Baron Baptiste is one of the best-known yoga teachers in the United States. He has written a number of books, hosts teacher training and workshops across the country, is featured in multiple yoga DVDs and runs the Power Yoga Institutes in Boston and Cambridge, Mass., and Philadelphia, Pa. His unique brand of yoga training inspires global adherents to his style and his books have been published in 12 languages, as reported by everythingyoga.com.
History
Baron Baptiste began studying yoga at the age of 12. His parents opened the first yoga studio ever to exist in San Francisco and are regarded as American yoga pioneers. He trained in classical styles of yoga with well-known yogis. He founded Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga in the 1980s. Since then, he has hosted hundreds of trainings and "bootcamps" to teach individual yoga instructors and devotees about his personal brand of yoga.
Features
Baptiste's style of yoga is a fast-paced and physically demanding practice that flows poses together in unique ways. Baptiste Power Yoga is performed in a heated room and blends together elements of Raja, Ashtanga, Iyengar and Bikram yoga. Beginner classes may focus on the postural elements and technique of the poses, but most trainings and classes emphasize dynamic movement. A yoga teacher training involves complete immersion into Baptiste yoga for a week to 10 days. Trainings are held in places as diverse as Hong Kong, Texas, Utah and the Catskills of New York.
Philosophy
The official Baron Baptiste website asserts that Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga is based on intuition rather than tradition. Baptiste eschews rigidity of practice in favor of learning to connect with the body and spirit. Although Baptiste Power Yoga is vigorous, the trainings attempt to teach users to know when to push their bodies and when to rest. The training retreats do not focus on traditional yoga philosophy, anatomy and teachings. Rather, Baptiste trainings aim to help attendees live yoga by applying its principles to their daily lives and transforming the lives of others through the sharing of yoga.
Considerations
To attend a training, you must fill out a detailed application that includes questions about your previous yoga practice, trainings, experiences and ability to commit 100 percent to the training program. The applications are reviewed individually and enrollment in trainings is extremely limited. Baptiste wants to be sure he gets people who are truly committed to the experience and creates groups with the proper dynamics.
Additionally, Baptiste Yoga training uses familiar postures, but at a much faster rate than many other types of yoga. People seeking an emphasis on seated poses and meditation may not appreciate Baptiste's style.
Bootcamps
In addition to teacher trainings, Baptiste offers bootcamp "retreats" to help attendees not interested in becoming instructors disconnect from the stress of daily life and deepen their yoga practice. These retreats involve a week of healthy eating and yoga practice in exotic locations like the Yucatan or Hawaii. According to Baptiste in an interview on the Yoga Journal website, he calls his retreats and teacher trainings "teacher bootcamps" because the names indicate the time commitment, intensity and lack of clear structure that characterize the programs. Baptiste notes that some days of training may exceed 12 or 14 hours if the "feeling" is right.
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