Today we begin our five day Rocket yoga training course. This will make Day 1 of getting to know each other and sharing our stories. We will hand out materials and begin to look deeper into the history of the Rocket. As these sequences are very well known to me, they also hold a sense of mystery for those that have never been introduced to them. The Rocket itself is a series of poses that will work your whole body during the course of a six days a week practice. The Rocket was taught directly to me by Larry Schultz, that is the very old school tradition of yoga. Ancient yoga was taught from teacher to student and student to teacher, it was mostly an oral tradition. 

Part of Larry's beauty is that he never wrote the Rocket book, what he did do is offer stick figures of the routines for his students. The more you practice the Rocket the more you will become familiar with these beautiful sequences. They will challenge your body and your mind, They will show you your strengths and weaknesses.

The Rocket itself is a philosophy of practice and it provides a method for the Ashtanga practice that will give you a well balanced body and mind.

My goal for this training is for everyone to leave with a deep understanding of The Bottle Rocket, because it is the most basic Rocket and contains the structure for all other Rocket practices. I would also like the trainers to have an understanding of the differences and similarities between Rocket 1 and Rocket 2 seated poses and have a basic understanding of some of the main Rocket transitions. Also, another big goal of the training is that the trainers understand the philosophy behind the Rocket, how less is more and how to nurture your Rocket practice instead of pushing through the poses. So here we go lets BLAST OFF!!

Amber Gean

ROCKET TRAINING 100 hours 

The next training begins Feb 27th and runs until March 2nd,2015 

We offer 50 - 100 hour advanced training methods in the Rocket Vinyasa System. These trainings are specialized for learning Rocket sequences, theory and practice. They can also earn you continuing education hours for Yoga Alliance. The purpose of Rocket advanced training is to share the Rocket philosophy, sequencing and transitions. This training will give you the tools to deepen your practice and refine your teaching. We are part of a network of studios that feature the Rocket System as taught by Larry Schultz.

Our mission is to give you a strong foundation for your practice to blossom on and off the mat. By practicing living "our yoga and our truth" you will be empowered to create a vision and follow your dreams. Some of our graduates go on to open their own studios as well as travel the world facilitating yoga classes and workshops.

Yoga ah is a special studio because we offer different routines for each day of the week. These routines are based in Rocket yoga sequencing. By offering different routines, as a practitioner you are able to work on different poses and different body parts each day. To get a better understanding of this, if you were a body builder you would train different body parts on different days and keep to a schedule to ensure even growth of your muscles. This is what we offer at Yoga ah with in our classes. Monday Rocket focuses on the the legs, and forward bends, Wednesdays we focus more on our arms and back and Fridays we focus on training our full body with a mixed practice that includes strengthening legs, arms, opening hips and back and strengthening your core. Saturdays mornings you can experience a Modified Rocket One, based on strengthening your legs and core. The Rocket offeres many variations of classical Ashtanga poses such as interlacing fingers to create an effect for the shoulders and wrists or using the dolphin to build up your strength for arm balances. The beauty of the Rocket is we embrace growing and changing so if you are practicing all modifications its OK!! That s how we can grow and change as practitioners. Also by practicing different sequences we can watch ourselves grow from week to week. One of our mottos is "our strengthens become our weaknesses and our weaknesses our strengths." By practicing the Rocket daily you can gain a better understanding of what this means. We offer these classes because we believe in them and have seen the transformational power of regular Rocket practice and ultimately the great healing that takes place. Namaste

From July 11 - July 15th Yoga ah hosted 5 out of town yogis to partisapte in our Advanced Rocket Teacher Training and this is what one graduate wrote:

When I began my 100-hour Advanced Rocket Yoga teacher training, I was filled with excitement and eager to learn. It is apparent after you meet Amber that Rocket Yoga is dear to her heart and she cares deeply about the quality of her teacher training program. 

Over the course of 5 days, my fellow trainees and I had the opportunity to explore multiple Rocket Yoga series and develop a deeper knowledge and understanding of this amazing practice. Each day we participated in a Rocket class with other studio attendees. On the second day we learned that we would be teaching the Bottle Rocket to a public class, and split the sequence into different parts to instruct. In addition to strengthening our bodies to find more advanced poses and transitions, our minds and spirits also became strong as Amber challenged us to focus inward by providing insightful readings and journaling assignments.

Overall, the training was a blast - each evening we would go out to eat together or cook a family-style dinner and hang out with our fellow teacher trainees. 

I recommend this training for anyone who enjoys Ashtanga yoga and is seeking personal development and growth – physically, mentally and emotionally. It is quite an amazing journey to learn who you are and in turn, learn how to better serve others. From my training, I gained the confidence and knowledge to share Rocket Yoga with others. Thank you, Amber for sharing your passion, love and light with me and being such an empowering and inspiring friend and teacher! Sarah Tharp~