About Our Classes & Offerings
Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini Yoga is known as the "Yoga of Awareness" and is a form of Raj Yoga. It is an epic and vibrant tool designed to give you an immediate experience of your unique Soul.
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In Kundalini Yoga we access the mental, physical, and nervous system energies of our body and put them under the domain of the will, which is the instrument of the Soul.* This technology creates specific formulas or sequences - including breathwork, mudra (hand postures), driste (eye-focus), mantra, sound healing, and yogic postures to create the intended response in the body. In Kundalini Yoga these sequences or yoga flows are called Kriyas. Kriya meaning = “action” or “to do”. Each Kriya is designed for an exact benefit or purpose.
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There are thousands of Kundalini Kriyas with a wide range of benefits. For example: strengthening the nervous system, balancing the glandular system, expanding lung capacity, opening the heart center, reducing stress and anxiety, purifying the blood, and MANY other benefits. Kundalini brings balance to the body, mind, and soul. This balance brings you into a peaceful state of neutrality and of observing life from an elevated perspective.​
Yin Yoga
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A Yin yoga class usually consists of a series of long-held, passive floor poses that mainly work the lower part of the body – the hips, pelvis, inner thighs, lower spine. These areas are especially rich in connective tissues. The poses are held for three to five minutes, sometimes longer. Yin is almost entirely passive, although some Yin asanas contain Yang elements. During the asanas, muscles are relaxed. Yin yoga is based on the Taoist concept of yin and yang, opposite and complementary principles in nature. Yin is the stable, unmoving, hidden aspect of things; yang is the changing, moving, revealing aspect. In the body, the relatively stiff connective tissues (tendons, ligaments, fascia) are yin, while the more mobile and pliable muscles and blood are yang.
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Benefits of Yin Yoga:
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Increases circulation and improves flexibility
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Calms and balances the mind and body
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Reduces stress and anxiety
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Releases fascia
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Encourages deeper relaxation
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Improves joint mobility
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Brings balance to the organs through meridian stimulation
Vinyasa Yoga
Vinyasa means linking movement with breath. During your yoga practice you can focus on bringing awareness to your breathing and using your breath as a way to guide you through the movements.
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Vinyasa yoga is a dynamic practice where you move through a flow of different yoga poses. Vinyasa comes from two words in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit: vi, “in a special way,” and nyasa, “to place.” So, it means that we want to place our movements in a special, careful, intentional way.
Typically, you will flow a few times in and out of a pose, before staying there for several breaths. Doing your best to follow the guidance of your breath. This allows the body to ease gently into postures that build flexibility, strength and balance.
There are many different yoga poses linked to together through a series of movements. With every movement being linked to a breath. Often in each vinyasa yoga class you’ll practice many of the same postures, but approaching them in a different order and way based on the theme you’re focused on in class. Vinyasa yoga is quite unique in the fact that there is really a balance between flexibility, strength and balance. So not only focusing on flexibility, but also learning how to use and build strength and balance in the body.
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Benefits of Vinyasa Yoga:
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Improves Overall Health
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Calms the Mind and Reduces Stress
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Bolsters Energy Levels
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Stablizes and Regulates the Emotions
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Improves Sleep
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Grants Flexibility
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Boosts Mood
Sound Healing
The "bath" part has nothing to do with tubs or water. Instead, the participants are submerged in peaceful sound. Like other meditation techniques, sound baths are meant to mentally and physically bring harmony and release stress. Our body truly is like a musical instrument. When the instrument is not tuned properly, a state of “dis-ease” or imbalance occurs.
The Power of Sound has been an integral part of human civilization for thousands of years. According to today’s science, everything we feel, see, sense and touch is vibrating energy, we call particles. The basic principle of meditative sound use is the concept of balancing the resonance (the vibratory frequency of an object).
Everything Vibrates, this includes human beings. Every organ, cell, and bone in our bodies has an optimal healthy frequency. A healthy state creates a natural frequency in harmony with the rest of the body. When the vibration of a part of the body is out of harmony, we have “dis-ease” creating disease. When intentional sound is projected into the unbalanced area, correct harmonic patterns are restored at a cellular level. During the course of our lives, many emotional, mental, spiritual, and environmental factors interfere with this optimal peaceful state.
Sound Science dates back to ancient Greece when music was used as a medicine to treat a variety of ailments and cure mental disorders. Science has proven the effects of vibrational frequencies in lowering stress, strengthening immunity, managing pain, boosting moods and providing trauma relief.
