Hip Hop Yoga for Girls
In this workshop, girls (suggested ages 7-11) will focus on learning yoga postures, breath exercises, and relaxation techniques to build positive self-image, reduce daily stress, and develop a unique life-affirming method of exercise that can be practiced throughout their entire lives. This is an extremely popular workshop that includes hip hop dancing to popular (and appropriate) music to stress the importance of self-care through exercise in a serious, relaxed, and fun way. Please bring a water bottle.

Instructor: Nikka Pamenter is a certifed yoga instructor and a dance major enrolled at UW Milwaukee. Nikka’s style is young and upbeat and she is a positive role model for our girls. She is energetic and passionate about teaching girls ways to develop self-confidence and self-love through dance and yoga.

Hula Hooping for Fun and Fitness
Join us in another fun way to stay fit and active. In this workshop, you will learn hoop control, new techniques for hooping, hoop dance techniques, and how to spin the hoop on various parts of the body. Hooping tones the abdominals and strengthens your core. Add music, and you have a new way to dance. And, its a great form for meditation. We will use weighted hoops which are easier to spin and are great for beginners to learn with.

Pre-registration is required. We will meet at YogaLoft. If weather permits, we will walk to Fountain Park and practice outdoors. This workshop is open to everyone who wants to learn to hoop and to those who already hoop and want to learn new techniques.

Ashleigh Fuchs has been hula hooping for four years, mostly for fun. She makes her own weighted hula hoops. “When I focus on the spinning and the music, hooping becomes a meditation for me.” Ashleigh loves hooping to live music at festivals.

Introduction to Yoga
This four-week course is designed for anyone contemplating trying yoga, but who is unsure of how to begin or uncomfortable with joining up with a class already in progress. You will be introduced to the basics of yoga including correct alignment in the introductory postures, proper breathing, relaxation, and concentration techniques. You will learn about which style of yoga meets your needs and abilities as well as yoga terminology. Upon completion of this course, you will have a solid foundation on which to build your yoga practice.

Session 1: Wednesdays, September 15 - October 6, 5:45 - 7pm
Session 2: Wednesdays, October 13 - November 3, 5:45 - 7pm
Session 3: Wednesdays, November 10 - December 1, 5:45 - 7pm
Session 4: Wednesdays, December 8 - December 22, 5:45 - 7pm (three weeks, only $24)

Cost: $36 per four-week session. Sign up with a friend and receive a $5 discount.

Inversions
Beginning with training poses, learn how to safely practice (and teach) Headstands, Handstands, and Elbow Stands, including the Scorpion. Yoga Alliance Continuing Education credits available.

Wednesdays, 7:15pm - 8:30pm, October 6 – November 3

Cost: $49. No drop-ins.

Kundalini Yoga
The importance of breath, mantra, movement, and eye focus come together to make up this unique form of yoga designed in ancient times for those of us with busy lives. Kundalini Yoga focuses on using a system of exercises to strengthen the nervous and glandular systems of our bodies, awakening our spiritual energy. This unique and empowering system of yoga is both practical and accessible. You will learn simple exercises to help you develop a daily practice to strengthen your body and feed your spirit. Join us for a fun and transformative workshop.

Saturday October 30 and Saturday, December 11, 9:30am to noon.

Cost: $25 per workshop or $40 for both.

Instructor: Carol Alvorez

Meditation for Weight Loss
In this workshop you will practice a variety of meditations and meditation exercises that focus on weight loss, body image, and positive thinking. Meditation has proven results for losing weight because:

1. It is relaxing. It provides a different outlet to eating when feeling stressed.
2. It increases awareness and attention to your actions and their consequences.
3. It increases self-esteem by focusing positive energy and thinking throughout the mind and body.
4. It teaches the deep direct connection between mind, body, and spirit.

All you need to do this workshop is an open mind to the many benefits that meditation has to offer. Although it is hard work, the work is different than other approaches you may have taken in the past to lose weight. Meditation is about personal exploration, self-discovery, self-love, and living every day in the present moment. Dress comfortably. YogaLoft is located on the second floor above Entourage Salon and Spa (it is necessary to walk up one flight of steps to attend class.)

Wednesdays, 7:15pm - 8:15pm, January 12 to February 16

Cost: $39 or drop-in ($10) or use your class pass.

Relax, Restore, Rejuvenate
Unwind physically and mentally in a quiet relaxed way while stretching the deep tissues of the muscles and connective tissues. Restorative Yoga deeply accesses the parasympathetic nervous system, the system of the body responsible for nourishing, healing, and regeneration of the body. You will feel like you’ve just had a massage.

Learn to still your fidgeting body and calm your rambling mind so that you can “rest quietly in the present moment and see clearly the peace that resides within.” This workshop is ideal for those going through stressful times, suffering from chronic pain, illness, injury, or experiencing major life changes, and athletes wishing to bring balance to their training program. Please bring a yoga mat to class. Mats are also available to rent for $2 or to purchase. No yoga experience is necessary.

