Students spend afternoon learning, practicing yoga at Yoga Fest
Part of International Education Week, students and faculty gathered at Circle Park Thursday for this year’s Yoga Fest, hosted by the Center for Student Health Education and Wellness. The event brought in local dance studios including Neighborhood Barre and Barre Belle.
UT students complete the yoga demostration by doing moderate muscle streches.
With classes and events of the fall semester already in full swing, the Center for Student Health Education and Wellness offered a way for students to practice yoga and become more involved with the community.
Yoga studios and fitness centers from Knoxville including Barre 3, Barre Belle, Neighborhood Barre and Breezeway Studio sponsored this year’s Yoga Fest, which took place Thursday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Circle Park. Most studios also offered students a free class and discounts for attending the event.
“Our main goal now is to help people of all different levels to learn a little about yoga,” said Ashley Blamey, director of Student Health Education and Wellness. “It also comes at a perfect time with midterm’s right around the corner to help students with their stress.”
Instructors focused on a variety of yoga techniques during each session, from high-intensity cardio workouts to meditative stretching poses. During the last session, an instructor from Barre Belle taught a class that fused a higher intensity workout with traditional yoga poses.
“This event was a great way to promote our new studio to all of these students, especially because we’re so close to campus,” said Carrie Bull, a BUTI yoga instructor from Barre Belle. “We’re bringing a lot of fresher, younger classes that we think students will really enjoy and love to be a part of.”
As the day progressed, students were able to pick up brochures, grab a free t-shirt and learn about many of the different programs and yoga classes that studios around Knoxville offer.
“I’ve been practicing yoga for a few years, and it was such a great thing to come and be able to do it in between my classes,” said UT student Sarah Balkon.
Participants left their lessons with a smile, and a little more knowledge about yoga and the ways it can serve as a connection to the community.
Yoga Fest was one of many events from International Education Week, which began on Monday and ran through Friday.
Featured image by Thomas Delgado
Edited by Hannah Hunnicutt
