Happy December! All of us at The Yoga Room hope you're doing well!

I can't believe it's been a month since I've returned from India! In case you didn't know, I spent the month of October attending the second of three modules of the 500 hour teacher training program at the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram in Chennai. I learn so, so much during each module, and frankly, it takes me some time to regain my bearings as a yoga teacher when I get back home.

Over the past month I've been trying to figure out how to share my new knowledge in my teaching here at The Yoga Room, and I have to say, it's not simple or straightforward. I feel like yoga in India is one culture, and yoga in the US is a different culture. I can't simply drop Indian yoga on people who are accustomed to American yoga.

For example, in the American yoga culture we typically practice in a group class setting. Students typically attend one or more classes per week. The teacher leads the practice session for many students, providing modifications and variations as needed. There are many benefits associated with this type of practice.

The style of practice at KYM is very different. The vast majority of instruction is taught 1-on-1 in Individual Sessions. The teacher conducts a thorough intake to understand the student's needs and goals. Then the teacher designs and documents a customized practice specifically suited to the student. The teacher teaches the student the practice, then the student practices their customized practice on their own, daily. After 2 - 4 weeks the student has their next session, where they provide an update to the teacher, the teacher adjusts the practice, and so the learning process goes.

This is the way I've been practicing for the past 18 months or so, and I think it's a great teaching/learning model for a number of reasons. For me, it has helped me get my back pain under control and it's helped me deepen my yoga practice in ways I'd never imagined.

But Individual Instruction is also perfect for:

• beginners
• people who have any type of special issue they're working with (joint issues, balance issues, health issues, injury, pregnancy, etc.)
• athletes who need a customized practice for sports training
• people who have an erratic schedule that makes it difficult to get to the studio for classes
• people who want to understand more deeply something they learned in group classes
• people who want to learn something specific that's not offered in group classes (meditation, chanting, breathing techniques, philosophy, etc.)

We've been offering Individual Instruction all along, but in 2018 we'll place a new focus on it and the many benefits it offers.

Throughout December, TYR is offering 10% off all Individual Instruction, with session to be booked anytime in 2018. This discount is applicable for single sessions as well as packages of 5 or 10 sessions.

You can purchase your Individual Instruction sessions in person at the studio or onlineusing the discount code yoga2018.

Whenever you're ready to schedule your session(s), please email us:

• a short description of what you'd like to work on
• your availability in 2018 (days of the week and times)

We recommend letting us propose a teacher who will best suit your needs, but if you have a teacher preference please do let us know that as well and we'll accommodate your request if at all possible.

To read more about Individual Instruction, click here. And if you have any questions, please send me an email and I'll get back to you as soon as possible.

I look forward to seeing you!

P.S. Please note that your favorite classes are not going away! Our Group Class Schedule will continue pretty much as-is in 2018 (with small tweaks as needed to accommodate the teachers' needs). Please stay tuned - the schedule will come out in next week's newsletter!