Pema Lhamo
Founder · Vinyasa and Yin
Slow · 75 minutes · 4 a week
Yin
Few shapes, held a long time.
Five or six floor postures, each held for three to five minutes, supported by as many bolsters and blankets as you need. The work happens in the connective tissue and, quietly, in your relationship with discomfort.
It is the hardest class we run, and almost nobody sweats in it. Most people find the first two minutes of a long hold uncomfortable and the last two unexpectedly easy.
- Suits
- Everyone, including people who are certain they are not flexible.
- Bring
- Warm socks. You cool down when you stop moving.
- Sanskrit
- यिन
What actually happens
An hour of yin, in order.
-
First five minutes
Choosing props. You will be given more than you think you need and encouraged to use all of them.
-
Each shape
Three to five minutes, held. The teacher gives you a way out at the start and does not check whether you took it.
-
Between shapes
A minute on your back doing nothing at all, which is where most of the effect actually lands.
-
The end
A long savasana under a blanket. People routinely fall asleep and nobody wakes them until the room is empty.
When this is the wrong class. Long holds are not appropriate in the first trimester of pregnancy or with a recent joint replacement. Say so before class and Pema will rebuild the shapes around you, or point you at Restorative.
Who teaches it
Sarita Manandhar
Restorative and Chair
When it runs
Room
The Garden Room — Ten mats, plants on every sill, warmer than the rest of the floor.
Before you come
No experience needed. Bring socks.
Practice
Yin, 75 minutes. Warm socks. You cool down when you stop moving.
Taught by
Pema Lhamo — Founder · Vinyasa and Yin
Room
The Long Room — The main room, sixteen mats, windows along the east wall.
Before you come
Long holds. You may leave a shape early at any time.
Practice
Yin, 75 minutes. Warm socks. You cool down when you stop moving.
Taught by
Pema Lhamo — Founder · Vinyasa and Yin
Room
The Garden Room — Ten mats, plants on every sill, warmer than the rest of the floor.
Before you come
The last class of the working week, deliberately.
Practice
Yin, 75 minutes. Warm socks. You cool down when you stop moving.
Taught by
Pema Lhamo — Founder · Vinyasa and Yin
Room
The Garden Room — Ten mats, plants on every sill, warmer than the rest of the floor.
Before you come
Bring socks and something warm.
Practice
Yin, 75 minutes. Warm socks. You cool down when you stop moving.
Taught by
Sarita Manandhar — Restorative and Chair
Questions about yin
Not in the way you mean. You are loading connective tissue at low intensity for a long time, which feels almost nothing like a stretch and does something quite different.
It is. Minute one is fine, minute two is where the arguing happens, minute three is usually a surprise.
Slowly, and that is the least interesting thing it does.
The other three
Vinyasa
विन्यासMovement joined to breath.
Restorative
विश्रामHeld up entirely by props.
Breathwork
प्राणायामSitting still and learning to breathe.
Start here
Your first class costs nothing.
Pick an hour, tell us it is your first, and someone will meet you at the top of the stairs.
