Long-time yogis and beginners alike have the opportunity to stretch, learn and center themselves at the 2014 Iowa Yoga Festival, which kicks off tonight and goes through Sunday, Oct. 12 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Des Moines. The festival brings together speakers, classes and a yoga fair for a weekend of events geared toward yoga practitioners, as well as instructors and business owners.
“We are bringing in some of the top yoga teachers from around the country, and [students] will have a chance to interact with these teachers … in a friendly, much more intimate setting than some of the other, larger yoga festivals,” said Ann York, producer of the 2014 Iowa Yoga Festival.
During the festival, 29 different speakers will present on topics as varied as mantra meditation, dance and yoga, aromatherapy, kids’ yoga, owning a yoga studio and teaching yoga to different skill levels. One notable speaker at the festival is Tao Porchon-Lynch, who at 96 years old holds the Guinness Book World Record for being the oldest living yoga teacher. She will lead a workshop on chakras on Sunday at 8 a.m.
While most classes require a festival pass for participation, there are a few events that are free and open to the public. Beginning at 5 p.m. on Saturday, the Free Community Yoga Fair will offer yoga classes taught in a variety of different styles including yoga nidra, vinyasa flow and kid’s yoga. Then, on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., Olivia Kvitne will teach Yoga for Heroes, a “trauma-sensitive” yoga class offered at no cost to veterans and first responders.
“We just want to encourage people to experience yoga,” said York.
The opening ceremony for the Iowa Yoga Festival starts at 8 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 10. Festival passes range from $125-$424, and the opening ceremony kicks off tonight at 8 p.m.
“Yoga really means ‘linking together,’ or the linking of mind and body,” said York. “You can become really aware of life and calm the mind.”
