Free Yoga to Connect Mind, Body Spirit, Unite Community

You ate too much and exercised too little during the holidays, right? A free fitness class could be the first step toward sitting a little straighter and standing a bit taller.

Led by Horsham resident Sharon Whitefawn, the free weekly yoga classes will begin on Monday and will be held at Horsham Athletic Club, where Whitefawn, a fitness trainer, had previously offered classes to members. This class, she said, would be open to members, as well as non-members. 

"Wouldn’t it be nice If they could do yoga and not have to pay?" she said of prospective students, as well as previous students she hopes will return. 

In addition to most recently receiving a counseling psychology degree, Whitefawn is an ordained interfaith.

"I feel like wellness is my ministry," she said. "In some way I’m helping others."

Before beginning her "spiritual journey," Whitefawn, had opened the now-shuttered Body Shop fitness facility on Horsham Road in the early 90s. She had owned it for about seven years before selling it. 

During that time, she had been "very plugged into the community," she said, adding that she hopes the forthcoming classes can serve as a reconnection of sorts. 

The answer to Whitefawn's approach to interconnectivity is synergy yoga, a full mind, body, spirit and community-connectedness exercise class geared for all fitness levels. 

"Yoga in our culture especially is very posture oriented," she said. "I don’t put my primary focus on there. I really go more for what are you thinking and self awareness." 

Instead of "self-criticizing," Whitefawn–whose name was given to her at birth by her Cherokee grandfather–said she urges her students to bring something to mind that they are grateful for. 

"I’m talking about things like gratitude," she said. "I don’t want to scare people with religion because that’s not what I’m about."

If you go

Sharon Whitefawn's weekly yoga sessions will be held on Mondays at 10 a.m. at Horsham Athletic Club, 400 Horsham Road in Horsham. Click here for more information.