Week 5 - Yoga Culture

I'm beginning to enjoy the Yoga portion of Bodyflow class. I have been able to better fine tune my breathing and stretching synchronization within poses each week. I am able to stretch deeper in to poses and my balance is getting better. I can successfully do the Warrior III, which is a standing balance pose. This pose has been really difficult for me so it was really rewarding when I completed the full sequence of this pose without falling over or loosing my balance.

Figure 1 - Warrior III Pose

Since I am now enjoying Yoga, I would like to try a stand alone Yoga class. I've had some friends that have been to a Hot Yoga class and really enjoyed it. I did an search for Hot Yoga studios near me. I found several studios, which lead me to researching more on Yoga and discovering that there are about 14 different Yoga styles:

Anusara
Ashtanga
Bikram
Hatha
Iyengar
Jivamukti
Kripalu
Kundalini
Prenatal
Restorative
Sivananda
Viniyoga
Vinyasa / Power
Yin

You can read about each of these individual Yoga styles here.
My Bodyflow instructor has mentioned that the Yoga we do in class is Bikram, one of the more common styles. In reading about each of the different Yoga styles, I would really like to try
Iyengar Yoga. Its is also known as "Furniture Yoga" because it incorporates props like harnesses, straps, and blogs in to the poses for a different stretch.
Along with my search for Hot Yoga studios and Yoga in general, I found other methods of Yoga incorporation like Paddle Board Yoga. There is a company in Park City that teaches Paddle Board Yoga classes.
I would really love to try both Hot Yoga, and Paddle Board Yoga.
As I was reading about the different Yoga styles and methods to incorporate with it, I referred back to the readings this week about  Cognition and the Culture of Learning. As I read more about Yoga, I learn how it applies to the different moves and sequences. This week's readings talk about cognitive apprenticeship and learning by being within the environment or culture in which the specific knowledge would be applicable in various situations. I began to wonder how successful my learning about Yoga, Tai Chi and Pilates would be if I had to learn the basic terminology and memorize poses before physically doing or practicing them (cognitive apprenticeship). I feel like my knowledge is more concise and I am learning more by doing the hands-on approach (cognitive apprenticeship) with Yoga, Tai Chi, and Pilates in class, and then I fill in the missing knowledge by research, social learning, and working with experts. The reading states that "approaches such as embedded learning in activity and make deliberate use of the social and physical context are more in line with the understanding of learning and cognition that is emerging from research." I really apply this to my learning in Bodyflow class, because I have been able to learn and grow my skills by doing the poses and sequences within each class.
The readings this week also talked about utilizing tools learned within the culture they are acquired in and how one applies those tools. In Yoga, a person's interpretation of a pose, stretch or sequence can be differently applied and used depending on which Yoga Culture their knowledge was cultivated in. The 14 different styles of Yoga represent the different Yoga cultures a person may know.  Each move (tool) is applied differently within the different Yoga styles (culture).

References 

Brown, J. S. (1989). Cotnition and the Culture of Learning. American Educational Research Association, 32-42. 

Ward, B. (2013, 4 20). MindBodyGreen. Retrieved 10 22, 2014, from MindBodyGreen: http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-8622/14-styles-of-yoga-explained-simply.html

Giam Life. (n.d.). Giam Life. Retrieved 10 22, 2014, from Giam Life: http://life.gaiam.com/article/beginners-guide-8-major-styles-yoga