Anyone is welcome on Isabel Schank’s Yoga Trails. Here, yoga is an act of self-care. No pressure, just pleasure. Outdoors, in Luxembourg’s magical countryside.

Anyone would feel at home on Isabel Schank’s Yoga Trails: A young woman with a desk job who wants to clear her mind and move her body. An elderly man who feels his strength dwindling but has never really worked out. A middle-aged woman who suddenly feels a little uncomfortable in her own skin. A young man who simply wants to feel centred.

“It’s not about the perfect posture, the perfect outfit, the perfect body. We often associate yoga with Instagram pictures featuring young people who appear thin and perfectly balanced. And then we think: I’m not flexible, not strong enough. It creates inhibitions and puts people off. That’s where my idea comes in. I want to motivate everyone to improve their lives through yoga,” says Isabel Schank. Mental health is her priority: body, mind, spirit and energy working in harmony.

Isabel Schank’s yoga trails offer a sensory experience in nature. You’ll feel present. Guided yet completely self-confident. There’s no pressure, no judgment. It’s a spiritual experience.

The trails leading up to the yoga areas are part of the experience. Luxembourg’s beautiful landscapes, especially up north, are not just a pretty backdrop. “I want to show my clients how to move with awareness in nature,” says Isabel. “But I also want us to be mindful of local cultural history. For example, Ardennes horses used to pull tree trunks across the forest floor and there were also tanneries here.” Joining Isabel’s trails means doing yoga on the narrow Molberlee ridge, or near Misärshaff, Bourscheid and other picturesque places up north.

Yoga mat tucked under her arm, Isabel leads a small group across the pillowy forest floor. “Roll your feet mindfully, as if they were kissing the ground!” she says, making her group smile. You automatically become more graceful and attentive. “Think of women in Africa and Asia who carry water on their heads, walking tall, straight and carefully,” she adds. “Walk like this here in the woods today, but maybe also later on your way to work.” She then looks for a spot where everyone can comfortably lean on a tree trunk to close their eyes and simply breathe. The next exercise follows on a forest path, feet in the leaves on the ground. Focus on balance, breathe calmly. On the way back, a sun salutation in a clearing with a beautiful view.

Isabel has always been a nature lover. Originally a landscape architect, she loved work and worked hard. At 28, she was burnt out and went through a deep depression. That’s how she found yoga. She realized that even though we can be productive, we also need to take good care of ourselves. “Looking back, I’m glad I was relatively young when I went through that”, says Isabel. This experience and her realisation that something had to change led her through extensive and intensive yoga training to a second career. The western world is marked by pressure to perform and a flood of self-improvement tips. She has repeatedly left that behind to work in foreign aid and travel in Asia and Latin America, including for work. She also lived in Nepal for a long time and often went to India to further her yoga training.

She now lives in Kehmen, Éislek, with her Nepalese husband and their two children. She wants to share some of the values she encountered during her travels. “Mental health through nature and yoga experiences, that’s what I want to share with people,” she says. She leads small groups of up to six people on outdoor classes but also in the charming barn. The barn is slowly being converted into a space for workshops in case the weather doesn’t hold up. “You don’t have to go far to experience lovely landscapes,” says Isabel. Her yoga trails are highly recommended! Getting there, walking, doing the postures…it’s all part of the experience. The paths lead up- and downhill. Sometimes that can be tiring, of course, but at the same time it’s wonderfully relaxing.