MY YOGA JOURNEY

I started practicing Yoga almost 30 years ago…
 
I started on my own, reading books and started with the Raquel Welch video (yes, I'm THAT old!).  I never practiced with a group, mainly on my own…I liked the solitude and the "me" time.
 
At first, yoga was useful to offset the pounding my body took after my 5-mile runs…while other runners complained about their ankles, lower back and wonky knees, I was able to avoid any common injuries.  I later taught aerobics and would incorporate some yoga poses at the end of my classes.
 
As I got older, I found that I needed yoga more and more and that I enjoyed it more than the running!  When I reached my mid-50’s, I stopped running for good and replaced those runs with a combination of dance, walking and you guessed it…yoga. 
 
As I got healthier, I found myself on the mat everyday…still on my own.  I decided to raise the bar and go for my teaching credential.  As a Health & Wellness Coach, I found yoga was the perfect “gateway” to movement for clients who were just starting their movement goals.   Two years ago, I started my education with Yoga Medicine.
 
The very first day of class, I had a “what the heck am I doing?” moment.  Most of my class and teachers were very advanced, flexible and strong.  I also found that my body couldn’t & wouldn’t move the way that I wanted it to.  And, doing yoga in front of a mirror was painful… Doing yoga without any instruction from professionals, left a lot of room for improvement for my form, alignment and approach. 
 
I learned so much that first week.  My most important “A-Ha!” moment was realizing that the goal of yoga wasn’t the beautiful poses I saw on Instagram.  It was all about the awareness of tuning in to my body, my thoughts and my emotions.  I needed to “feel” my poses and accept my body where it is at the moment of doing the pose without any judgment.  In Sanskrit, the word “yoga” is unity and that is the whole purpose of yoga!
 
I also learned that we all have different bodies, different histories and different perspectives and my responsibility as a teacher was to be able to help my students find their very own customized approach to yoga.  This included modifying poses, using props to help make the pose easier and helping students approach yoga by opening up their perspectives and their hearts.
 
I teach group classes and coach private clients, incorporating hatha, vinyasa flow, myofascial release, yin and restorative modalities.  I love surprising my students with creative flows and love the challenge of making yoga accessible for everyone.  I am currently working towards my Yoga Therapist certification which introduces me to the latest research, new ideas and more in-depth knowledge of our bodies and how we can apply Yoga techniques to reach our potential!