​​​​​​​Cheryl Fenner Brown C-IAYT​, E-RYT 500, YACEP

Restorative Yoga with Breath, Mudra, and Sound

OLLI, Spring 2026
Restorative yoga provides a peaceful way to connect with your body. You recline over soft props, such as bolsters, blankets, and pillows, in gentle backbends, sidebends, twists, and forward folds that promote deep relaxation. This course offers profound calm and renewal through gentle warm-ups, restorative poses, mindful breathing, mudras, and sound therapy. Students will develop practical skills to reduce stress, improve posture, and cultivate greater well-being. By the end, participants will have a toolkit of restorative techniques to incorporate into their daily lives, thereby enhancing both physical and mental health.
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No prior yoga experience is required, but you should be able to get down on the floor (and back up again) and maintain a still position for up to 15 minutes at a time. Modifications will be offered to accommodate varying levels of mobility, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for all participants. 
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​SUPPLIES REQUIRED:  Please wear comfortable clothing and have a yoga mat, two 4” yoga blocks, an 8’ yoga strap, a blanket, and a pillow. 
WEEK 1: Connecting with the Body
Monday, January 26, 2026
Our first class will focus on simple practices to compassionately connect you with your body including the Joint-Freeing Series, Breath Observation, Hasta Mudra Series, Spinal Roll Backbend, and Legs on the Chair.  
WEEK 2: Connecting with the Breath
Monday, February 2, 2026
Explore the five different currents of prana in the body through the breath with Prana Vayu Breath with Upper Backbend, Apana Vayu Breath with Lower Backbend, Samana Vayu Breath with Middle Backbend and Reclining Sidebend, and Vyana Vayu Breath with Spinal Roll Backbend. 
WEEK 3: Connecting with the Voice​
Monday, February 9, 2026
In this class we combine restorative poses to open the upper chest and neck such as the Upper Backbend and Supported Fish Pose as well as sound practices such as the Vowel Spiral.  
WEEK 4: Connecting with the Mind
Monday, February 16, 2026
Learn to stay present during your practice with several meditation anchors including Bramhari Breath, Ujjayi Breath, and Supported Seated Forward Folds.
WEEK 5: Connecting with the Emotions 
Monday, February 23, 2026
Moving the body inevitably shifts prana as well as our emotions; this week we add mudras that tap into the emotional heart to simple restorative Heart Openers, Twists, and Supported Child's Pose. 
WEEK 6: Connecting with the Belly
Monday, March 2, 2026
Connect deeply with your belly as we practice Supported Twists, Bridge Pose, and Child's Pose along with sounds and mudras to enhance the focus.
WEEK 7: Connecting with the Hips
Monday, March 9, 2026
Gently open your hips with a slow warm-up followed by a modified Supported Pigeon Pose and Low Back Breath, Restorative Twists with segmented breath, and a fully Supported Bridge with Belly Breath.
WEEK 8: Connecting with the Spine
Monday, March 16, 2026
Befriend your back with six gentle spinal movements, Elevator breath directed into the spine, and restoratives mirroring the extension, flexion, twisting, and side-bending. 
WEEK 9: Connecting with the Heart
Monday, March 23, 2026
A whole class of heart openers, mudras and sound that releases tension around the chest and allows the breath to flow
WEEK 10: Connecting with the True Self
Monday, March 30, 2026
The culmination of our restorative journey, a balanced class with a sound bath.

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Cheryl Fenner Brown, C-IAYT

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I began my yoga teaching journey in 2004 with a 740-hr training with Hatha teachers at Piedmont Yoga Studio in Oakland, California, followed by an 800-hr Integrative Yoga Therapy training at Kripalu in 2015. I am certified as an E-RYT 500 and continuing education provider through Yoga Alliance. In 2016, I was among the first teachers certified through the International Association of Yoga Therapists as a C-IAYT. I have taught over 9,300 hours of public classes and workshops and love teaching how posture, breath, and attention can completely transform how they feel in their bodies and about themselves. Students appreciate my deeply educational approach to yoga; I weave anatomy, philosophy, asana, mudra, chanting, pranayama, and yoga nidra together for a well-rounded experience delivered with compassion and humor. Encouraging each student to honor where they are in their bodies every time they step onto the mat enables profound self-awareness. I specialize in helping people in midlife (and beyond), those with structural injuries, and cancer patients thrive.