Come join Maryann Dolson (licensed yoga instructor and Phoenix Rising Yoga therapist) for this relaxing, restorative, and rejuvenating workshop.

Saturday Mornings:
Individual one-day workshops taken independently. October 30, January 22, February 12, March 5, April 30, May 21, and June 18. 9:30am to noon.

Cost: $25 each workshop. Register for four and get the fifth free.

Monday Evenings:
Five-week workshops. October 18 - November 15 and February 14 - March 14. 6:45pm - 8:00pm.

Cost: $45 for each five-week session.

Restorative Yoga
Restorative yoga combines meditation, breathing, and relaxation exercises to leave you feeling deeply relaxed and refreshingly energized. The focus is on restoring the body and mind to its naturally peaceful, happy state. In restorative yoga, you will experience gentle yoga postures as well as long-held relaxed floor postures. Long-held postures stretch and stimulate the deep connective tissue of the body and strengthen the flow of chi (energy). Restorative Yoga strengthens the immune system and is ideal for those going through stressful times, anyone suffering from chronic pain, illness, injury, or major life changes, expectant mothers, and athletes wishing to prevent injuries and bring balance to their current training program. It is a great way to tend to yourself if you have a busy, stressful, active life.

Surviving Well: Yoga for Cancer Survivors, Caregivers and Friends
A gentle yoga class for cancer survivors, those who care for survivors, and family and friends who wish to provide support to loved ones experiencing this challenge. The emphasis of this class is on healing the mind and body through yoga postures, breathing techniques, and relaxation and meditation exercises. This class is led by Vicki Menuge, a cancer survivor who came to yoga after diagnosis looking for a way to restore and find peace for the body and the mind.

Wednesdays, September 15th, 22nd, and 29th. 4:30pm – 5:30pm

Cost: $12 for all three weeks or drop-in to individual classes for $5 each.

The Symbolism of Forward and Backward Bending
At a felt sense level, learn how forward and backward bending heals the past and prepares you for the future. Yoga Alliance Continuing Education credits available.

Wednesdays, 7:15pm - 8:30pm, February 23 – March 9

Cost: $29. No drop-ins.

Yin Yang Yoga
The ancient Taoists (Chinese yogis) developed the concepts of opposites called Yin and Yang. While all of existence can be divided into these two aspects, they are fundamentally interdependent. Yin Yoga is the ideal complement to muscular or “yang” forms of yoga. On Friday evening and Saturday and Sunday mornings, we will practice the more vigorous form of yoga to build muscle, burn fat, and release toxins. During Yin Yoga, we will experience long-held floor postures, to stretch and stimulate the deep connective tissue of the body and strengthen the flow of energy.

These workshops will tackle the basics to help you advance to a place where your most difficult postures are done with ease. We will also explore how healing occurs when yoga is practiced contemplatively and with attention to feeling and sensation. Each class will end with 15 minutes of meditation.

Yin and Yang Yoga for the Holidays
Practice complementary styles of yoga to help you stay balanced through the holidays. Yin Yoga’s long held relaxed floor postures stretch and stimulate the deep connective tissue of the body and strengthen the flow of energy. In the more active, Yang part of class, we practice long held dynamic postures.

Yin Yoga, Meditation, and Hiking Retreat
Spend a weekend in renewal and rejuvenation practicing yin yoga, meditating, hiking, light healthy eating, and companionship preparing your mind, body, and spirit for the winter ahead. Yin Yoga is a style of yoga where floor postures are held for a long period of time, allowing the muscles and connective tissues to be gently stretched. Meals include vegetarian soups, whole grain breads, salads, granola, fruit, and yogurt. Please call or email for a full weekend schedule. Retreat size is limited to eight participants. The retreat is held at Shalom House. A luxury retreat home in the Kettle Moraine Hills outside West Bend. About 45 minutes from Sheboygan.

Friday, October 1 – Sunday, October 3

Cost: $289

Yoga for Educators
This workshop is geared toward all educators from pre-school teachers to teachers at the high school level. You will learn quick and easy yoga techniques that can be introduced to your students in the classroom environment to help calm, energize, release tension, develop concentration, improve posture, and increase positive self-image. There will also be a brief history of yoga as well as suggestions for alternative terms and phrases to allow for greater accessibility. There is a large experiential component to this class to allow you to learn relaxation and focusing techniques first hand! Please dress comfortably. For more information and to register, please visit the UWGB Education Outreach page here.

Yoga for Phy. Ed. Teachers and Coaches
Teaching children and teens life-long tools for staying physically fit and healthy can be done easily when introducing yoga to their routines. Yoga appeals to children and teens because they are still naturally flexible and because yoga postures imitate the postures of animals and other things found in nature. This workshop is geared towards physical education teachers and coaches who want to introduce the techniques of yoga including yoga postures, stretching, breathing, relaxation, and focusing exercises to their classes and practices. Several 30-45 minute routines will be taught experientially and handouts will be included outlining these routines. Please dress comfortably and be prepared to practice yoga. For more information and to register, please visit the UWGB Education Outreach page here.