I started practising yoga in 1997 because I was suffering from back pain. When I started I was far from touching my toes. Attending a class just once a week made a real difference to my physical well-being. Yoga has been a real journey for me, it has offered sanctuary as well as adventure. There is something about giving body and mind space within a yoga class, or session at home on the mat that restores energy and gives life to dreams. After 8 years of practising yoga I went to India to deepen my study and practice. It was here that I trained to become a teacher. I did a 500 hour course at a small school called 'Yoga India' in Mysore, South India (www.yoga-india.org). This included an in depth self study as well as practical training. I was awarded my teaching certificate in June 2005. (accredited by yoga Alliance). Since then I have taught a variety of people, in community, festival and corporate settings, schools and also private classes, I am also fully insured and also qualified to teach yoga to children.

My approach
Your body is unique so your experience of yoga will also be unique. I encourage you to be connected, curious and compassionate towards your experience. I act as a guide, taking you through possibilities of action and inaction, demonstrating techniques and variations of the physical asanas (postures). One of the fundamental principles of yoga is 'Ahimsa' which means 'non-violence'. In our practice together we work to reduce harm to ourselves. As well as taking care not to distort our physical needs, this also involves becoming aware of our thought patterns. Negative thinking about ourselves (often triggered by comparing ourselves to others) causes psychological harm and actually affects the functioning of our immune system, positive thoughts have positive effects. When we fully accept our own strengths and weaknesses with a loving and kind attitude, it then becomes natural to wholly embrace life with all its challenges and riches. With the practice of hatha yoga, this begins with getting to know the limits and possibilities of the physical body and then moving from this grounding in the physical to beyond the physical. For me yoga is something to be lived in each moment, a balanced awareness of what is happening on the inside and the outside, finding that space between the inner experience and what is happening outside and deciding with clarity how best to use or conserve energy in each situation. I encourage people to work to their own capacity in each moment, gently pushing their own boundaries to discover new possibilities with an emphasis on exploring the sensations and thought processes of each present moment.
           
    To book individual sessions or inquire about classes (please also see the link
                        'Classes' below) with Ruth Appleby, please call the
                         Alexandria Healing Centre on 020 8579 7230.
         

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