5Q Interview with Amie Barsky

1. Tell me about your personal journey with yoga. Why is it important to you?

I have always been athletic. I started in competitive gymnastics for most of my childhood, which eventually lead to becoming professional dancer. That lead me into the entertainment business as well as teaching pilates, health & fitness trainer…so for me, physical movement was always a necessity. When I first found vinyasa yoga, I was so excited to about the combination of dance like feeling while building flexibility and strength. At first, I was one of those people who went to class for the sweat: chaturanga, burn, breathe, move, chaturanga again and again. More please! I loved feeling my body completely fatigued and my mind on a yoga “high!”

Yoga is important to me because it has become a staple in my life. Now, over a decade later, I have a wonderful understanding and realization of the deep rooted benefits of yoga. In nutshell, the flexibility, focus and strength of the mind offers much more value than in the body.

2. When did you first begin teaching yoga? What made you transition into a leadership position?

I had been practicing yoga for a few years and became a “regular” with one of my favorite teachers, Dan Ward. We’d chat after lass about my dance, gymnastics and fitness teaching background, and everyone in a while he’d say, “Why don’t you become a yoga teacher? My excuse was ” I don’t have the time” A bit later he’d ask again and I’d come up with another lame excuse like “I don’t have the extra cash.” (but the honest truth was the thought of teaching yoga scared the shit out of me!)  Eventually, despite my rewarding physical practice, I found myself living a very unhappy and unfulfilled life. I was working dead-end jobs just to pay the bills, I was exhausted from an unhealthy marriage and a toxic relationship with myself, and I began struggling with severe spouts of anxiety and depression, more than I ever had before.

My life looked great on the outside, but on the inside was a mountain of self-loathing, negative self talk and a broken heart. Finally, I took a good look at myself & had a rock bottom cry and then honest conversation with myself. I felt my truth and realization, that I wasn’t living the life I desired, it felt ugly, I felt unauthentic. Event though the life I wanted felt unreachable, I knew that staying where I was not an option anymore! I asked myself, “How much longer would you like to live in pain, guilt & shame?” Somewhere along the way I had forgotten that I get to chose!

The volcano exploded and I finally said YES to ME. I walked away from the secure life I knew and took a leap of faith into the direction I really wanted to go.  It was definitely the hardest decision I’ve ever made, but it was a necessary one. I dove deep into learning about self-love & personal care. I became a self-help junkie. I took advantage of so many tools, like podcasts, books & amp; seminars, absorbing all the transformational lessons I could find.

A few months later I was in a car accident that flipped me over, physically and mentally. I feel grateful beyond words that I only walked away with a shoulder & hip injury, but I was unable to practice power yoga for a bit. I was upset. Power yoga was my saving grace, as I was finally learning, understanding and applying the deeper levels of mypractice, beyond the physical. Fortunately, that was my pivot, and I continued my inner journey working with life coaches and workshops.  One day a friend introduced me to Kundalini Yoga, a mantra-based meditation yoga. I’ll never forget my first class! I cried like a baby nearly the whole time, emptying an entire tissue box, but I left feeling lighter and happier than ever! I felt good, the fog in my mind started to lift and I could see my path to happiness more clearly. Once my body was healed from the car accident, I knew it was finally time to teach yoga. I went back to my old yoga class and it just so happened that Dan was starting his next teacher training the following month. It was during that teacher training course that I saw my path so clearly.

I bore witness to my own transformation, saw how yoga, meditation, consistency & focus can be used to heal from past trauma, depression, and anxiety without reliance on medication. I knew right then that I needed to share it with other people. So I followed my heart and became a certified life coach.

3. What makes your classes unique?

As an empowerment coach, I infuse my unique philosophy of balancing the head, heart, and body. This involves the conscious and unconscious mind from cognitive exercises, spirituality & mind and body healing. My methods have had a 90% success rate in reducing stress, liberating limiting beliefs, restoring confidence and creating a healthy, balanced life with ease, in this fast-paced world.

As a yoga teacher, whether I’m teaching Vinyasa, Kundalini or Acro yoga,  I stay true to my philosophy of bringing balance to the head, heart & body. My classes are usually an infusion of balance, humor, sincerity, insightful messages. I LOVE to the human body, and always curious to how & why it functions the way it does, so I offer anatomical knowledge + structural alignment, along with creative and effective sequences.  When you are in tune with your brain, breathe and body and make deliberate decisions as to “more or less” then you will receive exactly what you need each time you step on our mat.

4. How does music benefit your guidance in a yoga class?

Music sets the tone. I take a few things into consideration, style, level & time of day, before I decide what to play. Music inspires the flow or feeling I desire to create, so some days I play more tranquil and relaxing music and some days I play a little more funk, upbeat and energizing playlist.

5. Tell me about your next event and where we can follow you online.

After all of the shifts I made in my own life, working with the best of the best to dig deep to discover how to reduce stress, anxiety & depression, eat healthy and live a more balanced life, I knew I needed to share it! So I took my favorite principles, tools and techniques for dealing with these symptoms, combined them with kick ass workouts, mediations, nutrition and recipes and voi-la…

The Shift: a Head, Heart and Body Breakthrough was birthed!

I offer The Shift Breakthrough a few ways: 1:1 coaching, live events and most recently the online empowerment course! If you want to lose those stubborn extra pounds, reduce your stress and anxiety and feel your life is more balanced in the first 5 days, just DM me on FaceBook or IG or visit www.fullfitmindbody.com

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