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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Two friends who used to teach at the now-closed Yoga Centre have joined together to pass on their love of Sivananda yoga. Christa Domchek and Dawn Curtis are renting out a room from Northern United Place and offering drop-in classes and several different courses, including one aimed at children.

A couple of months after The Yoga Centre closed, Domchek and Curtis - both of whom have attended a 30-day training programs to receive certification needed to teach Sivananda yoga - held free yoga sessions on the grass surrounding the Ceremonial Circle.

The sessions proved to be popular, but when the weather turned less-than-accommodating, Domchek and Curtis, both of whom missed teaching, pondered what their next step should be.

"I've been wanting to teach ever since the Yoga Centre closed, but I needed to find the right place, the right time," said Domchek. "It just really meshed well when Dawn and I both expressed that interest."

The two agreed they should turn their shared love of Sivananda - a balanced approach to yoga that places as much emphasis on relaxation and meditation as on physical fitness - into a new yoga venture, opening Sundog Yoga in the beginning of October.

"There's kind of an unspoken commitment when you do your teacher training that you will actually teach others," said Curtis. "I felt, because it had been so beneficial to me a well, it was worth pursuing."

Sundog offers weekly beginners' yoga classes which give participants a full but gradual immersion into Sivananda yoga.

"You start with relaxation," said Domchek. "Then you move into a series of Sun Salutations, 12 positions to get the body warm and flexible so it can do the postures. Then you move into the 12 postures, relaxing between each one. They strengthen your body and, if you can get into the right spot, that can become very meditative. We close the class with a long, final relaxation."

When thinking about what type of yoga they should offer at Sundog, both women agreed they should go with the form they're most comfortable with, but also one that long-time yoga practicers and newcomers alike could easily get into. Their vision includes kids - a demographic Sundog is especially keen on attracting with their five-week Little Yogis sessions, the first of which is set to begin on Jan. 12. Two streams - one for kids aged three to seven, another for kids from eight to 11 - will be offered.

"The classes will be completely catered to children," said Domchek. "Most of the postures are named after animals: the cobra, the lion, the snake. We make it fun."

Both Domchek and Curtis' daughters have expressed an interest in yoga, prompting the women to think there's other kids in town who probably are open to it as well.

Of her three-year-old daughter, Domchek said "She'll actually take my yoga book and pull it to a page and she'll look at it and do it without much instruction. She's going to be my assistant."

Echoed Curtis, "My (seven-year-old) daughter's teacher at school started doing yoga with his class, so my daughter will come after school and say, 'Guess what I learned today.' Kids really seem to love yoga."