Yoga as Therapy for the Lower Body: Feet, Hips & Hamstrings
With Doug Keller
Filled with “news you can use” concerning the feet, hips, and hamstrings, this workshop will give you a wealth of insights for fine-tuning your practice for greater health and happiness in these vital areas. This workshop is designed for students with at least one year of yoga experience and yoga teachers who are interested in taking an in-depth look at lower body.
Session 1 – Taking Root to Fly: Your Postural ‘Dosha’ and Your Foundation in the Feet
Friday, April 6, 2012 9:30am-12:30pm
Each of us has our own unique physical nature that needs to be honored in our yoga practice. We’ll begin with an introductory overview of our approach and postural assessment, followed by a detailed look at the feet. This will include a deep look into the anatomy of the feet and lower legs, and the actions of the feet in different types of poses — what actions promote strength and stability, and connect to the rest of the body. The session will be rich in illustrated structural and anatomical information, and will also be a practice session, with clear, practical information for working with your own feet in all classes of poses.
Session 2 – The Hamstrings and Co.
Friday, April 6, 2012 1:30pm-5:00pm
The hamstrings present one of the biggest challenges to a yoga teacher or practitioner–and often our best efforts are counter-productive, and sometimes even injurious! The problem of the ‘hamstrings’ really presents a bundle of problems that require some insight to address and lots of creativity to resolve. Tight hamstrings threaten the health of the low back, and loose hamstrings can likewise lead to problems and injuries. In this session, we’ll look at both sides of the problem: injuries and problems from both tight and overly flexible hamstrings, and how to protect and heal the hamstrings and their attachments. This session will combine advanced assessment techniques, anatomical explanation, and practical solutions for working with the problem of the hamstrings, in class and out.
Session 3 – The Hips
Saturday, April 7, 2012 9:30am-12:30pm
Hip openers are among the most satisfying and powerful yoga poses–and can also pose problems. A big part of the problem is a lack of awareness of the nature and needs of our hips, as well as a lack of awareness of the warning signs of a problem. There are great variations in how our hips are built. And the same asanas, actions and instructions in yoga are not necessarily ‘good’ for everyone’s hips across the board. Moreover, what we do most easily in yoga is not always what is best for us, and can promote wear, tear and injury. This session will go into the anatomy of the hips, as well as fundamental principles of yoga alignment as they pertain to the health of the hip joints. We will cover a number of the quintessential and foundational ‘hip’ opening yoga poses, upon which you can build your own practice according to your own needs and abilities. We will begin to explore the topic of the sacrum from the perspective of the actions of the hip bones in hip openers and twists. The topic of sacral health will be continued in the afternoon session, taking into account the role of the psoas and ‘core muscles.’
Session 4 – The Psoas, The Sacrum, and ‘The Core’
Saturday, April 7, 2012 1:30-4:00pm
‘Core Strength’ is an enormously popular term these days, and yoga is especially suited to the development of ‘core strength.’ But what is the ‘core?’ It’s more than the abdominals, and ‘core strength’ is more than simply abdominal training. The goal is a well-integrated ‘core’ that works well with the psoas. This session will provide an in-depth look at the psoas, and how yoga works with the psoas in relation to the development of the ‘core.’ This will be the basis of completing our look at the health of the sacrum and low back, and how to care for them in yoga.
About Doug
Doug Keller’s background reflects a lifelong commitment to the vast field of yoga. After receiving degrees in philosophy from Georgetown and Fordham University and teaching philosophy at a college level, he pursued a practical experience of yoga at the ashram Gurudev Siddha Peeth in India — which in turn also led him to the practice of hatha yoga as part of his overall experience of yoga. From years of study, practice and teaching, he has produced widely used and highly respected books on asana, yoga as therapy, pranayama and yoga philosophy, and he teaches hatha yoga workshops and trainings in both North America and Europe. He has been a regular columnist for Yoga International Magazine for three years, and is also writing on therapeutic topics for Yoga Journal. His popularity as a teacher comes from his ability to deepen people’s experience of yoga through clear, simple and direct instructions that are easy to practice and remember. And he does it with lightness and light.
Winner of the 
