De-stress, foster balance and promote enjoyment through Classical Yoga

2021 New Year’s Yoga Challenge

It is time to welcome in a healthy 2021! Four classical yoga instructors who have been independently offering free online classes during the 2020 pandemic, are teaming up to offer more timeslots and options to students for the month of January. The aim is to help you through the current lock-down and potentially increase your yoga practice. Come as often as you like!

For those ready for the next level, we are issuing a 30-day yoga challenge: Take a yoga class a day for 30 days. This is a wonderful way to experience first-hand the benefits to mind, body and spirit of a regular practice, in your own home, during lock-down. You will feel physically and mentally stronger, and more socially connected to your classmates and teachers.

January Yoga schedule

Classical Yoga Combines breath, movement and meditation with the aim of total health and well-being. It gently promotes physical strength and flexibility while improving concentration, steadiness and calmness of mind. The result is decreased stress and increased inner strength and joy. Classes will include physical practice (asana), breath work (pranayama), and right thinking (bhava), and a basic introduction to core concepts of yoga philosophy as we strengthen, mind, body and spirit. Any age, any fitness level can participate!

About the Teachers: Our teachers received their training at the Institute for Classical Yoga and Therapy in Brampton Ontario. This traditional yoga dates to the time of Patanjali’s yoga sutras as taught by the Yoga Institute in Mumbai, India http://theyogainstitute.org/.

Lalit Jairath is an advanced Classical Yoga teacher, who has been teaching at the University of Guelph for over a decade. Lalit attributes the huge shift in his mental, emotional, physical, social and spiritual health and awareness to his daily practice. He is deeply interested in the Yogic Lifestyle and the transformative effect of Yogic/Sattvic/Pranic Foods on mental and physical health and disease. Now an IT specialist, Lalit first trained as a Vet and an Animal Geneticist. Lalit loves to fly kites and hike.

Upinder Kaur a.k.a Simi is a Certified Classical Yoga teacher. Upinder began teaching daily classes in June 2020 to support friends and family through the pandemic and has offered a class every day since. An Engineer by profession, running a Tech startup, and a mother of three, Upinder finds that yoga helps her find balance in her busy life. Upinder has a longstanding passion for yoga & mindfulness, and has been practicing for the last 10 years. Upinder loves hiking, reading, cooking and travel. 

Gillian Mulvale is an advanced Classical Yoga teacher. Gillian has a keen interest in how traditional spiritual teachings intersect with meditation, mindfulness, and yoga to promote mental health and well-being. Gillian has been practicing yoga since 2009, and has taught yoga classes part-time since 2013. Gillian teaches health policy at McMaster and her research program aims to improve mental health policy and service delivery. She loves to garden, swim, ski, bike and craft stained glass.

Cary Rodriguez has had a personal yoga practice for many years and became a Classical Yoga teacher in 2011. Cary has taught classes to her co-workers for the last 3 years. While her aim when starting classical yoga was primarily to improve her physical health, Cary now loves the yogic lifestyle, philosophy and everything related to yoga. Cary is a health care worker who loves nature, the outdoors and being near water (especially on a beach), which relaxes her mind and body.