An Ashtanga Yoga Book for Building a Daily Practice That Lasts
Asbjørn and I have spent a long time putting the Primary Series into words. The book walks through the sequence pose by pose and looks at why it is built the way it is, so you can keep coming back to the mat and make the practice your own. It is book 2 in our A path within series, and the Kindle edition is available to pre-order now.
Every pre-order helps the book reach more practitioners, so thank you if you order early.
By Huong (Claire) Luu (Bjaanes)
Key takeaways
Patanjali gives us two wings for practice: abhyasa and vairagya, steady effort and non-attachment (Yoga Sutra 1.12). Those of us who teach yoga have lived with both for years. We practise them on the mat and we pass them on in every class.
However, many of us carry a quiet misreading of the second wing, and it is costing our studios more than we see.
You know the scene. A student who came every Tuesday is gone for one week, then two. Her corner of the room stays empty. You notice, and you think about writing to her.
Then a voice says: “Let her go. Reaching out would be attachment, or worse, selling.”
So you stay silent, as most of us do. We became teachers to share practice, not to chase people. In our world, yoga should feel free, and a follow-up message can feel like a sales call.
Meanwhile, the studio keeps paying. Rent, software, campaigns and teachers’ fees do not pause when students drift away. Fitness and boutique studios keep roughly 40–50% of members by the end of the year, so a large share must be replaced, every year.
Therefore many studio owners live on a treadmill. New ads, new intro offers, new campaigns, all to refill a bucket with a hole in it. Research by Frederick Reichheld at Bain & Company found that a 5% rise in retention can lift profits by 25 to 95%. Keeping a student is almost always cheaper than finding a new one.
Patanjali defines vairagya as freedom from craving for what we have seen or heard (Yoga Sutra 1.15). It is freedom from grasping, but it is not freedom from care.
The Bhagavad Gita (2.47) draws the line even more clearly: we have a right to our action, but not to its fruits. Reaching out is that action. Whether the student returns is the fruit, and that was never ours to grasp in the first place.
Seen this way, a short message to a drifting student is not a sales move. It is a teacher doing what teachers do best: noticing. We notice the breath that shortens, the shoulders that tighten. Noticing a student’s absence is the same skill, off the mat.
Students are no different. Few will tell a teacher that a class felt too hard, that their back hurts, or that they feel lost in a class.
So the teacher is silent, and the student is silent. The system gives neither of them a way to speak in time.
It is not a courage problem. A student needs three things to open up:
When these three are in place, silence turns into signal. The teacher hears the student in time. The student feels seen, heard and known. That is the missing feedback loop, from both sides.
The signs of a drifting student are there, but they are scattered: a gap in the booking system, a message in a chat thread, a feeling in the teacher’s head after class. No one sees the whole picture until it is too late.
At The Yoga Nest in Stavanger, we brought those signals together in one place, so teachers could see who was drifting while there was still time to act. In the first month, 3 students flagged as drifting came back.
Retention, done this way, is practice. It is abhyasa, steady effort, and vairagya, letting go of the result, working together, just as Patanjali taught.
This week, write down every student you have not seen in two weeks. Choose one. Send a short message with no offer in it, only care. Then let go of the outcome.
Keeping is not selling. It is seeing.
May every student feel seen, heard and known, and may every teacher have the clarity to notice in time.
This article was first published on Conscious Flow.
Saturday October 24th and Sunday October 25th, Stavanger
Walk into class knowing what your body is doing, and why
Picture stepping onto your mat and feeling at home. You know where your breath goes, how your feet want to land, and what the teacher’s cue means for your body. Class stops being something you keep up with and becomes something you enjoy.
This weekend is your ramp up. Two days to build a solid base under everything you practice next.
Booking through Conscious Flow App https://theyoganest.no/yoga-app/
A foundation you can build on
Yoga is easier to love when the basics feel familiar. Over two days, you get the building blocks that make every class richer, whether you’re stepping onto a mat for the first time or you’ve been showing up for a while and want more from each session.
You’ll explore yoga through the Ashtanga lens, a clear and time-tested system that gives your practice structure, rhythm and direction. Even if you go on to try other styles, the foundation stays with you.
What you’ll explore
Day 1: Arrive, breathe and get grounded
Day 2: Build, connect and take it home
The paradigm that makes it click
Alongside the poses, you’ll get a way of looking at practice. Posture, breath and gaze work together. Small, steady steps lead to lasting change. Your body sets the pace, and you get to choose how deep you go.
This way of seeing your practice is what makes each class more meaningful. You’ll leave with tools you can carry into any room, any teacher and any season of life.
Who can join
This weekend is a great fit if you:
Come as you are. Every body is welcome, and there’s no such thing as too stiff, too new or too late to begin.
What you’ll leave with
Practical details
Give yourself a strong start
Two days can shape the way you practice for years. Take your place, bring a friend, and start building something that grows with you.
Price: Kr 1199
Booking through Conscious Flow App https://theyoganest.no/yoga-app/
Imagine sitting into Padmasana without negotiating with your knees, or folding into Kurmasana with room to spare. Imagine your legs finding their way behind your head and your breath staying soft while they do. This workshop is a focused journey into the hips, drawing on the Ashtanga Intermediate Series, Nadi Shodhana, the “nerve cleansing” sequence.
Your hips hold much of your practice: the freedom in your seated postures, the ease in your twists, the lift in your arm balances. When they open, everything else follows.
🔹 Hip Opening Foundations: Discover how your hips, pelvis and lower back work together, so you can approach deep postures with clarity and confidence.
