The yoga room is surrounded by lush gardens in a quiet street of Healesville.

General classes......Affordable private classes....
UPDATED 23rd sept 2011 : CLASSES..and their meaning THAT ARE AVILABLE in 2011: *all reg students recieve regular free meditation cds
*kids yoga
*kids meditation
*Hatha yoga...all physical yoga. *Ashtanga yoga...the 8 limbs
*Yoga Therapy
*MERIDIAN THERAPY...gentle stretches/meditation
*Pre-post natal yoga
*Yoga Nidra...yoga trance/meditation *Meditation...5 different popular techniques explored
*Iyengar yoga...Mr Iyengars 20th century slant on hatha yoga
*vinyasa yoga... dynamic flow /dance yoga.(often confused with ashtanga yoga)
*Gnana yoga...devotion/meditation only
*kriya yoga...working on specific body areas..pelvis...neck
*Theraputic pilates...realign yr tired back & neck, strengthen your pelvic floor muscles.
*Body scuplt pilates / go hard..loose weight/find yr waist,develop super upper body strength. learn easy pushups.

MEDIATION CLASSES: LATEST SCIENCE IN MEDITATION from SCIENCE DAILY Easter SAT 2011. HOT OFF THE PRESS: Enjoy permanent brain changes with 8 weeks of consistant daily meditation. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110121144007.htm Opportunities to meditate with Libby: *EVERY DAY/EVE YOGA CLASS BEGINS with 30 MINS OF beginners MEDITATION. *EVERY MONTH I RUN a 5 hr SUNDAY MEDITATION WORKSHOP, designed for those who think they 'CANT' meditate. I'LL PROVE u can! LEARN TO MEDITATE NOW...... PRIVATES: taylor a private for ur needs & yr budget. EG: 20 MINS DE-STRESS BREATHING - 20 MINS GO HARD PILATES 20 MINS YOGA THERAPY Lets dscuss yr lifestyle and yr needs.... PAY AS YOU GO::: you can come to classes casually. come as frequently or as in frequently as yr busy life allows. no need to book, just turn up. all teens free unless working $10.00 STUDENT/SOUL PARENT $15.00 WORKING PART TIME $18.00 WORKING FULL TIME aged pensioners gold coin donation

Why I combine yoga and pilates
I strongly believe that the combination of YOGA & PILATES and DANCE & YOGA benefits us more than either one or the other...... In the past I often did just a PILATES OR DANCE work out, as do many of my students...I found that I was often shaky, exhausted, and eventually very stiff...my pelvis and lower lumber, which were injured from ballet are healed but are still vulnerable, were not coping with the repetitive nature of pilates & dance....I began to combine the two classes...PILATES AND YOGA, DANCE AND YOGA...in my own practice and found it to be a brilliant combination.... My students that have the time do both classes back to back benefit dramatically.... In the event you don’t have 2 1/2 hrs to spare, you can do the PILATES or DANCE class, which is 1 hr, then just stay for the first 1/2 hr of Yoga , which is relaxation /meditation. In this part of the class you will learn PRANAYAMA...controlled breathing, and MEDITATION. By simply relaxing and altering your blood gases with controlled breathing your muscular body will recover from the Pilates or dance workout,thus avoiding potential muscle stiffness, aches and pains, or injury......

PRIVATE CLASSES
Private classes are extremely beneficial.....Having a class TAYLORED to meet you individual needs will make you FITTER and HAPPIER faster..... A combination of Yoga / Pilate’s / Pranayam (controlled breath) and meditation is the very best way to get super fit and happy, with out sustaining soft tissue injuries.... If you are stuck at home with small children.... Or you may simply prefer to have a private class since it is PRIVATE... What ever the reason....you WILL benefit dramatically.... Depending on your needs... I can Taylor a 1\2hr or a full 2hrs or more according to your budget.... You may not want to pay for a private...which is usually $100.00 per class....in this case you can invite a couple of girlfriends to join you..or perhaps even your hubby.... PRIVATE CLASSES ARE AVAILABLE..... During the week and weekends according to my availability....... email me now to discuss your personal and confidential needs. libbymitchell@bigpond.com.au

