Align - "A must have alignment course for all yogis practicing at home."

There have been over 250 students that have taken this course from 31 countries. More than 50 students have reviewed the course and the average rating is 4.80 out of 5 stars.

"I had doubts at the beginning if this course was worth it. It absolutely is! It helped a lot with my home practice making it safe and more effective. If you do not attend any face-to-face yoga classes with a teacher who can correct your poses, then this course is a must for you!"
E. Zackova (5-Star Rating)

Did you know that in 2012, there were 3500 reported trips to the emergency room related to injuries sustained during a yoga practice? Since 2012, the number of yoga practitioners has increased by 50%, and unfortunately, the number of injuries continues to rise.

When I first started practicing yoga, I was a really "good student" and what I mean by that is, I took every instruction that was ever given to me and pushed into it about as hard as I could. As a result, I practiced much of the time with sharp pain in my shoulders because I thought it was important to press my chest back AS FAR AS POSSIBLE to my thighs in downward facing dog. This also caused my shoulders to internally rotate in their sockets and my shoulder blades to collapse toward each other. My rib cage puffed out and my lower back over-arched. I also used to jump back to plank with my elbow joints locked, during sun salutations and the backs of my elbows would hurt so much! My lower back was always really bendy so whenever I did a backbend, I over-arched my lower back to compensate for tightness in my shoulders and hip flexors. Of course, being a "good student" I went as deeply into my backbends as I could. I think I was practicing about 6 months the first time I hurt my back...

According to a recent survey by Yoga Journal and Yoga Alliance, 81% of yogis practice outside of the studio. Many don't have access to a studio or can't afford one, so they are at extra risk for injury. According to a personal survey of the FIghtmaster Yoga community, the number one request was to make sure that the poses are being practiced safely. Yoga is an amazing practice with tons of benefits. It can be the most therapeutic thing for the body if practiced correctly and the most detrimental if not. We know that we're supposed to listen to our bodies, but do you know what to listen for? Ignoring the cues from our body can cause injuries to the point of having to stop practicing for a while...or maybe even permanently. The benefits of yoga are just too great to ever have to give it up!

We need to be sure that we're practicing as safely as possible so that our practice can be sustainable through our lifetime. Do you ever wonder if a sensation in your body is a normal stretch or if it's dangerous one? Most of us do. Some of us might even push through these sensations thinking the discomfort is necessary or somehow beneficial – this is not usually the case.

Therefore, when we take our practice, it's most important to align ourselves properly to prevent injury and to honor the body. We must learn to stabilize and then elongate, creating space and stretching. If we stretch without alignment and stabilization, we're almost certain to get injured.

Every posture has alignment points to keep us safe. It's important to know as many of those alignment points as possible and it's just as important to learn what our individual bodies need to stay safe. Yoga teachers must teach to the general population and the instructions are perfect for about 80%-90 % of students, but each of us is unique and we need to know our bodies well enough to take care of them.

We've had many students go through our "Align" course already and here are some of the things that they've said:

"Each lesson I start, thinking, oh, just a few minutes. Then I am drawn into the lesson, and go further. I'm an intermediate yoga student, and the pacing is perfect. I thought I knew more about my alignment, and am humbled to find I've got a lot to learn, and I'm learning it with Lesley. When Lesley said good-bye and waved, I told her she is wonderful (to the video screen, of course!). That sums up my rating best."
-C. Andersen
(5-Star Rating)

"This is a wonderful course if you practice Yoga at home. Poses are taken apart and the how and especially the why of alignment is explained and discussed in a clear way. Sometimes Lesley offers two or more options for (getting into) one pose, which is comfortable and makes you 'listen' to your own body even better. I like the practice video's with voice over. Lesley's timing is excellent."
N. Jansen (5-Star Rating)

"Excellent clear instruction covering the basics of posture and grounding. Lesley's warm and friendly style makes it easy to understand and follow these vital steps. Even if you are very experienced in yoga it is always beneficial to check back in with the basics from time to time - it's too easy for bad habits to creep back into our practice!"
S. Reid (5-Star Rating)

Yoga feels great....I think we should keep practicing well into our 80's and 90's...maybe even past 100 years old. If we learn how to practice safely, if we learn how to listen and trust our own bodies, we'll always have the safe-haven of our practice. If we're practicing incorrectly, if we're pushing too hard, if we don't know what the sensations we're feeling in our bodies mean, we're apt to become injured...maybe permanently.

As a certified instructor with over a decade of alignment-specific teaching experience, you will have some of the best guidance and information available in the industry. In addition to my teaching time, I’ve taught several in-depth 200-hour teacher training courses, 300-hour teacher-training workshops, additional countless workshops and have trained hundreds of aspiring (and now professionally certified) yoga teachers. My expertise in alignment assessment and proper correction will not only keep your body safe, but it will improve how you feel about your practice. It’s nearly impossible to see yourself while taking each pose, and even with proper body awareness, we cannot always make many of the corrections needed that an instructor can provide.

Additionally, we're called to practice ahimsa as part of yoga’s philosophy. Ahimsa is the first of five principles mentioned in the Yoga Sutra, and it means non-violence. This includes ourselves and our practice. It is so important that we learn to do no harm to the body and no harm to the mind while we take our asanas or postures. This will support ahimsa’s optimum expression – the highest form of love. If we can learn to love ourselves in our practice, we can take this love out into the world more effectively.

Our course is wonderful for beginner students to advanced practitioners. If you're a teacher, you'll add to your repertoire of teaching instructions to help keep your students safe. You can take this 8-hour course at your own pace. You'll have the option to rewind, pause and re-practice the content anytime you wish. If you go through the course several times, you'll get more information every time.
Let's practice throughout our lives. Keep your body safe so your mind can enjoy the benefits of your practice.

Click the link above to purchase this course and ensure your life-long safety as you continue your yoga journey.

Love,
Lesley xoxo