YOGA CLASSES IN WATERFORD

The Wellbeing Centre on Philip Street is the location for Waterford's newest Yoga classes with a schedule to meet the demands of modern living.

Heta Hautamaki, who teaches Yoga for just ten euro per class every weekday, told Waterford Today that the classes are for everyone from the old and the young and all shapes and sizes.

Originally from Finland, Heta says that entry into the classes can come at either a class by class basis or by booking a number of classes, ensuring that people in the city can fit it into their tight schedules.

She said there can be some who think that they are not 'flexible' enough for Yoga but dismissed that saying that 'everyone' can do Yoga.

Heta's class sizes have no more than ten people per lesson and the reason for this she says is so people can be comfortable and safe while also getting the attention they need.

Heta is just 25 herself had already worked in Martial Arts before completing her teacher training in Yoga.

One aspect of Yoga is the amazing strength practitioners can exhibit without seemingly having the 'muscles' to do it but Heta maintains that this is perfectly natural, saying: 'When you go to the gym and you start working out, you are working all the muscles on the surface like your bicep and abs which are in charge of big movements. But in Yoga, when you are holding yourself up on your hands and you are holding it for long periods of time, you are conditioning those core muscles under those big muscles. These are the ones that allow our posture to be straight. So, it's that inner strength'.

In fact, Heta questions beliefs that modern living has led people to wrongly believe that they cannot do what she can but reassured those who take up classes, commenting: 'I feel like its not so much unnatural. Its unnatural for society nowadays because we drive cars, we don't walk and we don't use our bodies the way we could.A lot of people I see coming in with their shoulders completely locked from any kind of movement because of typing, driving the car or the stress of carrying bags on one side of their shoulder and not on the other. If, by stretching out on the mat, enjoying that stretch and giving it time, we'd be able to gain that flexibility that the foot would go over the shoulder, then it is natural, it's just forgotten'.

To add to her already in demand class schedule, Heta also has a Philosophy class at the Well Being Centre on Friday evenings and instead of charging for the class, participants donate to a chosen charity with the proceeds of last Friday's class going to the Irish Cancer Society.

In addition to her already busy routine, Heta will be giving a seminar for deep stretching for Martial Artists to give practitioners a wider range of movements. Bookings for the classes can be taken by calling Heta at 086 841 80 80 but people are asked to come early to avoid disappointment.

By www.waterford-today.ie

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