Free weekly yoga sessions offered to combat stress

As March looms around the corner, and the spring semester fully kicks into gear, students may find themselves looking for ways to relieve the stress and anxiety that typically come with the return to class.

Richard Anderson, LBCC’s yoga instructor, seems to have found one possible solution, offering free weekly sessions of Yoga, every Wednesday from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the small gym, Q-117. 

Every final Wednesday of each month the session is moved outside on the lawn. 

“It helps stress reduction, helps you figure out who you are as a person, and moves you away from technology, AI, your smartphone. That can distract us in life and bring us more to the here and now,” Anderson said. 

The sessions aren’t strictly limited to LBCC students and staff as the doors are open to any and all who are looking for a way to unwind.

Claire Kim, a community member, uses her time at Yoga On The Lawn to “come back to center.”

“A lot of us go through the day and forget to do that, when in reality, everyone should make time to do it,” Kim said. 

Kim added further to her experience, elaborating on what drives her to continue her attendance. 

“Coming to yoga on the lawn is great, you get to meet people and participating in the group activity is like a promise to show up for yourself that day,” Kim said. 

^{A group of LBCC students and attendees practice yoga in unison during a free yoga session in the small gym on Feb. 11. (Keith Lewis)}

In Long Beach, yoga classes aren’t the most accessible for everyone as they usually come with a cost. 

“Accessibility in yoga is vital for not only LBCC students, but everybody,” Anderson stated. 

He added that yoga has been proven to reduce stress, anxiety and chronic pain, as well as increases strength, flexibility and balance. 

By having Yoga on the Lawn, LBCC is providing a free and accessible way for members to unwind from the stressors of everyday life.

A yoga session on Feb. 11 consisted of a mix of LBCC students, student teachers of the Yoga Teacher Training Program offered on campus, as well as members of the Long Beach community.

At the half-hour mark for the class, the student teachers were given a chance to demonstrate their teaching abilities by leading the class in a few stretches.

“Yoga is a great resource for students to calm their nervous system and get a break in their day,” said Ashley Andrade, a student teacher part of LBCC’s Yoga Teacher Training Program. 

Another student teacher, Lawrence Cordova, mentioned his lifelong history of athleticism, and the lingering pain that comes with that lifestyle. 

Cordova never initially thought of yoga as a remedy for his ailments.

“I always looked at yoga as something I couldn’t do. I can’t do headstands, I’m not as skinny as everybody else. I just took the chance one day, and I fell in love with it the first time I tried it,” Cordova said. 

In an era of consumption and intense productivity, especially for students, LBCC’s yoga sessions can provide an outlet of stress relief and provide an overall break in a student’s day.

^{LBCC yoga instructor Richard Anderson demonstrates proper yoga techniques at a free yoga session on Feb. 11. (Keith Lewis)}