YOGA TODAY
class at home. It’s fun to see friends sign in, and really nice to be greeted by name. I am in absolutely no rush to get back to in- person classes! --Jane Kinney Meyers T he obvious limitation is that the teacher’s ability to see students is somewhat less, and there isn’t the same kind of class in- teraction that many in-person classes offer. I appreciate that you counsel students to be especially careful, and to adjust their cameras so you get some view of what they are doing. I also appreciate the “off mute” moments at the beginning and end of class so there is a better sense that there is a group having this experience together. There are some real upsides to class via Zoom. First, it is a lot easier to get to class. No traffic; few excuses. Who cares what you wear. When you come up with a block of time during the day because something cancels, or the weather is too lousy for a walk, you can bail into a class at the last minute. Second, you can take your studio and teachers with you anywhere. I spent a month in Maine in June and will go back for most of September. There is no reason I cannot take (my local studio) classes there, and invite friends outside of the DC area to participate as well. This is great for continuity.
find myself taking more yoga classes than before the pandemic. As a busy guy who works at home, it means I can squeeze in a class without the extra time it takes to drive to and from the class. It also enables me to study with favorite teachers, like Claudia Neuman and Andrea Brook, who live much too far away for me to person- ally attend a class. Teachers are stepping up and bringing their A-Game to the zoom classes. This is what they have been training for; the chance to be a shining light in students lives and really help people, because in quarantine yoga is an oasis of positive healing energy that is needed even more than ever. Strangely, I feel energy just fine at a distance. That aspect does not seem lacking in a remote class. Technical thoughts: Teachers are deal- ing with a single microphone and their volume changes with proximity to that microphone. It works better if the teacher stays in one area, that way the student can set the volume and forget it. I amplify my computer through an external speaker so I can hear the teacher clearly and the teacher should do the same, so they can hear the students when they aren’t muted. -Tobias Hurwitz I use a mini IPad. I have to be close for video and sound. - -Janice D
Just as it has taken me a while, and lots of trial and error, to figure out how to configure my computer so that I can see the teacher without craning my neck when we move into different positions, how to get the audio sufficiently amplified, and - now - how to get the live stream class to show on a big TV screen (minimizing the previous issues), I’ve actually enjoyed watching the various yoga teachers learn how to lead a practice virtually as well. Almost everyone had one issue or another at first in terms of audio, and teachers also got better at positioning themselves in relation to the camera so we could see what they were doing/showing. But the most significant growth has been in teachers’ ability to describe (and not just show) what we should be doing, and how it should feel inside our bodies - certainly necessary when, e.g., you are lying on your back and not able to see the computer. I’m saying all of the above not as a criticism but actually because I appreciate seeing yoga teachers grow, learn and adapt - in parallel with those of us who are being guided by them. Somehow the practice feels even more like a two-way thing than when we are a big group, in person. It’s also nice just to roll out of bed and pull on my yoga clothes and just go to
This brief time has been fun creating new community and reconnecting with old friends. We can learn what others are going through in brief snippets to help us feel not so much alone in this strange unknown pandemic experience. Another thing I’ve been intrigued by is how different teachers are using zoom. Some teachers stay on their mat allowing students to see every pose and practice with the students. Some teachers set up the pose, get off their mat and go to the group zoom screen and give alignment cues, encouragements, ‘atta’ girls and other inspiring comments. In one class a teacher even pinned a student on the zoom screen so that we could all look and enjoy the beauty of a fellow student in a pose. That takes me right back to the feeling of being in person in class. The creative use of zoom has been fun to watch unfold. Thanks for continuing to be there for us, you have no idea how grateful I and others must feel to continue our practice and feel that old familiar feeling of being in your capable, wise, humorous, loving care on the yoga mat. – Kathy Metcalf What Students Have To Say About Virtual Yoga ...continued from page 23
Due to the convenience of Zoom classes I
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