I have just returned from another blissful weekend teaching with Julia at Cranage Hall. Thanks to everybody who came along! It’s wonderful to catch up with people I have taught in the past and connect with new folk. I really enjoyed the dinner and conversation! Julia and I are hoping to put on another yoga weekend at Cranage Hall in May. These weekends are always very popular as they offer a mix of yoga, breathing, mindfulness and relaxation, use of a pool and spa, with additional treatments if you choose – so do get in touch if you like the sound of that! I’ll post details up as soon as prices and dates are confirmed.

Below are a few snaps from the weekend.

Hi there,

New Classes

Tomorrow I am starting two new yoga classes with Instinctive Health studio based in Kelham Island! These will be running just the next couple of weeks before Christmas and then back in January. I’ll be teaching a 5.30pm intermediate flowing yoga class for those with energy and stamina followed by a gentle and relaxing restorative yoga class 7pm. Both classes last for an hour and a quarter. For more details about these new classes please pop over to http://www.instinctivehealth.co.uk/yoga

I have more drop-in yoga classes coming in the New Year at the fantastic Union St, a co-working meeting space in Sheffield city centre. These new classes will be open to everybody including of course Union St members. I will update you on the dates and times of these soon, the yoga space is currently undergoing a transformative refurbishment and should be ready soon. I’m really excited about this! http://www.union-st.org/

Festive Yoga Meal!

I am looking forward to our Christmas meal this Thursday at Ban Thai restaurant, 1 Ecclesall Road S11 8HY, the table is booked for 12 people at 8.30pm for:

Matt
Matt & Katie
Rachael
Rachael & Damien
Sian
Gavin
Suzannah
Sarah
Leonie & Mark

Christmas Hols

My last class before Christmas is our lovely Yoga Breakfast Club at the Dance studio in Sheffield city centre, 9-10am and later a special candle-lit yoga class at the Scout Hut near Ecclesall Road on the evening of Thursday 17th December. I hope you all have a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas break. I will be returning Monday 4th January with Pilates at High Storrs School and all other classes back on that week.

January yoga weekend

My Cranage Hall retreat in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire is taking place mid-January. This weekend sold out very quickly so Julia and I are thinking about possibly running another Cranage retreat in late Spring – we will keep you posted as soon as we have more information!

I wish everybody who has come to my classes and retreats this year a beautiful Christmas.

Shanti,

Leonie

From November 16th I am going to be running a new drop in Pilates class on Monday evenings, 6.45-7.45pm. This will be held at High Storrs School S11 in the Activity Room, which is a large gym approachable from the Sports Entrance nearest to the big free car park.

The class itself will be perfect for absolute beginners but I will offer lots of adaptations and take you through different stages of the exercises so that those with more experience can also be challenged at a level that suits them.

Pilates is fantastic for helping you to improve your posture, gain body awareness, core strength and helps prevent future as well as minimising present back problems. It’s an exercise form that works for all ages and types of person, as it’s slow, controlled and flowing, and has a calming relaxing effect on the mind.

I will have some mats you can borrow but great if you have your own already. Prices are an affordable £6.50/5.50 students and concessions. You can also choose to buy a ten class pass which is available for either £55 or £50 concessionary rate and can be used within a three month time period at any of my community Sheffield classes.

Wear comfortable, layered clothing – you practice pilates in socks or barefoot.

Please email me for any further details and do let me know if you are thinking of coming along!

Thanks

Leonie

As many know by now, I have made the rather painful and difficult decision to leave my Manchester classes in order to focus my energies now on my new classes in Sheffield. I’m not going to miss the tricky driving conditions in winter but I will miss those of you who have attended my Manchester pilates and yoga classes enormously. I know some of you have been coming to my classes pretty much every week for up to 11 years! (Nora, Sue, Jill, Debbie, Di, Muli, K’ria, Gavin etc etc!!) I will be sad not to catch up with you all and hear your news, share a joke or two before and after classes.

My last time teaching in Manchester is the first Monday and Tuesday in November; so see you this week and next. At least I know I am leaving you in good hands and hope you will be really happy with your new instructors, Suzanne, Karen and Mandy – they are all very experienced and lovely people.

I know a few people have asked me for recommendations for private pilates sessions and very gentle group pilates sessions. Do please ask Karen and Suzanne for ideas and adaptations but here are some thoughts about other good instructors in the South Manchester area:

Vered Hofton at Tatton House Studio in Gatley offers a beginners pilates course that may be suitable for those dealing with substantial injuries/conditions. She’s a warm, friendly lady. She can also offer sessions on the pilates reformers. tattonhousestudio.co.uk

Nisha at Pilates Manchester may be able to offer you a class to suit your need in the Sale area – she has tons of anatomy experience and also offers reformer sessions http://pilatesmanchester.com/

Sarah Hudson and Alexandra Lamb offer a range of classes in Chorlton and again, bags of experience with both mat and reformer work http://www.energyflowfitness.co.uk

Finally I hope you will stay in touch as I definitely have in mind thoughts to organise pilates workshops/retreats as well as further yoga workshops and weekends in the future.

Thanks a lot for all your support and energy over all the years I’ve been teaching in Manchester.

