehabilitate, we'll find a way to reduce the pain, strengthen the area if it's weak, get the joints moving if they're stiff, improve balance if unstable, or improve the elasticity and flexibility of muscles. This practice is for anyone to uplift energy, enhance well-being and establish healthy relationship to the body.
My formal movement and manual therapy training comes from the Bodylight® method- a unique fusion of Pilates/Yoga/Qigong (Auckland), along with specific Yoga training from the Bhagsu Yoga Institute (India) and Pure Yoga (Auckland). My additional formal massage training comes from Auckland University of Technology (AUT), alongside courses in Thai Yoga massage, Reiki, Reflexology, and Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) stretching technique from other respected practitioners. I am currently a part of an ongoing Classical Pilates teacher training course (started in April 2023) in Nelson. In 2024 I completed three workshops - The Art of Therapeutical Touch (massage therapy) in Nelson with Stephanie Wynn.
Manual therapy and movement complement each other to improve wellbeing and cultivate mind-body-breath awareness. In my classes and treatments, the inspiration comes from all I've learned over the last decade, from wise teachers and inspirational students.
Read more about techniques below.
Yoga
Manual therapy and massage
Pilates
When you ask a yoga practitioner what yoga means on an individual level, the purpose and meaning of the practice might differ from person to person. We learn from ancient texts such as Upanishads and Patanjali Yoga Sutras that the unity of individual consciousness with the universal consciousness is what we might want to achieve. Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit word “Yuj” meaning “to join”. For some, yoga might be mainly a physical exercise and a starting point to dive deeper into the unknown. For others, yoga can speak through separating our souls from ignorance and ego. To me, yoga is every aspect of our daily lives. It teaches us how we can harmonize and synchronize with everything around us with less suffering, not harming others (including ourselves), and being authentic, honest, and content. Through practicing yoga “on the mat” with various techniques, we can harmonize the body, mind, and soul through mindful breath, and carry that inner calmness with us into the outer world. Everyone will have a unique experience with their yoga journey.
Pilates
Manual therapy and massage
Pilates
Joseph Pilates’s technique is well known around the world these days. His story started to develop during the First World War when he worked with injured soldiers and invented a workout system using bed springs to tone the muscles to enhance faster recovery. Originally, Joseph designed a series of 34 mat exercises. His technique emphasizes the mind and body connection and develops the awareness of habitual patterns (body posture, breath, muscle imbalance).
Nowadays, due to modern research and knowledge, Pilates is better known for its individual, safer approach to preventing injuries. Different instructors adapt, change and create their own series of exercises while following the main principles such as Breathing, Concentration, Relaxation, Alignment, Centering, Precision, Imagination, Intuition, and Coordination.
Pilates can be exercised solely on the mat using different props and/or performed on Pilates machines (apparatus) invented by Joseph.
Manual therapy and massage
Manual therapy and massage
Manual therapy and massage
A mindful and caring touch through manual therapy is an important aspect of overall wellness and mind relaxation. Through a massage or a manual treatment, we can release the tension that sits deep in the layers of the physical level as well as the mental. I draw from the Bodylight® treatment technique that combines trigger points, Shiatsu, Reflexology, fascia release, deep tissue, and assisted stretches to improve flexibility and alleviate pain. Sports massage techniques enhance better blood circulation, release "knots" and improve the elasticity of the skin. Thai Yoga massage (on the mat) is a helpful method to stretch the body in a mindful and respectful way, while stimulating specific points to release any blockage. In addition to these, I offer relaxation and deep tissue massages. I can also offer a fully clothed treatment if preferred. Throughout any massage, I encourage quiet and being present, observing what exists in your body, and breathing mindfully into the treatment areas.
Bodylight®
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Manual therapy and massage
A unique method combining Yoga, Pilates, and Qi Gong to create mindful flowing movements that will enhance mind and body connection. With props or without, the session is tailored to improve concentration, learn isolation of muscle activation, mobilize joints, enhance balance and stability, and help with the rehabilitation process. This brings joy to the mind and activates qi/prana, the life force energy within us. This holds space to draw from different techniques and taking you deeper into your own body-mind connection.
Main Bodylight® Principles: Mindfulness, Balance, Relaxation, Breathing, Centering, Balance, Coordination, Core Strengthening, Visualisation, Integration, Imagination, Flowing movement, and Energy Management.
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Usually, relaxation is an important component in any of my movement sessions, to switch off the stress response (sympathetic nervous system) and regain inner calmness to return to the outer world. By observing our breath mindfully, we train the brain to be here and now with no judgment or analysis. This can encourage a meditative state to provide clarity, presence and the space to witness our thoughts. Adjusting these techniques to our individual circumstances will provide us with better confidence to act upon situations calmly rather than react emotionally. Breath is the link between the mind and the body, it's always present therefore we can return to it at any time and live in the present moment. Nothing happens in the future or the past, life is happening now.
Yoga Nidra
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Relaxation, Meditation, Breathing and Mindfulness
Yoga Nidra is a psychic sleep - a state of mind that is in between being awake and asleep. It is a technique to diminish anxiety by guiding the individual through specific relaxation stages. The mind will quieten down and awareness will be more present. Sankalpa (affirmation) at the beginning and end is an intention to be set deep within us with no doubt or questioning. It is what we truly really want to change in the future yet the busy, demanding mind sees only the obstacles and keeps stopping us from trusting the inner knowing. This can take time but the seed is already planted. Yoga Nidra itself can be practiced separately for about 45 mins or can be set for 15-20 mins toward the end of the session.