Français

Gail Cooney

Yoga has been an integral part of my life for over 25 years, including  over 20 years of teaching.
My discovery of yoga was marked by my many trips to India, all of which brought me inner richness and allowed me to perfect my knowledge.
From my first classes, yoga was a revelation. After 3 years of practice, my first trip to India confirmed my desire to continue on the path that yoga was leading me.
To deepen my knowledge, I followed courses at the Iyengar Institute in Pune Maharashtra, whose teaching focuses on the precision and alignment of the postures (Asana), as well as the breathing (pranayama). At this time Mr Iyengar was still alive and I was mesmerised by his work with children with special needs.
Later, I was introduced to Swasthya yoga, also known as the De Rose method, which showed me the importance of introversion and gave me techniques of visualisation, rhythm and grace.
My initiation into the philosophy of yoga continued, through training in the practice of meditation at the Matrimandir, a mythical place in Auroville. In 2000, I went to Porto, to follow the Uniyoga teacher training programme,  and consolidate my knowledge. In 2003, I graduated from the Sivananda Ashram Kerala in India to further my yoga teaching training.
On my return to London, I began to use my skills to teach yoga to a wide range of people, including children with disabilities after training with Sonia Summer and Yoga for the special child.  My work extended to the humanitarian level, for NGOs such as Amnesty International, Oxfam and Christian Aid…
Related to well-being, yoga lead me to work for sports clubs such as Reebok Canary Wharf, The Hilton group, Fitness First and the Fitness exchange.
At the same time, I decided to train in the art of Thai massage.
Following my arrival in France and a time spent raising children, I gave voluntary classes to learn to teach yoga in French.
Today, I continue to learn, thanks to great teachers who continue to cross my path and mark out my journey, during enriching encounters with the Dalai Lama, Prashant and Gita Iyengar, Brenda Hobdell, Mestre de Rose, Zaira Ghezzi and Stewart Pearce

The spirit is life, the mind is the builder, the physical is the result

Edgar Cayce

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