Why aqua yoga?
There has always been an element of water in my life. I grew up in California, in the mountains outside a beach town. My father’s favorite past time was sailing, so most family outings involved being out in Monterey Bay. If we weren’t sailing, we might have been at the Beach Boardwalk (an oceanside amusement park), enjoying the beach in some other way, or fishing.
As an adult, I moved to island in the Pacific Northwest. Since the water is even colder there, my favorite ocean activity was riding my horse on the beach. I met my husband, a marine ecologist, in a marine science class. We got married on the beach, and now live 8 blocks from the other coast, the Gulf of Mexico. Our two boys live to fish with their father, and be on the water.
The water has been such a constant in my life even when I’ve traveled and lived inland I've stayed wet by swimming at indoor pools. I can’t even conceive of life without access to playing in the water.
A life aquatic requires yoga to be aquatic too.
For my personal practice, I love the comfort of aqua yoga. As a woman who deals with chronic pain from multiple auto-immune conditions, my land practice can sometimes aggravate my pain, increase my fatigue, or just plain seem a little overwhelming. That’s despite my experience, love of yoga, and knowledge that while in the short term it’s hard, in the long term, yoga helps.
My aqua yoga practice doesn’t bring up those challenges because it doesn’t overtire me or hurt my joints. Considering all the adjustments and challenges one faces with chronic disease, it’s really nice to have some constants.
How my story helps you with yoga...
Much of modern yoga is geared towards fit young students. This is definitely a slice of yoga but it doesn’t represent the whole pie. Yoga philosophy is pretty clear if you can breathe and have a brain you can do yoga. Being able to stick your foot behind your head is not a requirement.
As a teacher, I strive to meet my students where they’re at. Most of my students are seniors and have no interest in being able to stand on their heads. They want to experience less pain and more comfort, with less stress and more fun. Aqua yoga offers helps them improve their balance and is a low risk way to practice postures and techniques that are otherwise no longer available to many people. I’m gratified by watching people succeed at having fun, trying new things, taking up lots of space and connecting with their bodies.
My teaching style is geared towards...
Christa's use of technology was very helpful. She took photos of me as we worked on poses, and promptly sent them to me. She used her tech skills to illustrate the photos, and point out areas of improvement. That was very motivating.
Judy
Private Yoga Client
Christa Fairbrother, ERYT-200, RYT-500
Certified Aqua Yoga Specialist
Certified Yoga for Arthritis Instructor
Aquatic Therapy and Rehab Institute Certified
Aquatic Exercise Association Aquatic Fitness Professional
Arthritis Foundation Aquatics Professional
Certified Accessible Yoga Teacher
Kidding Around Yoga Teacher
MA, Museum Education, University of Leicester
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