Inhale, Exhale: Inside Ms. Crosby's Yoga Class

THIJS WITTINK/DEERFIELD SCROLL

For Deerfield Yoga Instructor Lesley Crosby, yoga is more than a set of postures. With over 25 years of teaching experience, including six years at the Academy, she uses her classes to help students and faculty develop awareness of their bodies, manage stress, and build focus while finding calm.

The yoga sessions, offered both as a cocurricular and three times a week for students, faculty, and staff, have become a consistent presence in the school’s schedule. “I have a plan [for each class], but the plan goes out the window when I see who's in front of me,” Ms. Crosby said. Rather than following a fixed class schedule, she adjusts each session based on the specific stretching needs of the group that shows up. 

Participants come with different levels of experience. “If you come to class and you've never done anything before, I'll teach you the basics, whereas if someone next to you knows more, I'll just add on to what they know,” she explained. Sometimes, the class uses equipment such as resistance bands and small balls to address areas of tension and improve mobility, especially for athletes, who frequently need to “loosen their body up a bit” after practice.

Thijs Wittink ’27, a regular student participant, first began yoga during his freshman winter while enrolled in the Conditioning For Athletes cocurricular. He described the dual benefits of the class, acknowledging both its physical and mental impact. 

“I have taken lots of specific stretches and exercises from this class. Most notably, I can now do a handstand,” he said, adding, “I also think it has really helped me maintain a higher volume of exercise without getting injured, while also providing a time to decompress.”

The class includes dynamic practice and also incorporates static practice that entails elements of focus and breathing. Participants are often asked to fix their gaze on a single spot or concentrate on steady breathing. “Exhaling in my classes is huge,” said Ms. Crosby. She emphasized the importance of turning inward and entering one’s space, just like turning on a “light switch,” a skill developed through deliberate focus and consistent practice.

For many participants, the class serves multiple purposes. Deerfield History and Social Science Teacher Julia Rivellino-Lyons is a regular attendee of the class, typically on Sundays and once during the weekdays. She described yoga as both a physical and communal experience. “[As a cross country coach], I really love having dedicated time to stretch, but I also really appreciate the community angle of it,” she said.

The community yoga sessions often include not only students and teachers but also staff and family members. “It’s really nice to be in [the yoga studio] with people who you don’t always know from other pieces of life on campus, but now, you are all here doing something together in an organized fashion,” said Ms. Rivellino-Lyons. 

She also noted the variability within each session. Even after years of practicing yoga, she continues to encounter new approaches in Ms. Crosby’s class. “There's something different, something new to me almost every time I go, and these changes can shift the emphasis significantly,” she said. “For example, for a long time I was doing Warrior One in an upright posture, but recently, she came over and positioned me with a slight shift to being forward reaching,” she added.

At the end of each session, the class returns to breathing. “Inhale love, exhale peace,” Ms. Crosby tells her participants after each class. “I hope that they leave thinking that, ‘yoga really helped me with anxiety, finding my center, and grounding myself down,’” she said. 

Ms. Crosby also hoped the practice grants participants the ability to return to the state of mindfulness independently. “Yoga always has them. It’s a place where they can always go no matter where they are or what’s happening [around them],” she said, “they can always go into their own little space.”