Featured Class

May 2006

Vinyasa Yoga

At 7:30am on a bright and beautiful Wednesday morning, 12 Sports Center members trickle into Studio B for a 75-minute morning wake-up and stretch-out session. Vinyasa Yoga, a perennial Sports Center favorite, led by four-year Sports Center veteran instructor Paulo Hudson is, by all accounts, the perfect way to start a day.

Seated comfortably on a yoga mat, armed with a yoga block and blanket, Paulo leads the dozen class members through a guided stretch and breathing exercise to begin the class. Paulo talks his students through proper posture, helping each one to gain an acute body awareness, focusing attention on breath, and forcing all 12 participants to become in tune with their breathing patterns.

Warm and ready to go, Paulo talks his way through various yoga postures, describing the movements of the body in detail to insure that each participant is especially sensitive to their posturing and actions. Students respond in sync, moving their bodies to his words, aligning their shoulders and hips, straightening their legs and arms and flexing and pointing their hands and feet.

“This class is all about alignment,” Paulo says, his perfect posture preceding his words. “It’s about alignment between the mind and the body using the universal principles of the Anusara System. I like to help my students find their alignment and to set an intention for the day.”

The class, on this particular Wednesday morning, is made up of various levels of students, each practicing yoga at his or her own pace. Some are clearly more advanced, and Paulo points out variations on the postures that can be done to increase difficulty, while other members are told to listen to their bodies and try what feels right without pushing themselves too far. Paulo intentionally specific with his instructions – saying things like “widen the space across the collarbones as you use the shoulder blades to support the heart.” It is through these meaningful directions that Sports Center members say they learn the most.

“Paulo is attentive to his students, and attuned to our bodies so that he can tailor the class to our individual needs and the needs of the group in a way that I’ve never seen anybody do. He’s energetic and innovative and fantastic” gushed Judith Bodeutsch, a Sports Center member of three-and-a-half years.

Paulo, ever the hands on instructor, walks around the room, his calming voice remaining steady as he helps members into correct positioning, occasionally using his own body as a source of stabilization and support. He works with Sports Center members individually, without losing the attention and focus of the larger group. The class progresses through assorted postures and positions but always comes back to a concentration on breath and alignment.

“The first day I took this class, Paulo saw me and he knew that I was in a service business – he said that he could see my stress by the way I held my body,” commented Marty Ehrlich, a Sports Center member of six years. “He’s been making adjustments to my body, and has made me so aware of my posture and balance.”

With ten minutes to go, Sports Center members partner up and line the walls of Studio B. In turns, and under Paulo’s watchful eye, partners help each other to walk up the mirrored walls with their legs with the eventual goal of a handstand. Participants work willingly with each other to improve their individual skills, taking pleasure in the accomplishments of their classmates.

“I absolutely adore Paulo and his class – it is one of my favorites,” says Edris Nicholls, a Sports Center member of three years. “He makes you feel good and he really changes your body. He is the perfect person to see in the morning – he makes my day wonderful!”

Before Paulo releases his students out into New York City to take on their Wednesdays, he leads the bunch in a group meditation in which class participants lie on their backs and focus on their breathing, before sitting up and doing a traditional peace chant.

“After two years of New York City yoga classes, this is the first one I don’t leave feeling rushed and in pain,” says Stephanie Lange, a three-month Sports Center member. “Paulo always takes his time working through all of the positions and he really knows he’s doing!”