My Dad Didn’t Have To Die So Early

Short answer: you can do Iyengar yoga in Cairns with Flametree Yoga Studio through live online classes, taught in real time from our Darwin studio. Cairns is 30 minutes ahead of Darwin, so the 4pm Saturday Restorative Yoga class is 4.30pm in Cairns. If you are new, your first class is free, then beginners get 12 classes for $59.50 (10 at half price plus 2 free, no code, 14-day money-back guarantee).

Could Yoga Have Helped Dad’s Heart?

Dr McCall’s list of 117 conditions studied in yoga research

For my father, yoga Cairns was not an option. He died of heart disease and Parkinson’s Disease. Studies now suggest that regular yoga, in Cairns or anywhere, might have helped him. In his younger years, my Dad lived in the Cairns, North Queensland hinterland. He lived not much further away than Trinity Beach is from Cairns, Australia. But again, it was before the popularity of yoga in Cairns, and everywhere else in the West. So unfortunately, he never had the many options of yoga classes Cairns, or the opportunity to create his own online Palm Cove for yoga.

Dad died much younger than he should have. He had the classic A-type personality style (known as a Pitta type in Ayurveda). Dr Tim McCall, in Yoga As Medicine, explains how getting calm with yoga may help people with heart disease, especially driven A-types.

The even sadder thing is that my father’s vigorous lifestyle didn’t protect him from heart disease, or from Parkinson’s. For example, Dad managed cattle stations. So he spent plenty of time on horseback, and doing physical labour outdoors.

But it was obvious to me (Stuart), when I was a young man, that he was still out of shape. It’s one of the things that influenced me to choose physical health practices, especially including traditional hatha yoga.

As I travelled, wherever I went, from Papua New Guinea to New Mexico and Santa Fe, I looked for things like beginners yoga Cairns, or hatha yoga Cairns. As I steadily listened to more seasoned yogis, and my own personal practice developed, I would even look for public classes that ensured I found yoga styles that offered what an Iyengar yoga Cairns would offer.

I experienced Iyengar yoga when I lived in Port Moresby and New York. For me it was the most carefully taught yoga I had found, and I have preferred it ever since.

My father, who ended up taking us kids to live in tropical Darwin, Australia, had plenty of pleasant palm trees in his daily life in Cairns. Sadly, he had nothing that online yoga, or a Cairns yoga centre, could have offered by way of improved health.

Dr McCall’s Table of 117 conditions helped by yoga

For instance, Dr Tim McCall has published the Table below. It lists 117 health conditions (as of June 2019) where published studies suggest yoga may help. It’s based on Dr McCall’s review of the scientific studies of yoga. The Table includes Parkinson’s Disease, and heart disease. My father had both! The evidence is stronger for some conditions than others, and yoga supports, rather than replaces, medical care.

By the way, as cardiologist Dr Clara Chow has pointed out, heart disease is a major killer of women, not just men, and is often missed in women.

New to Flametree? Your first class is free. See the beginner class times

Beginners: 12 classes for $59.50 (10 at half price plus 2 free), online or in the studio. No code needed.

Non-beginners: 30 days of unlimited online classes for $29 (online classes only). 

In addition, at Flametree Yoga Studio, which I now attend online or in-studio at Darwin, Australia, there are many students who use yoga alongside their medical care for some of the above health conditions. I’ve heard plenty of their personal accounts of what it has meant for them.

The Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher at Flametree, Chris Lalor, has helped many these students with suitable online or in-studio sequences of yoga postures for their individual situations.

My father was alive and well at a time when a yoga practice, in Cairns, Qld, or beyond, might have helped him. In addition, during the Second World War, he travelled enormously. He did not have to be limited to what may or may not have been available by way of Cairns yoga classes.

Like me in my later life, he could have just taken his own mat, and been a yoga student anywhere.

Again, sadly, it was the Western perception of yoga that stood on the way of him being a yoga student. In this regard, as I talk to many folk around Darwin, I notice they still let that perception get in the way of a yoga practice that could improve their physical and mental fitness.

At the time when Dad was a younger man, there were definitely early pioneers of yoga teaching. They wrote some of the early books that offered you a yoga journey no matter whether you could attend yoga in Cairns Australia, or not.

I set out to follow a yoga path

By way of contrast, once I decided I wanted to explore yin yoga and other yoga styles that were offered, I simply read one of the earliest yoga authors. I learnt a heap of useful yoga practices.

It was of course better once I got the clear instruction that an online or in-studio yoga class could offer. As I got more fussy, and kept travelling, I also started looking for what the best studios could offer.

