Annie Carpenter

Annie is not the sort of teacher, nor is a Level 3/4 class the sort of place, that you would expect your instructor to make a "blarh" funny face to get you to loosen up. So far, SoCal is wonderful: brilliant, intelligent, super-aware yoga, down-to-earth vibe.

Annie teaches in Sanscrit, which is just right for a Level 3/4 class, but I actually haven't seen pure sanscrit in a while, so it caught me off guard. I like having something hold me accountable though. Her style reminds me so much of Natasha Ritzopoulis, it's nice to be able to have such teaching over here.

In the very beginning, class begun with a restorative virasana, which I so appreciated and wish I could have stayed longer. Afterwards, we moved into a cat/cow, when Annie pressed into my back and said "Oh, that's your spot, isn't it?". Yup, that's the place I'm always scared to backbend into, but I really, really need to because it's a huge area of growth.

One of my favorite moments in class was when we did drop-backs into pincha mayurasana. Annie had me demonstrate one and really helped me get into it in a way that was controlled and safe. Pincha mayurasana against a wall was an incredibly heart-opening practice and may be one of my favorite backbends. Can't wait to come back to class.