When Madia Swicord opened her first yoga & massage studio on the Southside in 2000, she said there was still some resistance to what yoga had to offer in fitness, wellness and mental equilibrium. But now, she points out, hundreds, if not thousands, of people practice yoga in Chattanooga, part of an ever-growing wellness community, and yoga, along with other forms of complementary medicine, is being embraced by the Western medical establishment as well.
So, when she begins the next session of teacher training with the Chattanooga Yoga School in the first weekend of February, part of the curriculum will continue to be “Yoga As Medicine,” co-taught with local surgeon Dr.
John Gwin. This will be included along with classical training components such as alignment, anatomy, breath and mindfulness, coupled with practical, hands-on information on subjects such as “career management and planning” and “ethics and relationships.”
Another aspect of the training unique to Ms. Swicord’s more than two decades of yoga experience is her emphasis on “the asana [physical posture] as an aspect of the practice, not the practice itself. The body is the conduit and the tool to understanding what is happening inside of you,” she said. “I train people to teach in a way that is very balanced. We encourage trainees to work to push to the physical edge, watch what builds up—and observe with full presence.”
Ms. Swicord will also be incorporating techniques from her ongoing study in Asheville of “hakomi”, defined as “a mindfulness-based experiential therapy” which is based on the principles of mindfulness, nonviolence, organicity and the unity of mind and body.” Hakomi was developed by Ron Kurtz and others at the Hakomi Institute in Boulder, Colorado. “I believe this helps trainee teachers become more self-reflective and more compassionate both to themselves and to those they will eventually teach,” she said.
Additionally, the nine-week (one weekend per month over nine months), 200-hour training will offer an emphasis on one-on-one training, increasingly requested as yoga itself continues to increase in popularity. Madia also notes that the image of yoga teaching training as being limited to very young women who can achieve seemingly impossible poses is outdated. Her training sessions attract both men and women of all ages. “No one will feel like a fish out of water in our classes,” she said.
Chattanooga Yoga School offers a faculty of experienced and skilled body/mind professionals. The program not only takes students on the personal journey of self-discovery but prepares them to be a positive catalyst in the community for health and healing. “Because of our partnership with Sportsbarn’s mind/body program, we are in position to offer more job opportunities to graduates in two different studios,” Ms. Swicord noted.
Former students have offered confirmation of the training’s effectiveness: “This yoga school offers an incredibly well-rounded curriculum, covering everything from the asanas themselves and how to create sequences in various styles of yoga, to ayurveda, meditation, and business of yoga,” wrote one.
Sportsbarn Managing Partner David Brock said, “We are so fortunate to have Madia conducting this teacher training program at Sportsbarn. Everyone connected to the yoga community knows she is one of the premier teachers in the region, and that she is incorporating hakomi-like techniques into the program makes it even more special. Her involvement has helped elevate Sportsbarn’s yoga program into one of the most complete in the area.”
Tuition cost is $2,800, which can be paid in installments. Training will be conducted at both the downtown Sportsbarn and Sportsbarn North. For more information, 622-2862.