Yoga

by Phil Houseal as published in the Kerrville TX Community Journal & Boerne TX Hill Country Weekly
Oct 28, 2009

When Corinne Baerwald began practicing yoga, she couldn't even call it yoga.

"Thirty years ago people were suspicious of it," she said. "When I first started teaching, I called it 'Stretch for Health.' At about the third class, one student asked me in a whisper, 'Are we doing yoga?'"

Today Baerwald proudly calls it Yoga, Yoga for Shoulders, Yoga for Golf, and more. She has taught a variety of yoga classes for Club Ed since 1992.

During that time, attitudes have changed, and the culture of yoga has changed. When it originated in India, yoga was mainly practiced by men. Today, women outnumber men in the classes Baerwald holds at The Yoga Space, the center she and Gwynn Groggle opened six years ago in Kerrville, as "a service to the community."

But the benefits of yoga work equally well for both sexes.

"Yoga offers flexibility, stress release, breath release, more even temper, and more control of the body, which people are wanting right now."

Yoga also increases strength. That is one of the misconceptions that men have - that doing yoga is easy, or that it's women's exercise.

"Some of the poses we do are challenging - it depends on the level of the class," Baerwald said. "Some work on flexibility and lengthening the muscles; some work on strength and stability. All poses have to do with flexibility and balance."

For Club Ed, Baerwald has put together yoga classes targeting specific areas, such as the Yoga for Golf and Yoga for Neck and Shoulders, both very popular. The Yoga Space is a Hatha Yoga oriented studio, and they also offer t'ai chi, kundalini yoga, and bhakti yoga, a more spiritual approach. Each Saturday, a different teacher holds class so students can experience different styles of instruction.

(For information on their offerings and schedule, visit www.yogaspace-tx.com.)

Baerwald does have gratification from those early days teaching Stretch for Health. Many of her students have gone on to become instructors themselves. All remain friends.

"I feel a compassion and caring and love for these people - they become your family," she said, noting one student has been with her for 10 years. "You form bonds with your students and they with each other. The energy is shared and you just like them! When they are not there, you miss that energy."

xxx

Club Ed will offer Yoga for Golf on November 8. For information or to sign up, click www.clubed.net, or call 830-895-4386.

Club Ed is the Community Education program of the Kerrville Independent School District. Each year, we offer more than 400 classes throughout the Texas Hill Country, along with online courses, business and individual training, and after-school and summer camps. Comment online at clubedcomments.blogspot.com, or follow us on Twitter @clubedtx.