Over the next few months we’ll be showcasing some of the truly wonderful partners who have come on board to help with our 2020 Yoga Stops Traffick campaign.
We’ll be continuing our theme of ‘5 Minutes with….’ a perfect opportunity for you to pop the kettle on and take time out to learn a little more about the people behind the logo’s.
This week we are delighted to welcome Robin Catto, company founder along with this wife Emma of Breathe Yoga. They’ve been practising yoga since 1988 and sending highly qualified, fully insured yoga and Pilates teachers to clients across London since 2000. They believe in providing a personal bespoke service and pride themselves on being able to offer a full range of yoga styles, always taking a flexible approach to ability, schedule and personal needs.
Robin & Emma are kindly donating the profits from their class on the 15th March 2020. You can find out more about the wonderful work they do by following the link below – hope you enjoy!
https://www.breatheyoga.co.uk/
Why has your company chosen to support our global campaign Yoga Stops Traffick?
We believe that this is an extremely important cause and have always been really impressed with the work that YST does.
What is your role within the company?
Owner/Managing Director
What does your typical ‘work day’ look like?
Up at 7am, 20 minute meditation, get the kids’ fed and off to school, do an hour or so of yoga, then spend the rest of the day either teaching or in my office managing enquiries and admin for Breathe.
How did you come to the practice of yoga?
I discovered yoga when I was at university in the late 1980s and fell in love with it instantly.
What impact has regular yoga had on your mind & body?
Mentally and emotionally yoga has always been an invaluable tool for helping me deal with life’s everyday stresses and physically it’s kept me strong and flexible (and still playing football at 53).
Which is your favourite yoga pose?
I really enjoy twists, particularly Parivrtta Trikonasana.
How else do you practice ‘self care’ in your life?
I don’t work at all at the weekends unless it’s absolutely essential, get as much sleep as I can, and do my best to eat healthily without being too neurotic about it.
Who/What has been your biggest inspiration?
For physical yoga practice my teacher, Alaric Newcombe, and for everything else my wife (and other teacher), Emma.
What do you think is the biggest issue facing the global yoga community?
In my opinion, the biggest challenge for the global yoga community is how to maintain authenticity. As the world of yoga teaching becomes ever more over-supplied, and studios and teachers compete to get people into classes, attempts to distinguish one’s offering from others in the marketplace has led to an increasing variety of yoga “styles” (eg Rocket yoga, Buti yoga, Power yoga, hot yoga, vinyasa flow) which fuse various elements of different methods and practices, and some slightly more extreme variants using non-yoga hooks to entice customers (weed yoga, beer yoga, goat yoga), not to mention yoga videos on YouTube, classes delivered by Skype, and so on. Apart from the obvious issues around quality control, the risk is that the connection to the original and ancient yoga teachings can become clouded or even lost altogether. One of the obvious ways in which this might be remedied would be to somehow ensure that accredited teacher training courses offer a balanced and holistic approach which includes not only asana and anatomy/physiology, but also other important elements such as philosophy, history, meditation, pranayama, karma yoga, bhakti yoga and so on. In addition, respected teachers and established yoga centres could possibly take more responsibility for providing well-researched information and resources for students so that they can make educated decisions about how to get started and develop their practice.
What’s on the horizon for your company?
Continuing to provide excellence in yoga and Pilates private lessons.
What message would you like to give to everyone taking part in Yoga Stops Traffick 2020?
WELL DONE for supporting such an amazing cause!
