Louise Grime - 15 minute gentle yoga

Louise Grime

London, New York, Melbourne, Munich, Delhi

Project Editor Helen Murray
Project Art Editor Anne Fisher
Senior Art Editor Peggy Sadler
Managing Editor Penny Warren
Managing Art Editor Marianne Markham
Art Director Peter Luff
Publishing Director Mary-Clare Jerram
Stills Photography Ruth Jenkinson
DTP Designer Sonia Charbonnier
Production Controller Rebecca Short
Production Editor Luca Frassinetti
Jacket Designer Neal Cobourne

DVD produced for Dorling Kindersley by
Chrome Productions www.chromeproductions.com

Director Sami Abusamra
DOP Marcus Domleo, Matthew Cooke
Camera Marcus Domleo, Jonathan Iles
Production Manager Hannah Chandler
Production Assistant Krisztina Fenyvesi, Tom Robinson
Grip Pete Nash
Gaffer Paul Wilcox, Johann Cruickshank
Music Scott Shields
Hair and Makeup Roisin Donaghy, Victoria Barnes
Voice-over Suzanne Pirret
Voice-over Recording Ben Jones

First American Edition, 2008

Published in the United States by
DK Publishing
375 Hudson Street
New York, New York 10014

08 09 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

HD130-Jan 08

Copyright 2008 Dorling Kindersley Limited
Text copyright 2008 Louise Grime
All rights reserved

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

Published in Great Britain by Dorling Kindersley Limited.

A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress

ISBN 978-0-7566-2926-7

DK books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, or educational use. For details, contact: DK Publishing Special Markets, 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014 or .

Printed and bound by Shek Wah Tong, China

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Yoga is truly amazing. It can wake you up to your true self, help you to let go of your preconditioned armor and to find inner joy. What more could you want?

When I was 27 years old, managing restaurants, I was lacking energy and I had no real passion in my life. I was just drifting along, smoking and drinking a little too much, and often at the doctors office with niggling coughs. Then a friend sent me to a local yoga class and that was it. I knew from that very first class that I had fallen in lovefallen in love with the yogic journey of finding myselfand I want to share a little of that with you. The smoking and drinking just dropped away; I changed careers, becoming a stage manager in the theater, which then led to working in television production. I worked freelance and this enabled me to take several months off in between jobs. I went to the Sivananda Ashram (a country yoga center) in southern India to take a teachers training course, not thinking I really wanted to teach, but for my own personal growth. I returned the following year, this time as a member of staff at the Ashram, immersing myself in all branches of yogic life from morning until night. I soon started teaching, and immediately loved it and converted the apartment above my home into a little yoga school. In the early 90s, I qualified as an Iyengar Yoga Teacher and this method has had the most influence on my practice and teaching. At that time I met the teacher who inspired me the most, Shandor Remete (Natanaga Zhander), who has now created Shadow Yoga. The Life Centre opened, and shortly afterward triyoga, the centers in London, where I teach. Slowly, I taught more and worked in television less. I have now taught for 19 years, and full-time for seven. I still love to learn from other teachers and go on yoga retreats and vacations, where you meet like-minded people from different walks of life.

Gentle Yoga contains four simple hatha yoga sequences.
You are asked to practice for just 15 minutes each day, but of course you can do more than that if you like. This book is designed to give you a taste of yoga and hopefully, like me, it will leave you wanting to learn more.

Practice, and all is coming K. Pattabhi Jois

Each sequence is designed to give you more energy, improve flexibility and posture, and to help ease the tension in your lives. Take time to study the poses in detail and familiarize yourself with what you will need to do. Use the gatefold summary as a quick reminder.

The accompanying DVD is designed to be used with the book to reinforce the exercises shown there. As you watch the DVD, page references to the book flash up on screen. Refer to these for more detailed instruction. In the book, the large photographs show the main pose. There are also inset photographs that are used in a number of ways: to show a starting position, a transitional pose, the next stage of the pose, or the pose from another angle. This is to make it clearer for you to follow and to ensure the sequence flows from one pose to another. Some poses are more difficult than others. The pink inset photographs indicate an easier option, where the pose is modified or props are added to make the pose more comfortable or simpler for beginners. The introductory pages, the FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) at the end of each sequence, and the All About Yoga section provide further tips and information to enhance your practice.

The first poses in each sequence are warm-up and .

The four sequences are intended for different parts of the day, but they work just as well at any time. Find a time that suits you best. They take 15 minutes each, but if you are a beginner, take as long as you need to learn the poses. For a longer practice, combine the sequences, omitting the final relaxation from each sequence until the very end.

The gatefold summaries at the end of each sequence help you to see each sequence in full view. Once youve watched the DVD and examined each pose, use the handy gatefolds as a quick reference to trim your practice down to a succinct 15 minutes.