https://rgyoga.com
Through his workshops, classes and individual sessions, Richard Gartner reaches 100 yogis a week in Pittsburgh and beyond. He fosters a non-dogmatic and compassionate attitude about students’ abilities and circumstances.
Richard’s style is paradoxically both unique and universal. His instructions allow for any student to approach the practice, embracing all levels of experience and ability. This allows for anybody to explore their own unique structure and make every practice their own.
This philosophy is carried over to Onward Facing Yoga, an app Richard released in September 2015.
The eleven sequences on Onward Facing Yoga playfully explore various aspects of yoga philosophy, anatomy and breathwork, at various levels of challenge. This results in a robust yoga curriculum that allows anybody to listen inward and choose a practice that’s right for them.
For teacher training programs looking to enhance their curriculum, Richard offers several modules. They include a 12-hour Yin Yoga module called ‘Guiding the Quiet Revolution’; a 15-hour study of the vertical fascial lines, using Tom Meyers’ ‘Anatomy Trains’ as a base; and a 12-hour Foundational Anatomy series that covers all the major joint and muscle functions.
Richard’s approach is influenced by his primary teacher, Tias Little. Tias developed Prajna Yoga, which means ‘the yoga of deep insight.’ Tias describes Prajna Yoga as a ‘style-less style’, where the yoga should fit the student and not the other way around.
For Richard, this ‘style-less style’ means a yoga practice should be vibrant, in-the-moment and multi-disciplinary. His teachings fuse traditional posture and breathwork with contemporary anatomy and bodywork. He draws from many forms of yoga, fascial release, mindfulness techniques, and common sense.
Everyone from the newbie yogi to yoga instructors can learn something from Richard, I know I did!
—Melita Mollohan
Richard helped me understand that yoga is not a substitute for something better, but indeed is the foundation of a complete physical regimen that can be as intense or as restorative as anyone might want.
—Clyde Jones
His knowledge of yoga and his willingness to give you advice allows you to improve your skills through a deeper understanding of your body. The benefits of this knowledge extend quickly beyond the yoga lesson to everyday life.
—Irene Arduini
At Sangha Yoga in Beaver, PASunday, November 1411am-1:30pm At Yoga Centric in Bel Air, MDSaturday, November 2012-2:30pm Range Of Motion Activation (ROMA) is a technique designed by Richard to work […]
When I first encountered yoga in 2003, I took as many classes as I could. The movement, the people and the challenge got me hooked. I distinctly remember being confused […]
Several years ago, a violinist reached out to me for sessions. They were having headaches and chronic pain in their neck and left shoulder, which threatened to affect their symphony […]
It was 4:30pm, and my wife and I were wrapping up our volunteer work with Allegheny County’s vaccine program. We had helped about 330 people receive their first Moderna shot, […]
I teach meditation classes. I don’t call it meditation, because we are moving around, standing up, standing on our heads, and breathing a ton. But we are meditating. I thought […]
I think I just lived my first mindful decade ever. In reflecting on my last ten years, I’ve experienced more life than ever before. My memories are vivid and numerous. […]
Every yoga class I teach is an accessible one. My students will never be subjected to my preconceived notions about what is correct. Tias Little calls his practice a ‘styleless-style,’ […]
“Yes, one time my daughter passed out.” I was talking with a client about Yom Kippur and asked her if her family has ever had physical challenges during the service. […]
I am right-hand dominant. I catch myself thinking down the right side of my body. My right is more sensate, stronger, and more skilled with fine-tuned movements. As yogis and […]
I started practicing yoga in 2003, with my heart set on figuring out what bliss felt like. Bliss is one translation of samadhi, the last limb listed in the Yoga […]
(Based on the lecture portion of my sleep workshop “Snoozefest: How to Practice Yoga for a Good Night’s Sleep”) Yawns are the best. Virtually all vertebrates do it, with humans […]
I am learning how to draw because I want to become a better visual communicator when I teach workshops. I’ve been drawing for about seven weeks now, and I’ve noticed […]
(Originally published in 2015: Check out the app here) The first thing I’ll admit to in this article: It’s about me, working on an app called Onward Facing Yoga. The […]
I’m not sure how long I’ll teach yoga—it could be two months or 30 years—but I’m sure the class I taught in Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh, on Saturday, October 27 will be […]
In catastrophes and medical emergencies, caregivers rely on a process called triage. Stemming from the early 1800’s, triage is a method of prioritizing the care of many people based on […]
I rolled out my mat and gathered yoga props for Felicia Savage Friedman’s class at the Kingsley Association Center, a community organization in Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood. The class operates with […]
Richard Gartner | Frameworks Yoga 