These are classes I am currently teaching at Hot Yoga Dublin & Yoga Next Door and I enjoy teaching them very much. While they are nominally 60 minute classes, the class concept has been refined so that they form a fairly complete experience even within the restrictions of the modern class format. Specifically, the short form classes are built around the experience of continuous "Flow" as Tara Judelle articulates it:
FLOW IS A STREAMING OF MOMENT TO MOMENT CONSCIOUSNESS.
The ultimate aim of yoga practice is to be fully present in the here and now. This is our birthright. ... We can then experience an uninterrupted continuation, or Flow, of thoughts, feelings and movement from one moment to the next. Living in a state of flow gives us the ability to fully arrive in this moment, and the next, and so on with presence-awareness. ... (the) ultimate streamline of consciousness is the constant, clear expression of our being from pose to pose, moment to moment, and breath to breath.
Flow is an important component of the experience of samadhi, and the lessons learned on the mat apply to sustainably enjoying the benefits of the practice long after we have left the mat (and studio) behind.
This class uses a moderate flow practice to draw the attention of the body/mind fully into the present moment, leaving aside all concerns from other places in time and space. Having arrived at the center, we then ride waves of attention and breath inward to the more subtle experiences of the self.
Practically, this class is structured as a series of moderately intense level 1 flows, occupying the first 2/3 of the class. There is very little technical instruction to interrupt the stream of sensual awareness. The remaining time is then set aside for either a long yoga nidra or guided meditation, leaving the practitioner with a restored sense of connection to their own, unique experience.
As the "level 2" in the title suggests, this is a fairly technical class. Flow techniques are used at the beginning to prepare the body/mind for work on developing physical technique to apply to more advanced asana. A closing flow is often offered to help integrate the technical work with the body's current wisdom of motion.
It is an intensely physical class, using advanced asana to engage the principle that flow happens when one is working near (or slightly past) the limits of what we know ourselves to be capable. Because we are playing near the edge of our practice, multiple modifcations are given to allow the student to practice with grace-filled sensory awareness, honoring their body as it presents itself in each moment.
david