Ballina Yoga Studio is a modern, spacious, well-equipped dedicated yoga space located in the Ballina CBD at 182 River Street.
BKS Iyengar in his book, “Light on Life” says,
‘Asanas maintain the strength and health of the body, without which little progress can be made. Asanas keep the body in harmony with nature’.
Yoga is for everyone!
Ballina Yoga embraces the tradition of building a solid foundation of strength, flexibility, alignment and personal development.
Yoga is known to have many benefits including reducing stress, depression, and the risk of major diseases.
Some of the defining characteristics of yoga is the emphasis on precision and alignment, planned sequencing, timings in practice and the use of props. This approach has made it possible for people of all ages and physical ability to experience the benefits of a yoga practice.
Ballina Yoga supports students at all stages of their yoga practice including beginners new to yoga.
Start any time!
We offer a range of classes from entry level classes for students who are new to yoga to higher level classes for developing and experienced practitioners.
Beginner classes are for anyone new to yoga or with limited yoga experience. Classes are generally offered as a 8 week course to provide students an introduction Iyengar yoga and give them time to build consistency, steadiness and confidence. The focus of the Beginners classes is on understanding the shapes, alignment and movement required to achieve the foundation asanas (poses) which are essential to any yoga practice. At the end of each course students may repeat Beginners or move to the next level.
General classes are suitable for students with some yoga experience and are seeking more comprehensive instruction. Students will learn how t move into and asana, how to hold the pose, and how to move out of the pose. They will start to develop sensitivity in the practice through the integration of their emotional, energetic and physical body. These classes build on the foundation asanas and introduce students to new asanas, including inversions such as Sirsasana (headstand) and Salamba Sarvangasana (shoulder stand).
Level 2 classes are for students with more than a years’ experience practicing Iyengar yoga and who are starting to deepen their practice and hold asanas for longer periods. these classes introduce students to more advanced asanas with an emphasis on integration and self-study.
Level 2/3 classes are advanced classes for students who are experienced practitioners of Iyengar yoga and who maintain a regular practice. The classes cover the full range of asanas, including the arm balances and variations in inversions, and explore different ways of sequencing.
LED Practice is for teachers, trainees and students who require minimal instruction to complete a yoga sequence. Familiarity with the asanas and their Sanskrit name is require. Classes will be led by a teacher / trainee teacher and are held every Tuesday and Thursday morning starting at 5:45am.
Dynamic class is 60 minutes of a continuum of yoga poses brought together in a flowing sequence. These classes are ideal for students wanting a faster pace and the opportunity to follow a sequence guided by an experienced teacher.
Restorative classes. Restorative asanas are restful and tone the body with minimum effort. They should not be underestimated as they have a deep and powerful physiological effect. They nourish the nervous system and increase the efficiency of the glandular system, which is essential for physical and mental health. The inner organs stay for some time in positions where they are extended or massaged – hidden parts of the body and cells are therefore activated. Students cannot afford to neglect these tremendously beneficial postures. (source: B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Institute South Africia)
If you have an injury or illness that may require individual attention, talk to us about our small classes or one-on-one sessions.
Our Space.
B.K.S. Iyengar ‘’Light on Life’’ pp23 & 24
The True Nature of Health
Most people ask only from their body that it does not trouble them. Most people feel that they are healthy if they are not suffering from illness or pain, not aware of the imbalances that exist in their bodies and minds that ultimately will lead to disease. Yoga has a threefold impact on health. It keeps healthy people healthy, it inhibits the development of diseases, and it aids recovery from ill health.
But diseases are not just a physical phenomenon. Anything that disturbs your spiritual life and practice is a disease and will manifest eventually in illness. Because most modern people have separated their minds from their bodies and their souls have been banished from their ordinary lives, they forget that the well-being of all three (body, mind, and spirit) are intimately entwined like the fibres of our muscles.
Health begins with firmness in body, deepens to emotional stability, then leads to intellectual clarity, wisdom, and finally the unveiling of the soul. Indeed, health can be categorized in many ways. There is physical health, which we are all familiar with, but there is also moral health, mental health, intellectual health, and even the health of our consciousness, health of our conscience, and ultimately divine health. These are relative to and depend upon the stage of consciousness we are at…..
But yogi never forgets that health must begin with the body. Your body is the child of the soul. You must nourish and train your child.
Physical health is not a commodity to be bargained for. Nor can it be swallowed in the form of drugs and pills. It has to be earned through sweat. It is something that we must build up. You have to create within yourself the experience of beauty, liberation, and infinity. This is health. Healthy plants and trees yield abundant flowers and fruits. Similarly, from a healthy person, smiles and happiness shine forth like the rays of the sun.
The practice of yoga asana for the sake of health, to keep fit, or to maintain flexibility is the external practice of yoga. While this is a legitimate place to begin, it is not the end. As one penetrates the inner body more deeply, one’s mind becomes immersed in the asana. The first external practice remains dry and peripheral, while the second more intense practice literally soaks the practitioner with sweat, making him wet enough to pursue the deeper effects of the asana.
Do not underestimate the value of asana. Even in simple asanas, one is experiencing the three levels of the quest: the external quest, which brings firmness of the body; the internal quest, which brings steadiness of intelligence; and the innermost quest, which brings benevolence of spirit. While a beginner is not generally aware of these aspects while performing the asana, they are there. Often, we hear people saying that they remain active and light when they do just a little bit of asana practice. When a raw beginner experiences this state of wellbeing, it is not merely the external or anatomical effects of yoga. It is also about the internal physiological and psychological effects of the practice.