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Breathwork at Phoenix

You’ve been breathing your whole life. Fancy something deeper?

Here’s what happens at Phoenix, so you can get a feel for it before you come.

Three ways to work with the breath

Functional Breathing

With Rachel, notice how you breathe through an ordinary day and try simple exercises you can use afterwards.

Conscious Connected Breathwork

Lie down and follow a continuous breath while Kaya guides the session.

Pranayama

Traditional breathing practices guided within a regular Phoenix yoga class.

Everyday breathing

Functional Breathing

Rachel Graves at Phoenix Yoga
Rachel Graves

This is about how you breathe in everyday life — when you sit, walk, exercise or sleep.

In a session, you might:

  • Notice how you breathe as you sit or move.
  • Use gentle movement to explore your shoulders, upper back, ribs and diaphragm.
  • Try breathing through your nose, more lightly and slowly.
  • Take a simple exercise home.

Here, ‘deep’ isn’t about taking the biggest breath possible — it’s about breathing lower and allowing the diaphragm to do its job.

Rachel writes more about this in “Are You Breathing Properly?” →

Why Rachel teaches it

Rachel found Functional Breathing when she needed it herself. Anxiety, brain fog and disrupted sleep led her to Oxygen Advantage exercises, which helped her feel calmer and more like herself.

Now she helps others explore the small changes that made a difference to her. Rachel is a qualified Oxygen Advantage instructor; she has practised yoga for 30 years and taught Iyengar for 18. Her three words for a class? “Supportive, structured and practical.”

Read Rachel’s profile →
A dedicated session

Conscious Connected Breathwork

Kaya in Phoenix’s bright practice room
Kaya guides our Conscious Connected Breathwork sessions.

You arrive off Upper Richmond Road — the buses, the noise, the Tuesday afternoon of it all. You take your shoes off at the door. The studio is quiet in the way that feels particular to this room: not silent, but settled. The wooden floor. The light from the high windows. The bolsters already laid out.

Kaya starts with a few minutes of orientation. She explains the technique, checks in with the room and makes it clear that you can work at whatever level feels right. Then you lie down and breathe continuously while she guides the rhythm and watches the room.

The last stretch is rest: lying there, breathing normally, while the room settles around you. When it’s over, people tend to be slow to get up.

Meet Kaya →
Within a yoga class

Pranayama

Pranayama is a traditional part of yoga that works deliberately with the breath. At Phoenix, you’ll usually meet it in a yoga class rather than a separate session.

A teacher might use it to settle the room, prepare for movement, focus attention or slow things down at the end. You do not need to know the names or get anything right — the teacher will guide you.

Explore yoga classes →
Before you come

Just come as you are

Wear
Anything comfortable enough to sit, move or lie down in.
Bring
Nothing — mats, blankets, bolsters and props are here.
Experience
None needed. Your teacher will explain the practice when you arrive.
If you’re pregnant or managing a health condition that may affect your practice, please check with us before you book. We’ll help you choose an appropriate session.

Which one might suit me?

Start with the one that interests you today. You can explore the others later.

Questions before you come?