INTRODUCTION OF NEW INSTRUCTOR
We are excited and happy to introduce Donna Schorr one of our new and upcoming instructors for the City of Mesquite Fitness programs. My fitness career began in 1984, teaching what I now call the “beat me up” kind if fitness: high impact dance aerobics, boot camps, running clubs. By the early 90s I was starting to experience injuries and sought out yoga to complement what I was doing. Back then there was no google or online ANYTHING, so one just had to show up at a studio and hopes to be able to keep up with whatever was being taught. Yoga wasn’t offered at fitness facilities, it was a private studio environment, very strict and disciplined. “Inclusion” was not a word that anyone used back then, and in fact yoga was very exclusionary…..almost like a private club that was only available to the very strong, very flexible clientele. I bounced around and was exposed to Ashtanga, Bikram, and some Hatha practices, and ultimately formed strong enough opinions about it that I started developing my own practice at home. By 2006 I was teaching my own version of what I call “fitness yoga” in the fitness facilities that I was already teaching in, and it became the highlight of my week. I’ve logged over 2000 hours of yoga instruction since then, it has been a wonderful journey of learning and teaching.
The 8 limbs of classic yoga include Asana, which is the physical portion of yoga. The 8 limbs are 1. Yama · 2. Niyama · 3. Asana · 4. Pranayama · 5. Pratyahara · 6. Dharana · 7. Dhyana · 8. Samadhi, which include breath work, mediation, and karmic rules for living. Depending on what an instructor incorporates, the spectrum can be from slow and meditative to energetic and intense. My practice focuses on Asana and Pranayama (breath), taught with a Vinyasa style class which means that we CONNECT the breath to the movement. The first 30-40 minutes of class are generally standing and generate heat, and the last portion of class is where we take advantage of that heat to hold the stretches for longer periods of time, and go deeper into the pose. All levels are welcome, there is no judgment or competition, and we all come to the mat with what we have to offer that day. There is usually laughter in my class; it’s a safe place to get your euphoria on!
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For more information on this and other programs please contact the Department of Athletics & Leisure Services at (702) 346-8732. Register for youth and adult programs online at: www.mesquitenv.gov for more information and to stay connected via social media, our Facebook: www.facebook.com/MesquiteNVRecreation or at the Administrative Offices located at 100 W. Old Mill Road.
