Bridging the world of Yoga and Somatics

The Slow Steep is 300 hours of online marination with Anja Bergh & Sarah Zandbeek. Over the period of a year and a half we will explore bridging the worlds of Yoga and Somatics.

Somatics comes from the Greek word “soma” which translates to “body” and “ics” which is an “organized body of knowledge.” In Yoga and Tantra, Soma represents the elixir of life, a subtle essence that is believed to flow through the body, promoting longevity and spiritual awakening. Symbolically, Soma embodies the principle of rejuvenation and renewal, akin to the cyclical nature of the moon. It signifies the potential for transformation and the cultivation of inner tranquility and vitality. Whether through ritual, meditation, or physical practice, Soma invites a deeper exploration of one's inner landscape which is the essence of this training.

It is through the wisdom of the body that we will come to understand the capacity of our full spectrum, the elation and the rage, the grief and the resilience. We will utilize the ancient wisdom of Chinese medicine to remind us of how all things are energy in motion and we too are a cycling part of Nature; we will invite a new way of learning from cerebral to body and from senses to mind, making way for us to inform ourselves through felt sense, landing and locating just as much as we know how to inform ourselves from theory or thought. We will look at the ways we hold ourselves back through conditioning and offer ourselves the chance to mobilize the things that never got to complete their cycle and remember the importance of integration, pausing, and stabilization in both the process, as well as the practice itself.

There are so many ways to approach wellness and it is here that we will sink into honesty, spectrum and constitution to invite ourselves to descend into the body and support ourselves to really be here. It is in the here that we have the opportunity to gain clarity on our surroundings through our senses, come into our instinctual, primal self, learn discernment, and regain our vision to forage a path forward that we feel stoked about.

Three, Six-month modules:

We begin with the foundations of Somatic vocabulary to set ourselves up with a solid base and anchor for the work and explorations we will be navigating in our time together. 

Module 1: OUTER BODY

Module one will look at the outer body - the aspects of our Self that engage with the outer world, how the outer world engages with us, the outer anatomy and embodiment of the tangible and external. From skin to bones; from seeing, smelling, hearing, feeling, tasting to our magnetic field. 

• Skin

• Pores

• Eyes

• Ears

• Nose

• Tongue/Mouth

• Throat

• Hair + body hair

• Nails

• Bones

• Tendons and Ligaments

• Muscles

• Menstrual cycle

• Where do I end and the outer world start?

• Energetic / magnetic field

Module 2: MIDDLE BODY

Module two moves into the middle body, from the sheaths of gel like structure known as the fascia to the organs, diaphragms, fat, and meridians, to the way the systems, like lymph and endocrine, work inside our body and brain and how to initiate our movements  from these spaces.

• Organs

• Diaphragms

• Fascia

• Meridians

• Fat

• Brain / Neuroplasticity

• Mind

• Endocrine System

• Lymphatic System - lymphatic massage

Module 3: INNER BODY

Module three focuses on energy. From our cells to our nervous system, through neuroplasticity and into the eight extraordinary meridians that orient themselves the moment the egg and sperm come together. We will look at the movements of our constitutions and how these fluctuations ripple to the outer as our expression. 

• Understanding your Energy 

• Cells

• Mitochondria

• Eight Extraordinary Meridians

• Bao Mai (Uterus to heart), Bao luo (uterus to kidneys)

• Heart - Kidney access (deep transformation)

• Fluids: cellular, intercellular, interstitial fluid, blood, synovial

• Nervous system

At the end of each module we integrate how the teachings can become alive through the modalities we teach: ball rolling, yin yoga, yoga asana, yoga nidra, free movement, somatic explorations.  Students will have an opportunity to find their own words for expression and how to interlace somatic languaging within movement and stillness practices.

We spiral through the layers of Outer, Middle & Inner - Known, Hidden & Undiscovered to bring ourselves home to the present moment content that exists in the here and now, unabashedly. 

Dates:

November 15, 2024 -  December 14, 2025

• Every 3rd weekend is a Training weekend consisting of 4 hours on both the Saturday and Sunday.

• 8:30 am - 12:30 pm MST / 16:30 - 20:30 CET

• Weekly 1.5 - 2 hour long, pre-recorded movement labs to practice when you’re able to.

  • We will slow drip the practices in weekly and you will be expected to practice the classes prior to the following weekend session as the classes are connected to the weekend theory.

WEEKEND SESSIONS:

2024

November 15-17 - 12 hours (3 days) -

November 23/24

December 14/15

2025

January 4/5

January 25/26

February 15/16

March 8/9

March 28/30 - (3 days) 

April 12/13

May 3/4

May 24/25

June 14/15

July 5/6 

July 26/27

August 15/17 (3 day) -

September 6/7

September 27/28

October 18/19

November 8/9

November  29/30

December 5-7  (3 day)

**All content will be recorded and placed in an online space; however, we do hope that you try to make as many sessions as you are able to live.

**There will be a final practicum video due to ensure you have watched and understood the content provided before you receive your certification.

Cost:

$4400 CAD

Payment options:  

One time payment of $4400 CAD ($230 discount)

Or 

Payment plan:

$850 down payment + 12 month subscription of $315 CAD/month - DM for subscription link.

Who is this for:

This Training is for practitioners in the realms of yoga, acupuncture, psychology, somatic practitioners and therapists, doctors and nurses, fitness trainers, athletes and anyone who already has a body understanding and practice who are interested in bridging a more traditional yoga practice towards a somatic one.

For the people who feel stuck in their own practice or feel what they’ve previously learned is no longer working for their clientele.

This is an opportunity to look at the body in a whole new way!

How will this course support you in being a better facilitator?

Refinement:

• Body literacy / anatomy

• Physiology

• Cueing and communication

• Space holding capacity

• Presencing

• Discernment 

• Clarity

Self care & community care:

• Self care is deeply influenced by our capacity to be present with ourself and when we feel the importance of that level of self presence, one can’t help but extend it outward to the surrounding community.  Presence is compassion in motion.  

As someone who works with the human body venturing into the world of somatics can offer you a wider range of movements, freedom and clarity of direction to offer your clients. Your cueing becomes much more refined. Your understanding of the human body and its systems and how to guide a class from a particular system or place in the body develops and you can become more specific in what you are doing. Your range will widen immensely as you realise how vast the possibilities of movement initiation are in the body.