Thursday, Feb. 26 the Keene State College Yoga Club held the first ever Tadasana Thursday event, where around 20 students gathered for upbeat Vinyasa Flow yoga.
From 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. in the Mountain View Room of the L.P. Young Student Center, a local instructor from the Keene Yoga Center helped students start their weekends by relaxing and having fun while doing yoga.
Kassy Montgomery, one of the co-leaders of the yoga club, said, “Tadasana Thursdays are an upbeat and lively event for students looking for something fun to do on the weekend.”
Jordan Crowley / Equinox Staff
She continued, “The idea came about after the Pumpkin Festival riots. We wanted to help encourage students to lead a healthier lifestyle. I thought about what I wished I could do instead of going out and the answer was, of course, yoga with friends and fun music. So, we thought we would share the idea with campus.”
Montgomery said they chose to hold the events on Thursday nights so students could start their weekends off on the right foot.
“It gives people an alternative program to jump-start their weekend, that way they can have a healthy mindset,” she said.
Yoga club member Emily Silliman said she went to the event on Thursday night and noted that this event provided an alternative to going out that night because it was something else to do that was fun, relaxing and energizing. Silliman said she has done Vinyasa Flow yoga many times before and loves it.
Montgomery explained, “Vinyasa Flow is a type of yoga stemming from the Astanga yoga tradition. It incorporates the breathing into the postures. So this type of yoga ‘flows’ in the sense that each movement is coordinated with the breath. There is more movement so the postures are held for shorter duration.”
Silliman said, “I actually learned something new [at the event]. I held [a] headstand on my own for the first time, which is pretty exciting for me.”
Molly Helmes, who is the event coordinator for the club, noted that she has done this type of yoga before and took advantage of the opportunity to do it again.
“I’m a pretty experienced yogi, so I have done a class like this one [before] but still got a lot out of it and had a blast doing it,” Helmes said.
However, Montgomery clarified that this event was more of a trial run for a much bigger event they are holding on April 23 in the Mabel Brown Room.
“It will be a fundraiser for the club and we will be selling tickets. It will be glow in the dark themed,” Montgomery explained.
She continued, “We are encouraging people to attend the event because everyone could use a little yoga. It’s a great way to start the weekend and as always the yoga club provides a fun and inviting atmosphere open to everyone.”
As for the trial run event, club members and organizers agreed it was an overall success and encourage others to join in next time.
Silliman said, “The overall event was awesome, it was a very relaxing atmosphere — the Mountain View Room is a perfect place to do yoga. Everyone there was happy to be there and had a great attitude.”
Helmes agreed, “Everyone was friendly and welcoming and seemed to have a good time. It was a fun atmosphere where people gave really hard poses or new poses a try and felt very comfortable going out of their comfort zone and just having a good time.”
Helmes continued, “I would encourage others to go next time because it’s not your typical yoga class. We aim for our Tadasana Thursdays to be a more upbeat, carefree, fun and active class/event that is tailored to all skill levels.”
Taylor Thomas can be contacted at tthomas@kscequinox.com