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Benefits of Sound Baths:
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Lowers stress and anxiety
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Decreases mood swings
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Lowers blood pressure
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Lowers cholesterol levels
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Teaches pain management
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Lowers risk for coronary artery disease and stroke
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Improves sleep
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Provokes states of deep relaxation where the healing of emotional pain and trauma become easier
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Aids in addiction recovery
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Rewires conditioned neural and behavioral patterns
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Creates brain wave coherence
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Many physical ailments, aches, pains, muscular and connective tissue problems, mobility problems, post-operative recovery, tinnitus and many more serious chronic diseases can all be alleviated using sound therapy
Breath Work
We ALL come into this world on an INHALE and we all leave this world on an EXHALE.
Breathing is the most natural and automatic thing we humans do. Breath is the thing we all do subconsciously and we NEED in order to survive. It is something we do 24/7 three hundred and sixty five days a year! Controlling the breath should be second nature, but it’s not. It is a learned skill to develop. Breathing correctly is a tool that can change your life.
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According to some experts, most of us breathe at 10-20% of their full capacity. If you are anything like me in times of stress and anxiety you find you hold your breath in, literally cutting off the oxygen to your brain. On average people breath about fifteen times per minute, we have to consciously slow it down! One of my favorite breathing techniques is the "one minute breath" Where you inhale for 20 seconds, hold the breath in for 20 seconds, and exhale for 20. I definitely had to work up to this, starting with 10 seconds and the 15 second intervals. Even slowing down the breath to 8 breath per minute can relieve stress, increase mental clarity, and balance the parasympathetic nervous system.
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When you go to a breathwork class or do a 1:1 session you might have different experiences based on the specific methods, the teacher and of course your own mood/openness - however remember that it is ALL just breathing! You are inhaleing and exhaling in order to go within and come back to yourself. Also no one person can claim to have invented breathwork. It doesn't matter if they trademarked a catchy phrase or have a large social media presence - we all breathe and always will.
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Yes, it is all breathing but there are many different breathing techniques you can use in situations depending on what you need in the current moment. For example, there is "Breath of Fire" which is a rapid vigorous, equal inhale and exhale through the nose - to energize and focus. Verses directing your breath only through your left nostril. It is soothing to do a few minutes left nostril breathing any time you wish to relax and before going to bed. With segmented breathing, we divide the inhalation and exhalation into several equal parts, with a slight suspension of the breath separating each part. Variations of segmenting of the breath stimulates the central brain and the glandular system in different ways. These are just a few techniques that I have in my pocket anywhere, anytime I need.
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Join us for our morning Breathwork Breakfast Club!
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Dharma Class
This Kundalini Yoga and Meditation class series is lead by Sydney Strabala. Sydney will start each session with an in-depth exploration of Kundalini concepts and philosophies: including yogic maps, energy channels, dharma vs karma, chakras, the ego, and the art of translating mantras. Delve into the ancient wisdom behind these practices, the science supporting them and their modern applications.
After our Dharma Philosophy Class, we transition into a dynamic Kundalini Kriya practice. Kundalini Yoga includes yogic movement, breathwork, meditation and mantra designed to awaken your inner energy and elevate your awareness.
Whether you're new to Kundalini or an experienced practitioner, all are welcome to join us on this transformative path. Prepare to move, breathe, chant, and deepen your understanding of Kundalini energy in a supportive and welcoming environment. Leave each session feeling enriched, activated, and ready to embrace life with curiosity, wonder and awe.
Sadhana
SADHANA (Sanskrit साधन) means daily spiritual practice. The idea of Sadhana, is that for even if it is just 15 minutes right when you wake up, you get to think of you and only YOU. Truly, a sadhana can be anything that makes your heart sing. It can be meditation, a morning run or something creative. There is only one rule -- that you commit to it every day, no matter what. However, this guide specifically explains a traditional Kundalini Sadhana practice that I do daily.
It is the foundation of all spiritual endeavors. You can see in almost every spiritual tradition they encourage some kind of devotional morning practice. Sadhana is your personal, individual spiritual effort. It is the main tool you use to work on yourself to achieve the purpose of life. It can be done alone or in a group. Sadhana is whatever you do consistently to clear your own consciousness so you can relate to the infinity within you. Before you face the world each day, do yourself a favor—tune up your nervous system and attune yourself to your highest inner self. To cover all your bases, it will include exercise, meditation, mantra and prayer. Yewwww!
