ABOUT

MICK

My tai chi journey started 30 years ago in a bank car park in San Diego, California with a Taiwanese gentleman who taught tai chi. He owned a laundrette at the time. After closing up shop he would teach tai chi in the car park opposite. I can still remember it clearly. 1:30 in the afternoon, sun beating down as it always does in San Diego. The car park was constructed from tarmac or as they say I the U.S., asphalt. It was so hot you would feel like your feet were on fire.

What originally drew me to tai chi was my interest in Eastern philosophy. Even though I was still at a young age I was also having back issues from too much physical work and exercise, including surfing and skateboarding. The idea of tai chi appealed to me. I practiced diligently but I still had not resolved the lower back problem. As time moved on I tried different teachers in the US. I made some progress but still not the elusive prize that tai chi offered.

Then things changed in 2004. I saw an advertisement in an international tai chi magazine offering a tai chi and other internal style martial arts training camp. This was it it. If I could not find what I was searching for in my current location I would have to go to its source: China.

This turned out to be a great pivotal experience. At the camp I was able to train with a variety of high level masters from different systems. What I noticed was that the fundamental theory was all the same but with different flavours. From this trip I formed a relationship with a teacher who I felt had the clearest theory on tia chi. I would travel to China every year afterwards to train privately with this teacher. I even would host him back in the UK to teach workshops. Progress was definitely happening. So what did I discover from my exposure to this pool of talent and how could I simplify the process to get results?

And how do you measure the results? First of all I examined different body work systems outside of tai chi, and looked at the way they would mechanically adjust people to help the pain related issues due to alignments. I asked myself why the treatments oftentimes didn’t last. What I found was that to really make lasting changes you need to be able to track physical movement all the way through the spine. One part of the body has to relate to the entire muscular skeletal make-up including muscles, skin and bones. Ultimately the mind has to lead the way.

If you cannot make whole body connections reaching through the entire spine you may have perceived flexibility but you also may have back or other TAI CHI related pain. This is often called hyper extension. Loose joints with no integrated relationship to the other muscles and skin of the body.

This was the discovery I made from decades of tai chi practice and observation of practitioners at the pinnacle of their art. Tai Chi calls this theory separation of muscles, skin and bones. Body work calls it Bowen Technique, osteopathy, reflexology, cranial sacral and more. The only difference is that with your own practice and correct instruction you then have the tools to make lasting changes to your own body if you are willing to put the time in. As for my back issue it is long gone now.

AUDREY

Having carved out a lifestyle in the surfing profession, in 1993 a serious back injury forced me to radically change the way I lived my life. The healing process took many years, but it was in finding Svaroopa™ yoga that my spine began to truly heal. The unique practices unlocked the core of my spine which not only improved my physical body at deeper and subtler levels but would simultaneously open an inner pathway to Self Discovery and Spiritual Awakening. It would be the start of an extraordinary journey. Meditation became an important part of the transformation process and eventually grew into the most treasured part of my yoga practice.

I have been teaching yoga privately and in group classes for over 20 years, as well as treating all kinds of conditions with Embodyment ™ therapy 1:1 sessions. All of these focus on spinal healing, experiencing inner bliss, and opening up to your true nature as Consciousness itself.

Education:

Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts, USA in 1982

Certifications

1.Yoga teacher in the style of Svaroopa ™ 500 hr.
2. Svaroopa Embodyment ™ Therapist
3. Meditation Teacher (School of the Living Light)
4 .Light Body Graduate (School of the Living Light)
5. Pranassage™ Practitioner
6. Advanced ThetaHealing Practitioner

Continued Education includes courses in Advanced Yoga Teaching and Yoga Therapy

Personal Practice - This is probably the most important training I’ve had! At least after getting the right information (which is crucial!) and ‘Shakti’ to delve deep and ‘do the work’. I spent 20+ years intensely practicing yoga and meditation. Much of what I offer comes from the nitty gritty of going into my own body day in and day and charting the inner terrain to find where the blocks of tension were and dissolving them. It was the same with the mind, and sitting for meditation to face the churning thoughts and (uninspiring) repetitive thinking. To feel the whole kaput and caboodle of what lurks within, the blocks that prevents one from finding that deeper dimension of Being; that which is joyful, expansive, unhindered, lovingly powerful, and compassionate.