OH! Magazine - Australian Version September 2015 | Page 35

park (circa 1889). It’s pretty cool, but
I’m most mesmerised by the landscape.
Bill, Rach and I do a little meditation. I
want to keep exploring but do the best I
can to open myself up to new experiences
and go with it. Surprisingly, I feel more
connected with the environment around
me afterwards. It might sound daft, but a
simple thing like placing my hands on a
rock seems to energise me, making me
feel more connected and relaxed.
Rach passes me some wild peppermint
and pepper, and my sense of smell is
heightened, Bill takes us on a meditative
journey and I can’t help but let go. I feel
good. I’m free, I’m living and I’m
somewhere new, embracing wonderful
new things. For the first time in a long
time, I feel truly alive and happy.
The afternoon slips into darkness and I’m
off for my first yoga session.
Bill’s approach to yoga is unique; he
doesn’t practise a specific style of yoga
but instead, creates a class based on
what he feels the individual or group will
most benefit from. Bill says ‘the value of
yoga really came to life for me when I was
diagnosed with skin cancer and had to
have a major operation. I found myself
lacking in yoga knowledge, so I spent two
years retraining myself, and this is where

I learned that yoga should be adapted to
the individual.’
Our Saturday night class was focused on
light stretching, inhale focus, moving
towards closing postures, exhale focus
and relaxation.
After feeling a bit agitated at the
beginning of class and finding it hard to
wind down, I found my eyes getting
heavier and heavier. I slipped into a short
sleep twice towards the end of class and
felt very relaxed once I woke up! It was a
nice end to my day.
Day 2
My day starts with yoga at 7:30am.
Admittedly I was feeling very toasty in
my very comfy lodging, so it was hard to
get going. Today’s session consisted of
strong warrior poses, designed for selfenhancement, balance poses for focus,
postures for the nervous system, and
breathing at the end of class to reenergise.
I still felt a little agitated in class, as my
mind kept wandering but I was proud of
myself for having a go and I did find that
as Bill explained the benefits of certain
poses I gained more interest and found
myself wanting to try a bit harder – it’s

www.dinamicpersonaltraining.com.au

DIANNE
GALEA

often the same for me too, during
personal training, where having my
trainer explain the benefits motivates me
to try harder.
After class, Bill spent an hour with me
sitting on the side of a mountain where
we chatted about life and yoga. It was
interesting and it made me think about
my life and where I’m at, and I felt like I
walked away from the discussion with
some new tools to help me approach
situations in my life. Below us, the centre
of the town of Falls Creek was buzzing
with an Easter egg hunt, games and fun
for the young and old. Above us, on the
mountain, bike riders can be seen
ascending via chairlifts, all headed
towards Falls’ thrilling bike trails.
This place has such a special vibe. I was
falling more in love with it in every
passing moment – and it wasn’t just due
to the beautiful scenic surrounds. The
sense of community spirit was really
appealing. Everyone I saw was smiling,
and it was inspiring to see both adults
and kids being so active and happy. No
one I saw was walking around with their
heads glued to the screens of their mobile
phones or tablet devices, like they do in
the city!
After lunch I headed back to my amazing

( OH! MAGAZINE ) SEPTEMBER 2015

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