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During what are called the “ambrosial hours” (the two and a half hours just before sunrise), when the sun is at a sixty-degree angle to the Earth, the energy you put into your sadhana gets maximum results. That special time is called Amrit Vela, which translates as the Nectar of God. Your world is quieter. The rest of the world is asleep. You are up and there is something about the collective chitta that is peaceful. Still. It’s easier to meditate and concentrate before the hustle and bustle of the day begins. If you absolutely cannot get up early in the morning to do sadhana, then do it some other time! Doing sadhana at any time of the day or night will benefit you.
Develop a regular sadhana and you take control of your life. Develop a deep sadhana and you open the doors of experience. Commit to meet your higher Self each morning and your decisions and your life become origina and authentic to youl; your life will bear the signature of your Unique Soul; your radiance will express the meaningful intimacy of the Infinite in each moment. Immerse yourself in the joy of victory that comes from starting each day with a powerful sadhana and every challenge becomes opportunity.
The Aquarian Sadhana attunes your gunas, your chakras, and your mind to the change of the Age. This is a crazy time, even crazier with COVID and our world requiring a neutral attitude and graceful ability to adapt. The time to do Sadhana is NOW. We will need intuition, stamina, both physical and mental, self-awareness, and a new depth of spiritual experience that can hold our identity in the face of global changes, relentless competition, information overload, and ecological and environmental challenges.
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When you give two and a half hours to a spiritual source, your entire day is covered with blessings. And who doesn’t want more blessings?
I beat my EGO every single morning as my first act. My first act of the day is a Victory.
If you can wake up at 4:30 a.m. for the Divine, You can do anything!
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“The greatest reward of doing sadhana is that the person becomes incapable of being defeated. Sadhana is a self-victory, and it is a victory over time and space. Getting up is a victory over time, and doing it is a victory over space."
Power Yoga
Power yoga: This style combines the athletics of Ashtanga with the flow of Vinyasa.
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Although power yoga isn’t an official type of yoga, the term is sometimes used interchangeably with Vinyasa yoga. It’s probably more accurate to say that power yoga is a form of Vinyasa, which has its roots in Ashtanga yoga, an established practice that began in the early 20th century.
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With power yoga, the emphasis is on the flow from one pose to the next, rather than approaching each pose separately. The poses aren’t disconnected from each other, unlike some other forms of yoga.
No matter what you call it, power yoga is a fast-paced and intense activity. You move from one posture to another rapidly, linking your breathing to the different motions of your body.
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As the name suggests, power yoga is a dynamic class that builds your strength and endurance. It is also an excellent modality to excersise the body in a "moving workout".
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Regular cardiovascular exercise, like power yoga, can benefit you by:
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strengthening your heart and lungs
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helping control high blood pressure
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improving cholesterol levels
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controlling blood sugar levels
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building stronger bones and muscles
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helping with weight loss
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improving sleep
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boosting energy levels
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improving brain function
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lowering your risk for chronic conditions like heart disease, stroke, and diabetes
Surf Yoga Class
SurfSoul Yoga class, it combines the fluidity of yoga movements with the energy and connection to nature that surfing embodies. It targets the muscles and areas of the body commonly strained or sore from surfing, promoting flexibility, strength, and recovery.
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Surfing demands a lot from our bodies, primarily creating tight shoulders and compression in the lower back and hips. Surfing requires you to lie on your board, prone and paddling, while lifting your chest and straining your neck and upper back, sometimes for hours on end. When you pop up on your board, you’re also essentially doing a quick push-up or burpee-like movement that engages your shoulder muscles and requires strength and mobility in your hips.
There’s a beautiful balance and synergy between surfing and yoga. Yoga helps you restore your state of well-being after surfing so you can get back out there with as little aching and stiffness as possible.
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When you surf, you’re actually moving your upper body similarly to how you move in yoga—you’re lifting your chest into a backbend, drawing your shoulder blades together, and pushing yourself up from lying on your belly. You’re essentially holding Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana) for however long you’re paddling on your board and creating strength in your back body.
But unlike yoga, surfing doesn’t balance your body through stretching and strengthening the opposing muscle groups. A single surf session can easily overtax your muscles and leave you needing to release some serious tension in your shoulders, chest, and upper back—specifically, your trapezius, pectoralis major, and deltoids.
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Our classes are designed to balance the specific muscle groups strained by surfing through enhancing flexibility, quickening recovery, and making for a less painful session next time you’re out.
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Also check out our summer Surf and Yoga Camp!
