Baptiste teacher says yoga helped her mend broken relationships

After being plagued by migraines and panic attacks when she was working as a conference services manager for the Ritz-Carlton New York in 2006, Singaporean Tryphena Chia, 41, was introduced to yoga by a friend.

She said: "Yoga practice helped to change my life... I continued practising yoga because it helped me to de-stress from my corporate job in New York City.

"And there was always that sense of being more grounded and whole after each practice."

Wanting to learn something different, Miss Chia signed up for Mr Baron Baptiste's class after a friend's recommendation in early 2009, despite knowing nothing about him or the practice. It ended up empowering her more than she had expected.

"I knew I found my teacher 15 minutes into my practice with Baron for the first time. He spoke through to me and touched the deepest core of my being and challenged me physically and mentally beyond anyone had ever done," she told The New Paper in an e-mail interview.

Since then, Miss Chia's yoga journey with the Baptiste Institute has taken flight, and she is now the only 500-hour certified Baptiste teacher in Asia.

Based in Pure Yoga's Hong Kong studio, Miss Chia said Baptiste yoga is different from the other yoga styles as it takes the practice off the mat and into her life instead.

POSES

With simple poses that everyone can attempt, Baptiste yoga leaves yogis walking out of the studio feeling energised and empowered.

• FYI

  Complimentary Beginner Baptiste Power Vinyasa classes by Tryphena Chia at all the Pure Yoga studios from today to Wednesday.

   

  Today Ngee Ann City (2pm to 3.30pm)

  Tomorrow Asia Square Tower (7pm to 8.30pm; class is full, waitlist is open)

  Wednesday Chevron House (7pm to 8.30pm)

Miss Chia said: "I love that the practice is not about trying to get into the fanciest of poses, but rather, the philosophy behind it is that people use the practice to shift stuck energy in their bodies.

"It challenges people to look into their lives and work on themselves so they (can) live their lives to their fullest potential."

Baptiste yoga helped Miss Chia look at her life in a different way.

She explained: "I learnt through the years to not run away but to stop and stay through the discomforts and heal the broken relationships so I can be whole and complete."

Miss Chia learnt to heal important relationships in her life and started talking to her father again after 10 tumultuous years.

She said: "I am thankful that Baron forced me to look at my life in the most honest ways even though I did not want to. Through doing the work on myself in the last 10 years, I now live my life so authentically and powerfully that I will not have it any other way."

Despite her love of travelling, exploring and gaining different experiences, the senior yoga instructor at Pure Yogaloves coming back to Singapore to teach occasionally.

She said: "The students (in Singapore) are sweet and receptive, and it is always nice to connect with familiar faces and to expose new students to the practice. The way I see it, the more I can expand my reach and touch people's hearts, the better it is. So if I have the opportunity to do it, why wouldn't I?"