🔹 Leg-Behind-the-Head Postures: Enjoy a step-by-step path into Eka Pada Sirsasana and Dwi Pada Sirsasana, building mobility while your breath and focus stay steady.
🔹 Deep Rest in Yoga Nidrasana: Experience the balance of surrender and strength in one of the most grounding shapes in the series.
🔹 Firefly Pose Variations: Follow the path through Tittibhasana A, B, C and D, where open hips meet core strength and arm balance control.
✅ Guided drills and variations, so every posture meets you exactly where you are today.
✅ Clear alignment insights that help you protect your knees and feel your hips do the work.
✅ Simple strategies you can take home and weave into your daily practice.
✅ A look at the energetic and philosophical side of the Intermediate Series, for a practice that reaches beyond the physical.
Whether you’re refining familiar postures or exploring new territory, you’re welcome here. This is a supportive space to explore at your own pace, ask questions and leave with more freedom in your body and more trust in your practice.
Your hips are ready when you are. Reserve your place and step into a practice that feels open, steady and yours.
Price: Kr 600,-
Booking through Conscious Flow App https://theyoganest.no/yoga-app/
Picture yourself upside down, breathing slowly and evenly, feeling completely at home on your head. Steady. Light. Calm.
This afternoon is about helping you get there. Over two and a half hours, you explore the seven headstands of the Ashtanga Intermediate Series, one variation at a time, at a pace that suits your body and your practice.
The seven headstands (Sirsasana variations) arrive towards the end of the Intermediate Series, and each one asks something a little different of you. Three keep your hands free (Mukta Hasta Sirsasana A, B and C) and four keep your hands bound (Baddha Hasta Sirsasana A, B, C and D). Together they refine your balance, your focus and your sense of control, and they invite a quiet steadiness that carries into the rest of your practice.
During the afternoon, you get to:
Perhaps you are just beginning to explore the Intermediate Series. Perhaps you already practise these headstands and would love to refine them. Either way, you are welcome, and the afternoon meets you exactly where you are.
days
hours minutes seconds
until
your headstand afternoon
Save your spot in the Conscious Flow app.
Saturday 7 November, 13:30 to 15:00 | The Yoga Nest, Kirkegata 32, Stavanger
Picture yourself sitting tall, your breath long and smooth, your mind quiet enough to hear it. Each inhale fills you with energy. Each exhale lets something go. This afternoon is an invitation to discover what your breath can do for you, on the mat and far beyond it.
In Ashtanga, the breath is the thread that holds your practice together. Every movement rides on it. When you refine your breath, your asanas often follow: your postures soften, your transitions lighten and the bandhas become easier to feel. Many practitioners discover that pranayama is the missing piece they didn’t know they were looking for. This pranayama workshop in Stavanger pairs naturally with Sunday’s marma and acupressure workshop, and everything you learn carries straight into your Ashtanga yoga practice.
Whether you’ve practised for years or are simply curious about breath work, you’re welcome here. Each technique comes with gentler options, so you can choose what feels right for your body on the day. If you’re pregnant or have a heart or blood pressure condition, let your teacher know at the start and you’ll receive adapted variations.
Your breath is with you every moment of every day. This afternoon, you get to meet it properly. Come as you are, settle in, and discover how a few quiet minutes of breathing can change the way you practise and the way you meet your day.
Sunday 8 November, 13:30 to 15:00 | The Yoga Nest, Kirkegata 32, Stavanger
Imagine knowing exactly where to press when your shoulders feel tight after a long day, or how to settle your mind before sleep with nothing more than your own hands. Imagine bringing that same awareness to your mat, so tension melts away before your practice even begins.
Marma points are the vital energy points described in Ayurveda, the sister science of yoga. They sit where muscles, bones, joints and energy channels meet. Acupressure shares a similar wisdom: gentle, focused pressure on specific points can release tension, calm your nervous system and help energy flow more freely. Together they give you a simple and powerful way to care for yourself. This marma and acupressure workshop in Stavanger follows on beautifully from Saturday’s pranayama workshop, so you can enjoy the weekend as a whole or choose the day that suits you.
This workshop welcomes everyone, whether you practise Ashtanga daily, teach yoga, or simply want practical ways to feel better in your body. No previous experience with Ayurveda or bodywork is expected. Wear comfortable clothes and bring your curiosity.
Your hands already hold the healing. This afternoon you discover where to place them. Come and leave with a self-care toolkit you can reach for anytime, anywhere, for the rest of your life.
Saturday 14 November, 13:30 to 15:00 | The Yoga Nest, Kirkegata 32, Stavanger
Imagine your feet leaving the mat as you press into your hands, your body lifting and swinging softly through your arms to land seated, without a sound. Imagine jumping back into Chaturanga with the same ease, vinyasa after vinyasa, your breath leading the way.
The jump back and jump through are the threads that stitch the Ashtanga practice together. They appear dozens of times in every Primary Series, so each small improvement multiplies across your whole practice. When they start to flow, your practice feels lighter, more rhythmic and more joyful. And the secret is less about raw strength and more about technique, timing and a few key insights. This jump back and jump through workshop in Stavanger leads naturally into Sunday’s arm balance workshop, where the same lift and lightness carry you into flying postures.
Whether you’re just beginning to explore jumping or already float some of the way, you’re welcome here. This afternoon is designed for all levels, and every drill comes with options, so you can work at your own pace toward your own goals.
Lightness is a skill, and you can learn it. Come and play, laugh at the wobbles and discover how close you already are to floating through your practice.
