Yoga, for your needs
Attento yoga finds approachable, effective and efficient ways to address your needs
We start by identifying your needs and preferences then work out a plan that suits your schedule and budget.
In-person sessions are not currently possible.
- I will update this when services return
- In the meantime I am preparing to offer the following support which will be available shortly (target 17th April)
About Attento.me
Graeme founded Attento.me to offer holistic well-being through yoga and massage in 2006.
He combines his massage and yoga practice with his work as a Product Manager and User Experience Designer/Researcher. So he totally understands the stresses and strains of the modern work environment and how to cope with many competing demands.
Graeme understands how difficult it can be to integrate a consistent yoga practice with a busy work schedule or because of physical or mental health issues. By taking a steady but consistent approach, keeping things as simple as possible to meet specific individual needs, he helps each person find their own form of yoga as a tool for enhancing their own well-being. This approach suits anyone from those who don't consider themselves 'yoga types' through to those with an existing practice.
The characteristics of Attento Yoga
Breath-led movement
The breath is used to lead the body into and out of the postures. The breath is also used to refresh and deepen the posture when staying for longer. How we prepare for, arrive and leave the posture is all part of āsana practice.
Purposeful and functional
Postures and their movements, the āsana, each have a functional effect on the body. We develop our understanding of how to work towards that function. Always accounting for the body's individual need and ability. We avoid striving for an idealised external physical form.
Relaxation
We allow the body, breath and mind to settle at the start and end of the class. We choose where to place our attention and how we respond to what we notice. And generally become more aware of ourselves. It's the chance to stop 'doing' and start 'being'.
Breathing exercises
We sometimes extend the breathing work outside of the āsana movements for some Prāṇāyāma practice. Usually sitting on the floor or a chair, sometimes lying down.
Mindfulness and meditation
We aim to be mindful throughout our whole yoga practice, as indeed in our lives more generally. In class, we may delve a little deeper and enter the samyama process, and work on concentration (dhāraṇā) and dhyāna (meditation)
Vinyāsa - sequencing
Vinyāsa means ‘to placed in a special way’ or ‘appropriately sequenced’. Attento Vinyāsa however, is not a set series of postures. It focuses on linking of body movement with your breath and progressing one’s practice over a period of time. It also means ordering practices with one class to prepare for what is to come and then to restore after more intensive practices.
Optional sound work
Sound is a useful tool to slow down the breath and focus the mind. It also provides an inner vibration that can that somehow seems to shift our energy. We can use vowel sounds without any particular meaning or work on chants in sanskrit. This is always optional and can be done very quietly as an inner vibration if preferred.
Online yoga one-to-one
About one-to-one private yoga classes
These private yoga classes are different from group classes or following a recording of practice to follow in that they are not usally a taught flow of postures for you to follow like a group class. Instead, it guides you to:
-
self-reliance
work out for yourself which practices you need when
-
more benefit
get more out of practices you may have thought had become trivial for you – there is always more yoga-juice in even the simplets of postures if you approach them with fresh eyes each time
-
appropriate for you
set appropriate yoga goals for you to address your physical, mental and emotional needs – this is particularly important when starting out but is equally applicable to experienced practitioners
-
open attitude
approach everything you do in life in with a more open, playful yoga attitude – yoga is not how far you can go into a posture or how complex that posture is. It is about how you approach any activity on and off the yoga mat.
-
needs over wants
focus on what you actually need, not what you (think) you want –too often we get caught up in ambition to achieve 'poster yoga' poses or to go further, deeper, faster but it is wise to question whether this is actually what your mind and body need. If you are already stressed or busy, maybe something to help stretch and decompress you is more in order. Or if you are feeling a bit down then something stable and uplifiting but not exhausting is what you need.
-
progessively build your own practice
Private classes are usually shorter than a group class because the point is to gain some new insight then take it and build it into your own practice. So it's more like a little check up and tune up when you feel you need it. This keeps costs down and makes you more self-reliant.
About online yoga classes
Online yoga private sessions follow the same principles as outlined above.
-
To get the most out of these, you will need to have a video camera and sound so that I can see and give the most tailored and safest advice to you and in case you need to see me show you something, a larger screen is often better than a phone so that you don't need to keep going back and forward to see the screen.
It's a calm, relaxing approach for all abilities
How participants describe their own experience of attento yoga:
Booking, Availability and Prices
No payment required to book. Pay after the first session.
No one should be deprived of yoga due to costs.
So if you are in need, get in touch and we will find the best way forward for your time and budget.
Standard pricing is shown below for
one
single sessions online
Pay for each session as you go.
| 15 mins | 30 mins | 45 mins | 60 mins | 75 mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £14 | £26 | £38 | £48 | £58 |
five
five sessions online 20% discount*
Pay in advance at first session. Use within 3 months.
* 20% average discount. Each duration is between 19 and 21%.
| 15 mins | 30 mins | 45 mins | 60 mins | 75 mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £11 (£55 total) | £21 (£105 total) | £30 (£150 total) | £38 (£190 total) | £46 (£230 total) |
Ways to pay
Monzo
including card payments, apple pay, google pay
PayPal
including card payments
Starling
including card payments
Bank transfer
(No cash currently)
Ask for bank transfer details at class.
Check availability or book now
Booking is available for one-to-one sessions online.
Common questions
This is a complicated question to answer and I will write a more detailed article soon. See the section The Characteristics of Attento Yoga above.
Essentially, Attento yoga combines breath-led movement (asana), breathing (Prāṇāyāma), mindfulness/meditation and relaxation. The aim is to lead the movement with the breath to find internal alignment. We also aim overall to slow the breath to calm the mind, although there are some faster moving parts where the breath may get a little faster.
In private classes, in any case, we start by working out your needs from yoga and find the best way forward to give you what you need.
Attento Yoga, can accomodate pregrnacy during the second trimester and the first half of the third trimester. However, I recommend you go to a pregnancy specific class that can take you through all three trimesters and into the post-natal phase.
My friend Sarah Burgess runs a class not so far away in Westferry close to the DLR station at Yoga Creation and this is currently available online too.
For in-person classes, all the yoga equipment you need is in the studio but you can, of course, bring your own mat if you prefer.
For online classes, we can work around what you have available but a some combination of foot to floor conneection that is stable and non-slip is a good start.
You can wear anything that is comfortable and a bit stretchy. We usually do yoga barefoot so no need for trainers or socks. If you have any foot skin conditions such as verrucae then wear socks, ideally with grips. If you are practicing at home and don't have a yoga mat then non-slip socks might also be helpful.
Between Moorgate, Barbican and Old Street stations.