As an award-winning educator, Cissy Lewis received the Distinguished Teacher award twice during her tenure at The Castilleja School, California. She most recently served as interim head of school at the Palo Alto, California, school. Among her outside-the-classroom interests, Cissy Lewis enjoys practicing yoga, particularly Iyengar yoga led by instructors Manuoso Manos and Osha Hanfling.
Iyengar yoga was named after B.K.S. Iyengar, who began doing yoga as a teenager in an effort to improve his health after suffering from tuberculosis. He began teaching yoga in 1936, with his method rising to prominence in the 1960s. As a result, he became one of the first teachers to instruct yoga to westerners until his death in 2014. His method, which is a form of hatha yoga, primarily focuses on the body’s physical alignment. He believed there is a correct way to do each pose, and each student can achieve that through practice. In addition, he used props, such as pillows, chairs, straps, and blocks during his sessions.
Manuoso Manos, who is a senior Iyengar yoga teacher and studied with B.K.S. for many years, teaches Iyengar yoga at numerous locations throughout the year. His primary location is his studio in San Francisco, the Abode of Iyengar Yoga.