All the best,

Leonie x

Starting from October 1st I shall be switching my Thursday morning 9-10am Eten cafe yoga class to a brand new venue – Dance Revolution, on Bailey Street, off Trippet Lane in the centre of Sheffield, S1 4EH. I shall also be offering a Pilates class from 10-11am straight after yoga. I’m really excited to be teaching there! It’s a beautiful big room filled with natural light, with wooden floors, mirrors and white walls – absolutely perfect for a calming session of yoga or pilates. There are also lots of other fun dance classes going on in the evenings, including salsa and belly dancing, so it’s going to be a great new community space for Sheffield folk to who love to move and try new things. If you would like to find out more about pilates please look at my About Me page, or contact me! There are spaces available on both classes if you would like to join us and you can pay per class so you’re not tied in to a course.

 

I think everyone can benefit from the kind of individual attention you get in a 1-1 yoga or pilates session. If you are just starting out or have any physical conditions/injuries then you might prefer to have private classes, or if you have an erratic work schedule and can’t make a weekly group class.

I am currently running a special offer for private yoga, pilates and pre and post-natal pilates/yoga clients in Sheffield – £30 an hour instead of the usual price of £40. I have a light and airy, quiet yoga space available in Nethergreen S11. Currently I have slots free on Wednesdays and Fridays – please contact me to book your session: [email protected]

Sadly the 7.30am yoga class at Eten cafe has had to stop running as one of the cafe owners has left and there is nobody to open up at this early time. The 9am yoga class at the cafe will continue and is going strong – still a few places usually free if you have never been before and would like to try. All my classes are available on a drop-in basis so you don’t have to feel pressured to sign up for a long stint if you are just starting out or have an unpredictable work schedule. I also try to keep my classes very affordable so they are accessible to everybody who would like to join. Hope to see you at a class soon!

 

 

 

 

Namaste folks!

I’m back from my honeymoon – thanks so much for the warm wishes, tweets, notes, cards and gifts from my fellow yogis and pilates peeps, you are so generous and kind! We had a wonderful time

I’m starting a new early evening class from next Thursday (June 4th 2015) in the Hunter’s Bar area of Sheffield (S11). If you are interested in coming along please do so and you can email me with any questions at [email protected] – I would also really appreciate it if you can help spread the word about this new class as I am still relatively new to Sheffield!

Here are the details:

 

Slow flowing vinyasa hatha yoga

Thursday evenings 6.45-7.45pm (starting from 4th June 2015)

at the Scout Hut

Botanical Road

S11 8RP

 

links to a map: http://59thsheffield.org.uk/group/the-scout-hall

Drop in price: £6.50/£5.50 students & concessions (i.e. jobseekers, over 60’s)with the option to purchase a 10 class pass* for £55/50 students

*This is valid from the date purchased for the next 3 months to use for either the Thursday morning 9-10am class at Eten Cafe or the 6.45-7.45pm Thursday class at the Scout Hut. You can buy these at the class from me and can pay in cash or by cheque.

The Scout Hall is easy to reach as there are lots of buses running along Ecclesall Road. There is also metered parking available on Ecclesall Road from 6.30pm. Botanical Road is very close to Hunter’s Bar roundabout – Botanical Road itself is only available for residents with permits to park their cars.

About this class:

This class is suitable for those just starting out as well as those experienced in yoga who are looking for a practice of moderate intensity – my aim is to give you a nicely balanced physical practice which will both improve your strength, poise and flexibility, but also give time and space for attention to the breath (pranayama), and will include a short relaxation at the end of the session so that you leave feeling relaxed and calm. Hatha is a sanskrit word that encompasses all physical yoga but in the west is taken to mean a gentler form of yoga where poses are taught with focus on alignment and safety, and adaptations are given where possible for those new or with any injuries or ailments (the belief being yoga is for all!) Vinyasa means ‘sequence’ – so I will teach you individual poses which slowly flow through sequences and as the group gets more familiar with these sequences we can experiment with different rhythms and pace of flow – both of which offer great benefits. I will throw in different poses and variety in each class so your body doesn’t suffer from repetitive strain and you always have fun new challenges as well as the chance to deepen your awareness of the more foundational poses each week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Easter

Hope you are all having a lovely long weekend. I took a wander around the Botanical Gardens today and it’s so nice to see the sunshine breaking out finally and so many flowers bursting into life! Just a reminder that I am not running any classes tomorrow on Easter Monday, but otherwise classes are on as usual (including this Thursday’s morning yoga classes at Eten Cafe Sheffield).

 

Also if you are looking for a healthy and relaxing weekend away, do check out the details for the summer yoga retreat at Fawcett Mill in Penrith – full details over on the events page of this website  – we are now over halfway booked up on this weekend and all of our retreats generally sell out a month or so in advance, but there are places still available right now. Personally July is my favourite time of the year to visit Fawcett Mill as the garden is in full bloom and if it’s great weather like last year we might be lucky enough to practice yoga outside or have a paddle in the Mill’s own waterfall.

 

Hope to see you at a class soon,

Leonie

 

 

 

 

 

I hate having to cancel classes. But trudging around in the snow outside I just can’t tell if I can get my car safely down the hill and later back up the hill especially if the snow is continuing all day. I also don’t want anybody else to have a crash or an accident needlessly, so today we will have to namastay in bed.

Fingers crossed this wintry snow will soon pass and we can get back to normal next week!

See you next week,

 

Leonie