Courtney Novak is a 200 hr RYT, certified in the Vinyasa tradition but passionate about experiments in Yoga, Art-ful Yoga, Yoga therapy, Meditation, and Restorative Yoga. As a teacher she is a gentle, open, and creative guide, ultimately respectful of individual bodies, needs and preferences. She believes that everyone is ultimately their own teacher and sees her role in class as more of a Counselor/Artist/Healer/Reminder. Born and raised in Schenectady, NY she has been practicing since her Grandmother took her to a Kripalu Beginner's series when she was 16 years old. She brings a loving energy of creativity and acceptance to every class she leads.

- The Yoga of Letting Go
We all have something we would like to let go of. Whether it be an addiction, a past relationship, or an unhealthy habit, this 90 minute workshop will explore the possibilities for letting go using the body as a vehicle. We will start out in a quiet restorative asana for meditation. We will sequence through a thoughtful Vinyasa, pausing in each pose to contract and relax various muscles as a physical reminder of how we hold on and let go in a myriad of ways everyday. We will explore how we tense up or grip in various asanas and will be encouraged to adopt a state of mind of detachment, appreciating and loving our strength and ability without clinging to it. We will spend the last ten minutes of class in a quiet seated meditation where we will liken our breath to all of the little births and deaths in our lives.



- Blindfolded Yoga
What happens when we take away a seemingly vital sense? Are other senses heightened? Does the one that is missing seem more important or less? In this 90 minute workshop we will explore our boundaries and our senses of our own bodies and the space they take up sans our sense of sight. Beginning in quiet meditation we will put our blindfolds on and, with a sense of trust and exploration, leave them on for the duration of this gentle Vinyasa class. What will happen if we can't see our own feet? Or check to see how our neighbor is making their way through their flow? There will be a sense of importance placed on the inward journey aspect of practice, yet we will be in it together. Perhaps, only able to hear the deep oceanic breaths of fellow practitioners, our minds will become convinced we are at the sea shore hearing the waves lap the beach.