off the mat: a conversation with Nicola Gambrill
From playful beginnings copying her mum’s cat/cows in the ’80s to finding healing through hot yoga over 15 years ago, Nicola has walked a rich and personal path with yoga. Drawn in by the discipline, clarity, and calm it brings, she now teaches Vinyasa, Hatha, and Yin – with a special love for yin’s invitation to slow down and turn inward.
How long have you been practising yoga?
My first foray into yoga was as a toddler joining my Mum as she practiced yoga at home in the 80’s. I remember that clearly: cat/cows and sun salutations with me trying to copy her. After a long hiatus with a few classes here and there I got hooked on hot yoga more than 15 years ago.
How did you get started?
My good friend was practicing Bikram and was raving about it. Although I’d enjoyed yoga on and off before, I never really developed a regular practice. I was into running and had a knee injury. The doctor sent me off with a stack of pills and I wasn’t interested in taking them. My friend was so enthusiastic I gave it a go and loved it (it helped rehab my knee as well)
I loved the repetition and the fact that it was a dialogue lead class with clear verbal instruction made it easy to follow. And I loved the heat. It felt amazing!
What type of yoga do you teach?
Vinyasa, Yin, and Hatha.
What do you enjoy about these yoga forms?
I enjoy teaching them all, but I love teaching yin. It’s the perfect antidote to our modern daily lives which for most of us tends to involve trying, pushing hard, doing more, rushing, striving and attempting to achieve constantly. We are used to being rewarded for these things.
Yin demands the opposite. It is a complete contrast and that’s why it’s so challenging, so valuable and so rewarding. To slow down, to accept, to turn the focus inwards and to just be with your body, with your breath. So powerful…but very difficult for many of us (I include myself here!)
What is your favourite yoga pose and why?
Savasana. I love this quote ‘”Missing Savasana at the end of a physical practice is like taking the time to mix a cake batter but not stick it in the oven to bake.”
Savasana completely changes the mental and physical benefits of the practice by restoring energy instead of energy being drained. A chance to take in and integrate the effects of a physical practice. Some might say it is the most challenging pose of all but if you can find that sense of surrender, it’s magic.
Do you feel anyone can enjoy and gain from yoga?
If you are talking about the physical practice of yoga, then there are so many different styles there will be something for most people to enjoy and since Yoga is not just a physical practice, I would say most people can gain benefits from some form of yoga practice. All you really need to be is open and willing to explore.
What has yoga done for you as a person?
The thing that kept me coming back initially and still keeps me coming back today is the sense of peace, mentally. Calm, clarity. Yoga helped me deal with anxiety (I used to suffer panic attacks) Learning to breathe on the mat so you can breathe through stuff like that off the mat is incredible. It’s like a superpower.
Once you get past the ‘WTF is this’ stage you can really make your practice a moving meditation. That’s why I favour slightly structured or set sequences or a slower moving practice so I can really get out of my thinking mind. Time on the mat is time to focus on breath, sensations and to create some space mentally as well as physically.
Do you have a favourite yogi guru that inspires.
Hmmmm I find the idea of a guru has become a bit tainted. I’d prefer to take inspiration from a variety of sources be they human, animal, in nature, fact, fiction… inspiration is everywhere in things you like and in things you don’t. Tunnel vision on one guru for me isn’t necessary and feels a bit limiting.
Browse the Timetable here to view when Nicola teaches.
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