Courses Offered at St. Paul University Iloilo’s Wellness Program

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Posted on 19th July 2011 by MaryJaneC in Health and Wellness |Iloilo |Yoga

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As I have promised on my last blog post, I am going to write about St. Paul University Iloilo’s Wellness Program. The head of this program is Mrs. Mary Jane A. De Gracia and she is one awesome lady. She is responsible for the great courses that are being offered there.

Before everything else here is an overview of St. Paul University’s policies on enrolment for the Wellness Program. Basically, the student will fill up the enrolment form then pay at the Finance Office and secure a receipt there. Tuition fees can be paid in full for the whole semester or by two installments. The schedule of classes is arranged with the teacher and each lesson should be arranged with the teacher in charge. As a student you are expected to be punctual and present always in class. The student is reponsible for his or her absence so no make up lesson shall be given except when the teacher is the one absent. At the end of the semester or school year, there will be a recital. (I think the recital depends on what course you are taking though).

Below are the list of courses that St. Paul University’s offering in their Wellness Program:

Center for Sports

  • Swimming
  • Aerobics
  • Aqua Aerobics
  • Taebo
  • Taekwondo
  • Yoga
  • Judo
  • Karate
  • Arnis
  • Aikido

Center for Performing Arts

  • Acoustic Guitar
  • Percussion (Drums)
  • Organ
  • Piano
  • Voice
  • Jazz
  • Flute
  • Harp
  • Ballroom
  • Belly Dance
  • Hawaiian/Tahitian Dance
  • Hip-hop
  • Modern Dance
  • Pole Dancing
  • Theater Arts

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Yoga at St. Paul University Iloilo’s Wellness Program

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Posted on 18th July 2011 by MaryJaneC in Health and Wellness |Iloilo |Yoga

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MJ with Sir Ravi

Today, I am writing about a great news Sir Ravi shared with me about a new course at the Wellness Program of St. Paul University in Iloilo. As you all know, I am an avid yoga practitioner. And I have shared my experiences and learnings through yoga here in my blog. Check them out in my archives if you have time.

Because of the blog posts I have written about yoga, I’ve had a lot of readers email me or send me an inquiry through my contact form about where I practice yoga, who is my teacher/guru, what have I gained from practicing yoga, etc. I have replied to those inquiries gladly but today I am so happy to announce that one of the universities here in Iloilo is now offering a yoga course in their wellness program!

My yoga teacher Ravi Shankar is the best teacher there is here in Iloilo. And wherever he teaches – gym or any venue – that’s where I go too. And last Friday he informed me that he will be teaching at St. Paul University Iloilo and he told me to enrol there too. Long story short, we had our first class at St. Paul’s last Friday.

I am so glad that St. Paul’s Iloilo is now offering a yoga course because this means that yoga is now being slowly recognized here in our city. Maybe you are wondering why I am glad – well I will tell you this – many people will benefit from their yoga practice not only physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually - they will also be “awakened” and “enlightened”. If you are curious as to what I’m referring to then go join us now!

On my next blog post I will share with everyone how to enrol at St. Paul University’s Wellness Program, how much is the enrolment fee as well as the policies and contact information. Oh and I will also share the other courses that they offer. Stay tuned! :)

 

Yoga for Health–Yoga and Health Symposium

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Posted on 30th May 2011 by MaryJaneC in Events |Health |Health and Wellness |Roxas City |Workshops |Yoga

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Last weekend Tim and I attended the “Yoga for Health” – Yoga and Health Symposium held at The Grand Gazebo Conference Room in Roxas City. It was an eye-opening experience because we did not just do asanas but we also learned what real yoga is all about first-hand from Guru/Yoga Instructor/Speaker Dennis E. Daguman “Dinesh’vara” and Yoga Instructor Ravi Shankar.

I have been practicing yoga since September last year. But I was not able to do my asanas for 3 months (December-January) and it showed because I gained weight. Don’t get me wrong – I practice yoga not because I want to have a healthy body – that’s just one of the reasons, but because of the reasons I wrote in this blog post September of last year.

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Practicing Yoga – Pranayama

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Posted on 4th December 2010 by Mary Jane in Health and Wellness |Yoga

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Let me share with you today one of the most important things I have learned in my yoga practice. Breathing is one of our most vital functions. Breathing is life. Pranayama or breathing exercises is one of the 5 principles of yoga which promotes proper breathing. Proper breathing is to bring more oxygen to the blood and to the brain and to control “Prana” or the vital life energy in a yogic point of view. Pranayama also goes hand in hand with the Asanas (postures). The union of these two yogic principles is considered as the highest form of purification and self-discipline. It covers both the mind and the body.

It is very important to practice all the asanas in your yoga practice with awareness of the breath. Linking respiration with the movements enhances the practice as well as improving our concentration. This is one of the reasons why yoga is much more than just physical exercise. As a general rule, an upwards movement is done on inhalation and is used to lift out of a posture. While a downwards movement is generally done on exhalation – to release tension. Exhalation is also used to relax into a posture.

Try to breathe freely and not hold the breath while in a posture as this will create tension in the body and prevent relaxation into the asana. One should breathe in and out through the nostrils throughout all the asanas.

Another important thing to remember is to listen to our body. The body will tell you when it is feeling uncomfortable or under stress. In our daily lives, messages from the body are often ignored so that tasks can be completed. How often have we pushed ourselves to do one more thing before taking a break? In yoga, one should be more mindful and if a posture or movement feels wrong or painful then gently come out of it and rest for a moment.

If you have questions about pranayama please feel free to leave me a comment below and I will be happy to get back to you. I’ve had people ask me where I practice yoga here in Iloilo, I can answer you guys better if you leave me a comment instead. Namaste.

Yoga in Iloilo

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Posted on 15th September 2010 by Mary Jane in Health and Wellness |Iloilo |Life |Personal |Yoga

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Yoga practice in Iloilo. At last I am writing about something personal that I am very passionate about. It’s been a long time since I have written something from the heart so I hope you guys would bear with the scattered thoughts and clumsy words. Here it goes. Why do yoga Jane? What made you decide to practice yoga? Why not just go to the gym, exercise, jog or do aerobics? Well honestly I have tried all of that but none of them captured my interest for long. Sorry but if I am not really into what I’m doing I tend to ignore it and deliberately forget about it. And all of them had temporary effects on my body. Take note I only said body. I need something more than that. I need to do something that I am very passionate about and that does not only benefit my body but influences my mind, psych – my whole well-being.

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