In the process, I benefited a great deal from the unlimited access to many yoga classes offered by the very best yoga studios. That allowed me quick progress, with plenty of access to a range of styles.

By range of styles I mean yoga classes like the Special Focus Classes at Flametree, such as Gentle Yoga, Back Neck & Shoulder Yoga, Yoga For Immune System, Breath Meditation, Fifty Plus Yoga, and Restorative Yoga For Heart Health.

Along the way, in my own yoga journey, I did of course at least try out the offerings of what a Bikram yoga Cairns studio can offer… even though that option definitely did not exist for Dad. For me, the drawback of Bikram yoga was too little variety in their yoga poses. Bikram yoga also only teaches at one level of postures. In contrast, Flametree Yoga, where I now practice, teaches yoga at six different levels, from very easy to advanced.

Of course, on many days, I now don’t look for different class, or a different level, whether online or in-studio. I simply do the regular yoga class at my level. As all seasoned yogis know, success at yoga is all about regularity. As long as the level of the class is broadly aligned with your skills, you simply take each posture to the level that works best for you.

For the many days on which I practise online yoga, I have all my yoga props ready for use. My own small ashram is part of my home!. I have my own wild heart yoga tribe right in my front room. I also often go to my local Darwin beach for yoga.

If only Dad could have had the same access to something like a Cairns beaches yoga, or Kewarra Beach, or ideally their online equivalent, then perhaps myself and his grandchildren would have enjoyed his company for longer.

Of course, yoga retreats are the wonderful when you can fit them in. But its the daily yoga practice that makes the biggest difference to my life. I’ve also started some yoga teacher training courses. But that’s another path I’ll take further down the track. Maybe it would help if one hr yoga teacher trainings in Iyengar yoga were more available. I’ll mention the idea to my Flametree Yoga teacher.

If you’re looking for a yoga studio Cairns, then please consider the benefits offered by Flametree Yoga. Or email [email protected]

Flametree also offers a weekly class called Restorative Yoga For Heart Health. It’s both online and in-studio, at 4pm Saturdays, in the local time of Darwin Australia.

Do yoga in the comfort and convenience of your own home. No water bottle is needed, but here’s some information about the yoga props to consider.

New to Flametree? Your first class is free. See the beginner class times

Beginners: 12 classes for $59.50 (10 at half price plus 2 free), online or in the studio. No code needed.

Non-beginners: 30 days of unlimited online classes for $29 (online classes only). 

Flametree Yoga Studio class times

Flametree beginner classes are LIVE online, at Darwin time (GMT+9.30). Cairns is 30 minutes ahead of Darwin all year, so add half an hour. Online beginner classes (Darwin time) run Monday 8.30am and 7.15pm, Saturday 10.30am and Sunday 11am, plus Gentle Yoga on Friday 10.15am and Restorative Yoga on Saturday 4pm.

The classes are all standard, introductory hatha yoga poses.

The online format allows you to get a wide range of beginner yoga classes Cairns, or for wherever you are.

There’s also many options, including Gentle Yoga, Yoga for Back (& Neck & Shoulders), and Restorative Yoga For Heart Health.

For both beginners & non-beginners, there are also excellent yoga of pregnancy options.

At the non-beginner level, there’s extra options like Yoga For Immune System, Fifty Plus Yoga, and more advanced levels.

If you’ve already done some yoga, there are also live online pranayama (breath meditation) classes at 6.30am Darwin time on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

As you can see, that is a wide range of options to choose from.

In addition, you get top Iyengar yoga Cairns opportunities. The studio is run by Chris Lalor, an accredited Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher.

If you like, check out what other Flametree students have said about Flametree’s online classes.

If you’re looking for a yoga school Cairns, then please consider online yoga. Among other things, because Flametree Yoga understands tropical weather, you’ll get yoga that is adapted for the tropics.

Yoga School Cairns options, or for far beyond

The online Flame Tree Yoga Studio beginners yoga for Cairns and beyond, can be started at any time. See the timetable for the many convenient times.

If you’re a beginner and new to Flametree, your first class is free. Just click the class time you want and we email you the link to join.

Then keep going with the beginner deal: 10 classes at half price plus 2 free, $59.50 in total. No discount code, and a 14-day money-back guarantee. For newcomers and anyone away three months or more.

If you have done yoga before, see the non-beginner half price 10 pass with 2 free ($104.50), or 30 days of unlimited online yoga for $29.

