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Sara Harris: I turned to yoga 20 years ago in London in an attempt to alleviate back problems resulting from years of high impact sports. The yoga worked, and in 2000, I completed the Sivananda Teacher Training Course in India. My teaching focuses on the 3 pillars of contemporary yoga – asana (postures), pranayama (breath awareness) and dhyana (meditation), and weaves the traditional teachings of Sivananda & Krishnamacharya with more contemporary influences such as Donna Farhi, Shiva Rea & Paul Grilley.

As a mum to 2 teenage boys, yoga has allowed me to ride the rollercoaster that is parenthood with strength & flexibility; and to exist in the present moment where my children live & learn. Therefore, I have a special interest in sharing yoga with women on the path of parenthood. My emphasis on understanding the principles of yoga encourages students to listen to and be guided by their own bodies.

Sara Harris: Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher.

 'The highest reward for a person's toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it'
- John Ruskin 1819-1900

    

Cheryl Farthing: I have loved practicing yoga since I began watching Kareen Zebroff's yoga TV show in the early 1970's. Initially 'Life' got in the way of my childhood dream to be a yoga guru in a leotard. But some years later, (more than I care to think about really), I was inspired to train as a teacher after experiencing the profound effects Iyengar yoga had on improving my health when I was diagnosed with a rare auto-immune disease. I completed a 3 year apprenticeship in Iyengar Yoga at North Shore Yoga, and still continue to study regularly with many senior teachers from around the world. My passion and joy for the inward journey of yoga is what motivates me to teach and to keep trying to find that clarity of mind and equilibruim.

As mother of a child with Down's Syndrome, I have recently begun to developed my yoga training to work therapeutically in this area and have a teaching certificate in "Yoga For the Special Needs Child" after studying with renowned teacher Sonia Sumar. I enjoy the detail of teaching 'one to one' and am available to work on this basis, both with children who have special needs, and others who wish to deepen any area of their yoga practice. Namaste

"Yoga teachers us to cure what need not be endured
and endure what cannot be cured"
- BKS Iyengar
    
 Arvinderfee Blankley is excited to introduce this new form to New Zealand. Trained in Italy by the founder Sara Avtar Olivier, Arvinderfee brings this harmonious movement structure to The Yoga Tree.  The first experience of this form of yoga in dance changed her perspective after practising yoga for over 20 years. The inspirational phases of Shakti Dance brought both physical rejuvenation and enhanced body awareness. Arvinderfee believes that you should enjoy your life through making the most of yourself everyday. Look after your mind, body and soul, and express yourself though dance or artistic pursuits, and exercising in ways that you enjoy. Learn to breathe, and enhance your ability to change your mental and physical capacity.  In just over an hour, you can change your perspective of your day.    
  Sarah Smith, Baby Massage Instructor

I am a mother of three, two boys and a girl. I moved to New Zealand from the UK in 1999 and was a stay-at-home mum until my youngest child went to school in 2007.

I was keen to work with mothers and babies in a practical way, and found that baby massage combined a number of elements that really attracted me – promoting nurturing touch and the enhancement of bonding, the chance to work closely with mothers and their babies and to work in a supportive role in the community. I am now a Certified Infant Massage Instructor with the International Association of Infant Massage.

Baby massage is a gentle but effective practice with multiple benefits for babies and their carers. In addition to stimulation of the baby’s physical systems (including immune and circulatory systems as well as co-ordination, balance and neuron connections), it can offer relief with discomforts including colic, teething, sensitivity and tension. Baby massage also aids relaxation by enhancing sleep patterns, the ability to self-calm and to cope with different environments. Most importantly though, massage enhances interaction between baby and carer by strengthening bonding, mutual respect and non-language communication.

My classes offer a gentle and safe environment where carers and babies are encouraged to share experiences and emotions, whilst learning an art which can complement and enhance the parent/child relationship all the way to adulthood. Carers learn how to handle and touch their babies in a nurturing and confident way, and babies learn to receive and accept loving and attentive touch.

I am delighted to be able to offer these classes in the lovely environment of the Yoga Tree. More information about times, costs, class structure etc are to be found on the timetable and 'Pregnancy to Teens' sections of the website.