What is Kripalu Yoga? The major focus of Kripalu Yoga is to help students deepen their body awareness to the connection of their mind and energy. During yoga teacher training you will learn that the practice of this form of yoga is broken down into three stages. The practice of Kripalu yoga will help guide you and use your body as a tool for accessing spirit which will tap into the mind and emotions that you feel as well as your physical body. As you reach mental and emotional blocks and work through them, tremendous levels of prana are released and this will bring a healing direction. Practicing this style of yoga brings much greater results of healing than from an isolated physical style.
Stages
During your practice of Kripalu Yoga your yoga teacher will explain the stages that you will be working through. Yoga teacher training will reflect on each stage with a lot of guidance. During Stage I, yoga students will be focusing on the yoga poses, or asanas, and focusing on proper alignment, body awareness and breathing. This is where they will be made conscious of connecting body and breath. This stage is called the “Willful Practice.”
As students start to grow with their practice they will progress to Stage II. During this stage the yoga asanas that were learned from yoga teaching during Stage I will be held for longer periods of time. This is to deepen the pose to the students’ ability and push towards a deeper pose. While pushing into the pose the student is about to direct emotions and thoughts more clearly. This stage is referred to as the “Willful Surrender.”
Through your yoga teacher training you will notice that some of your students that move from beginner to advanced may just naturally move into Stage III Kripalu Yoga. Stage III Kripalu Yoga is described as a flowing yoga where you move spontaneously from one asana into the next without effort or forcing the movement. This stage is referred to as “Meditation in motion.”
Kripalu Yoga and Benefits
It does not matter which stage of Kripalu Yoga you are comfortable with or what your yoga certification can offer, this style is to honor your body and respect the strength and flexibility Kripalu yoga gives you. Kripalu yoga teacher training will put a lot of weight on having proper breathing and encouraging your flow of prana, or your life force, to flow through the body. This style gives those that practice routinely a chance to develop a strong sense of acceptance and a new quality that they bring into their daily functions.
Focus and Balance
Through your yoga teacher training Kripalu yoga will teach you how to balance postures (asanas), Breathing exercises (Pranayama), meditation and centering. There are many different levels in this style of yoga but anyone can practice it and make it part of their lives. The levels are classified as gentle, moderate or vigorous. Students will know what level they can practice if they listen to their body.
Kripalu Yoga is a way for you to find self empowerment and personal growth in your life. With yoga teacher training you can tap into your self-awareness and be able to guide yourself in life. You learn how to listen to others and what they have to say but can reflect on your own reason and make your own strong decisions. This style of yoga brings such awareness to your mind and body connection that you are able to nurture that relationship better.
Bring mental wellness to your life
Kripalu Yoga is the connection of mind, body and energy. Yoga teacher training will guide you to recognize the flow of energy through your body that is called prana. You will come to recognize how to keep this energy flowing even when unwanted thoughts come to try to block it. Every direction your body moves is influenced by emotion and mental conditions that we are aware of around us. When you can truly focus on the mental, physical, and emotional energies around you then you can truly start to open the flow and dissolve the blocks and your body can begin to heal. Each day that you recognize the blocks and can move energy through them bring your body to a stronger sense of well-being.
