Designed both for dedicated yoga students as well as for yoga teachers, yoga therapists and other professionals working with the human body.
About this Event

The Therapeutic Wisdom of Yoga with Doug Keller (In-Studio + Online)

Designed for Teachers and Dedicated Students – Continuing Education Hours = 10

Saturday September 14 + Sunday September 15 11:00am-1.30pm + 2.30pm-5:00pm DPT

The true power of yoga practice and its therapeutic value goes beyond muscles and joints. It influences the nervous system — particularly through the Vagus nerve — in ways that touch every level of our health and well-being. In the Upanishads, this was described in terms of the ‘Vayus’ of the Prana. In this training, we’ll unveil in contemporary, relatable terms the full significance of these ideas, and tie them directly to the practices — with emphasis on asana, but also extending to pranayama, meditation, and Yoga Nidra.

Saturday: The Sacrum, Spine, and Torso: Prana, Apana, and Equilibrium / Samana

The most familiar idea in yoga is the idea of the balance between Prana and Apana, between stimulation (Prana) and staying grounded (Apana). The dynamic balance between these two is a state of equilibrium (Samana) in which we function at our best in body and mind. All movement in asana begins with the spine, and the natural undulation of the spine in movement is also the foundation for the health and steadiness of the mind. And the heart of the spine’s movement is at the sacrum, the foundation of both ‘Prana Vayu’ and ‘Apana Vayu.’

We’ll focus on this vital movement of the sacrum and spine in asana and vinyasa. This will include some work with the feet as our foundation and a key connection to the movements of the sacrum that also the guide for action in the knees and hips. This will expand to include the torso, the realm of the breath and of the ‘gut,’ where we experience equilibrium or Samana Vayu.

The hatha yogis were the first to emphasize the crucial importance of the health of our ‘gut’ or digestive system, and to tie the benefits of asana — especially twists and forward bends — to the well-being of this vital area. We now understand the ‘gut’ as a center for our immune and hormonal systems, which are crucial to our resilience as well as our mental and emotional equilibrium. We will especially explore healthy twisting as a vital dimension of asana practice influencing this core, and will touch upon the psoas in the process.

Exploration of Prana, Apana, and Samana will expand into an experience of the bandhas and the natural undulations of the spine in pranayama, as well as add new dimensions to Yoga Nidra.

Sunday: Intention and Empowerment: Connecting Udana, the Power of Intention, to Vyana, the Power of Feeling

Udana Vayu concerns the power of intention and its role in regulating the overall health of our nervous system and body. Udana is intimately connected to Vyana, the power of sensation or feeling; neither can be fully realized without the other. ‘Vyana’ is the Vayu of sensation, concerned with movement and our perception of space and freedom in the joints. Where there is lack of space, there is restriction of movement and pain. It is also the Vayu that governs pain management. Vyana vayu is a starting point for understanding how and why joint pain, muscle stiffness and weakness, limited range of movement, and recurring pain patterns have a common root in the body’s protective reflexes arising from the peripheral nervous system — which is the realm of Vyana, the ‘pervasive’ aspect of Prana.

As a practical focus will concentrate first on the shoulders. There are secrets to knowing how to move the shoulders well for the sake of greater freedom — and it’s not just about stretching! We need to understand how the joints of our shoulder girdle work, and how it is lack of proper ‘joint play’ causes tightness as well as weakness and pain syndromes. The fundamental, practical work with the shoulders will be connected to the neck and upper torso — the realm of Udana, particularly in relation to the breath and the healthy functioning of the Vagus nerve. From this asana work, we will move into pranayama, meditation practices, and Yoga Nidra. This will go all the more deeply into the ‘nadis,’ understood through the Vagus nerve, and the role of imagination, visualization, and intention (‘Sankalpa’) in these practices — leading to deeper states and realms of consciousness.

Who is this for? This training is for yoga teachers, yoga therapists and other professionals working with the human body. For those who have taken this training in the past, this will be a refresher and an update, with fresh perspectives for moving forward as teachers in step with our times. For those joining us for the first time, this will be an accessible introduction to a very modern and practical perspective on yoga. New teachers have comfortably put ideas from the training to use right away, and continued contemplation on the themes of the training has nourished their teaching for years afterward.

Recordings available: All sessions are recorded and will be available for a year. The Zoom recording will be available for those who are not able to make the sessions

Certificate: You will receive a certificate of attendance of 10 Yoga Alliance Continuing Education credits and as an approved IAYT (International Association of Yoga Therapists) APD course.

Doug Keller has been teaching workshops and trainings in the therapeutic applications of yoga for over 25 years decade, and is known not only for his effectiveness in communicating this ever-evolving approach in these trainings, but also for his extensive writing on the topic in magazines, journals and his two-volume work on Yoga As Therapy.

This Training is state-approved and is fully accredited by the International Association of Yoga Therapists. Doug has degrees in philosophy from Georgetown and Fordham Universities in the United States, and taught philosophy at college level for several years. He also spent a total of 14 years in Siddha meditation ashrams worldwide. He has produced three highly-respected books on asana, pranayama and yoga philosophy. Doug’s teaching is focused on the yoga of ‘Swatantrya,’ the yoga of one’s own inner expansion and awakening, and is rooted in a vast and inclusive perspective of study and practice that honors the insights of the many streams of wisdom that flow into the river of yoga.

Designed both for dedicated yoga students as well as for yoga teachers, yoga therapists and other professionals working with the human body. This training will be an accessible introduction to a very modern and practical perspective on yoga.

Price: $245 before Sep 1/ $265 thereafter

Technology: Zoom will be used. You will receive the zoom link in the confirmation email.

Reminder emails: will be sent 2 days, 30 min and 10min before the event.

About Doug: Doug Keller’s background reflects a lifelong commitment to studying, imbibing and sharing the vast field of knowledge and practice known as yoga.After receiving honors and graduate degrees in philosophy from the top Jesuit universities in the United States, Georgetown and Fordham Universities, and teaching philosophy at a college level for several years, he then pursued his ‘post-graduate’ education in the practical experience of yoga at the Siddha Meditation Ashram, Gurudev Siddha Peeth in India, for seven years. He spent a total of 14 years doing service, practicing, training in and teaching yoga in Siddha Meditation Ashrams worldwide. He received intensive training in the Iyengar system in New York City, mainly with senior certified Iyengar teacher Kevin Gardiner. He also practiced Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga in India, and became one of the first certified Anusara Yoga teachers, producing three highly respected books on asana, pranayama and yoga philosophy.

His further expansion in learning is reflected in his latest and most in-depth work, ‘Yoga as Therapy,’ which is truly one of the most comprehensive, innovative and useful treatments of the structural aspect of yoga therapy available. And for three years he was a regular columnist for Yoga+ Magazine (formerly Yoga International, published by the Himalayan Institute), writing the ‘Asana Solutions’ column that addresses specific therapeutic problems. He is at the highest level of certification with Yoga Alliance, E-RYT 500, and a member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists.Doug is also a ‘distinguished professor’ on the teaching faculty at the Master’s Degree program in Yoga Therapy at the Maryland University of Integrative Health, a state-approved institution of higher learning.

Doug’s teaching is rooted in a vast and inclusive perspective of study and practice that honors the insights of the many streams of wisdom that flow into the river of yoga.Website: www.doyoga.com