Some students also start with a private class or two, and then move onto regular online or in-studio classes.

If you’re still unsure about things like how yoga helps with critical issues like lowering blood pressure, then check out why yoga helps lower blood pressure. 

My own blood pressure has stayed normal, and my teacher, Chris Lalor, says the same about hers. That is our experience, not proof. A 2026 review of 105 trials (Journal of the American Heart Association) found yoga had a moderate effect on blood pressure in people with high or borderline blood pressure.

As I said, yoga Cairns was no option for Dad. But I often wonder whether yoga, in Cairns or online, might have given him more years.

Now, it’s wonderful that there is yoga in cairns, and far beyond.

Flametree’s many online options give you quality Iyengar yoga classes in Cairns, Qld, or wherever you are. Try your free first class and see for yourself.

New to Flametree? Your first class is free. See the beginner class times

Already practising? Non-beginner half price 10 pass plus 2 free, $104.50

Non-beginners: 30 days of unlimited online classes for $29 (online classes only). 

Flame Tree Yoga Studio private classes, online or in-studio

 

My final quick summary

For my father, yoga Cairns was not an option. He died of heart disease and Parkinson’s Disease.

Studies now suggest that regular yoga, in Cairns or anywhere, might have helped him.

In his younger years, my Dad lived in the Cairns, North Queensland hinterland. Then we moved to near Katherine NT.

But again, it was before the popularity of yoga in Cairns, and everywhere else in the West. So unfortunately, he never had the many options of online yoga, or yoga classes in Cairns, or breath meditation for calming.

What students say about Flametree yoga and it’s benefits

If you’re still not sure about yoga, read reviews of what customers say about their yoga classes at Flametree.

In addition, see the wide range of benefits they say they have received from both online or in-the-studio yoga at Flametree.

Yoga in Cairns: common questions

Can I do yoga in Cairns with Flametree Yoga Studio?

Yes. Flametree teaches live online Iyengar yoga classes from its Darwin studio, and you can join from anywhere in Cairns, from Palm Cove to Edmonton, with a phone, tablet or laptop. There are beginner, gentle, restorative and non-beginner classes most days.

What time are Flametree’s online classes in Cairns time?

Cairns is 30 minutes ahead of Darwin all year. The Monday 8.30am Darwin beginner class is 9am in Cairns, the Monday 7.15pm class is 7.45pm, the Saturday 10.30am class is 11am, and the Sunday 11am class is 11.30am Cairns time.

How much do online yoga classes cost from Cairns?

If you are new, your first class is free. Then beginners can get 12 classes for $59.50 (10 at half price plus 2 free) with a 14-day money-back guarantee. If you have done yoga before, there is 30 days of unlimited online classes for $29.

Can yoga help people with Parkinson’s disease?

It may help some symptoms. A 2022 review of 250 exercise trials in BMC Geriatrics found yoga was the only type of exercise that clearly eased anxiety in people with Parkinson’s, but rated the overall evidence as low quality. Yoga is a support alongside medical care, not a treatment for the disease itself.

Is yoga good for heart health?

It can play a part. A 2026 review of 105 trials in the Journal of the American Heart Association found yoga had a moderate effect on blood pressure in people with high or borderline blood pressure, though other reviews call the wider heart evidence uncertain. Yoga supports, not replaces, your doctor’s care, and anyone with heart disease should tell their teacher before class.

What is Dr McCall’s list of 117 conditions?

Dr Timothy McCall, an American medical doctor and author of Yoga as Medicine, keeps a list of health conditions where published studies suggest yoga may help. His June 2019 version lists 117 conditions, each with references to the studies. The strength of evidence varies a lot from one condition to the next.

How is Iyengar yoga different from Bikram or hot yoga?

Iyengar yoga is taught at normal room temperature, with a wide variety of poses at several levels, and uses props such as chairs, belts and blocks so each pose suits your body. Bikram yoga uses the same set series of poses in a heated room.

When is the Restorative Yoga For Heart Health class in Cairns time?

It runs on Saturdays at 4pm Darwin time, which is 4.30pm in Cairns, both online and in the Darwin studio. It is open level, and uses supported poses over chairs, bolsters and blankets.

General information only, not medical advice. Sources: McCall T, Yoga as Medicine, and his list of 117 conditions (June 2019); Yang Y et al 2022, BMC Geriatrics (exercise for Parkinson’s disease, network meta-analysis); Xin X et al 2026, Journal of the American Heart Association (exercise and blood pressure, 105 trials). Flametree Yoga Studio, Darwin and live online.