Sunday 5 hr MEDITATION WORKSHOPS
click on MEDITATION PAGE....or EMAIL ME FOR meditatin queries libbymitchell@bigpond.com.au MY INTENTION IS TO TEACH THE BUSIEST , CRAZIEST PEOPLE TO MEDITATE. The meditation teachings are based on DR CAROLINE LEAFS work . Dr Leaf wrote "WHO SWITCHED OFF MY BRAIN"....she believes that approx 87% of illness is caused by negative thoughts. The workshops are also based on the teachings of "PATANJALIS YOGA SUTRAS"...... Several thousand years ago PATANJALI wrote a body of knowledge which is made up of 198 sutras, or threads, or phrases....with which the yoga practioner lives by..... The fundamental idea is that our minds are out of control. Most of us multi task all day. Dr Caroline Leaf believes we have approx 30,000 thoughts per day. In order to meditate we must first slow our mind and our physiology, this is done with Pranayama, controlled breath, and various meditation techniques. (All 5 technuques described in detail down the page) Continued controlled breathing will change the bodies delicate physiology, thus calming and quieting the mind ..eventually the mind becomes familiar and almost addicted to the bliss of not thinking...thus, 'THE ABSENCE OF ORDINARY THOUGHT' IS 'CLASSICAL HATHA STILL MIND MEDITATION '. My intention during is to teach my students with absolutely no experience how to meditate and to be meditative through out their busy days..... For those students with meditation experience it will be an opportunity to immerse into the absolute BLISS of stillness, and to explore scientifically proven techniques and ideas.....As it is a workshop we can all learn from each others feed back. Sometimes becoming 'still', physically and mentally can give rise to sad or even traumatic memories. Thus I honor those students who need privacy, and who's expereince is traumatic..... In the event your experience is traumatic I am able to refer you onto local healers /therapists /herbalists / doctors. During the first half of the day we will prepare the body/mind for deep meditation by doing a very gentle breathing (pranayama)and slow hatha yoga. To the novice this can be described as very gentle stretching with a focus on the breath....I will teach my students to go much deeper into each posture / stretch . Whilst in each posture , breathing and learning the importance of 'pratyahara'...('withdrawal of the senses':only focusing on yr breathing, sensations and sound ).... thus allowing each posture to be a 'MOVING MEDITATION .....with a great deal of emphasis on staying connected to the breath . THE OUTCOME of THE WORKSHOP.....: each student will leave the workshop having meditated or been meditative most of the day. A new understanding will arise of the beauty of BREATH and STILLNESS. In the hope that the student will revisit that blissful state any time of day...when cooking dinner and meeting our children's and husbands / wives needs. You will be able to find a quiet space in your minds and hearts simply by focusing on the simple breathing / meditation skills. Meditation is a vital component to achieving HAPPINESS,HEALTH ,SUCCESS AND LONGEVITY.....Yet statistics show that 34% of people who sit down to meditate find a distraction...and do not meditate. I believe we need to integrate a meditative state of mind into our daily routine.....using ANCIENT and MODERN BREATHING SKILLS, MANTRA / PRAYER/ AFFIRMATION, and CREATIVE VISUALIZATION.... Our Day..... 11.30 .....We will spend the first 30 mins breathing and listening...and observing the sensations of the body. PRANAYAMA...or controlled breath and meditation cds will settle our nervous systems and help us let go or surrender...thus preparing the mind / body for the day. *12.00-2.00 HATHA YOGA Did you ever feel so blissful in a stretch that you didn't want to come out of it...? In this part of the class the student will have the opportunity to linger in each posture. Acknowledging the individuals physical limitations. I will encourage the student to reach a comfortable level of the stretch, then focus on the breath, then heart beat, allowing the mind to let go within the posture. This is what I call MOVING MEDITATION.... the outcome a longer softer body, with a calm , clear mind.....bliss. 2pm....LUNCH....we will break for lunch......its best if every one brings their own light lunch.......i dont have a mirco wave but u r welcome to heat food on the stove top.... *2pm-4pm...MEDITATION.... MEDITATION IS THE ABSENCE OF ORDINARY THOUGHT.... Now we will meditate...or at least attempt to eliminate ORDINARY THOUGHT...... In order to eliminate ordinary thought we we will explore 5 valuable and popular meditation techniques ...... 1**PRANAYAMA..... (controlled breathing) I personally believe that BREATH WORK (PPRANAYAMA) is the KEY to DE-STRESSING / MEDITATION and healing a damaged PHYSIOLOGY. Whether it be physical damage or emotional damage. For more info on Pranayama click on 'what we offer' then click on 'pranayama' and 'stress'.... 2**LISTENING....really listening is a great distraction from ordinary thought. re train yr mind t listen not think..its fun and extremely useful...listeneing to the silence the trees is a great skill to have, yet as we are all great multitaskers we usually do more than just listen....having made the commitant to learn to really listen, my relationship with my teenager has benefited tremendoulsy..... 3**SENSATION...aka pratyahara...(aka vipassana) ..by focusing on the subtle sensastions of the body , most importantly your breathing the mind becomes distracted from ordinary thought... 4**AFFIRMATION....aka...T.M. (trancendental meditation) We will explore the valuable techniques in affirmation meditation to help re-programme yr mind...or to just simply distract it.... 5**CREATIVE VISUALIZATION......is a beautiful way to distract our minds from ordinary thought....we will explore many creative visualization techniques..... Ultimately , the student will learn the magic of STILL MIND MEDITATION....or..CLASSICAL HATHA MEDTATION. I have formerly studied 'CLASSICAL HATHA MEDITATION' and 'THE YOGA SUTRAS' with JANI BAKER @ THE AUSTRALIAN COLLEGE OF CLASSICAL HATHA YOGA in 2001. Click on 'what we offer' then 'stress' for more info on creating positive affirmations, (re-booting your brain.) Most of the students that come to YARRA VALLEY YOGA SCHOOL are attempting to minimise and deal with stress.....I believe that most of us don't have the discipline to 'SIT' or MEDITATE for an hour a day, thus learning to be meditative throughout the day is extremely valuable....once the student learns the value of being MEDITATIVE, They will then be more likely to find the time to 'SIT' ....(The term 'SIT' is a common term for a meditating.....whether u are sitting up or laying down)

HATHA...ASHTANGA...IYENGAR....VINYASA
Many yoga students take yoga classes originating from around the world with strange and wonderful names....this can be confusing.....click on YOGA STYLES (top of this page) for a brief traditional summary of the styles of YOGA that are available @ YARRA VALLEY YOGA SCHOOL