Interviews with Yogis and Yoginis

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

Yoga is important to me because it is my anchor in life.  During my five year practice yoga has seen me fall in and out of love, Yoga has seen me move across the country, Yoga has seen me travel the world, Yoga has seen me in and out of different houses, it has seen friends come and go, it has seen my mentality fluctuate, and every time Yoga brings me back to myself. Within the chaos and beauty of life, Yoga is my safe space to come home to.

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

I begin inherently teaching yoga and wanting to give energy healing within weeks of taking my first class. I felt this tangible nurturing from my first mentor and I felt how natural it came to me. I found myself at parties wanting to put my hands on my friends and give them different asanas as to help them with their various pains. I really tapped into how empathic I am and how I can feel where people are holding pain in their body and I naturally want to help them. I decided to take more of a leadership position after getting certified in 2015.

3. What makes your classes unique?

I think what makes my classes unique is that there’s no one else that can be me but me. Every single teacher brings their own unique flavor because no two people are the same. My journey through yoga and what I hope to give people in my classes is unique to my experience, personality, and wisdom.

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

When I teach in a studio I find music to be a beautiful way for people to tune out of their thoughts and come back to breathe and movement. When I teach outside I usually allow nature’s sounds to guide them.

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

You can find my business Facebook page at Yoga with Meesha. There you can find the various places that I teach and also book private appointments with me.

Instagram

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

I started yoga when I was 18 and it began my awakening journey. I wanted to do yoga instead of going out to parties. I had to do it everyday and was obsessed. It make my body feel a way I have never felt before. Then I tried Aerial Yoga and it totally filled my world upside down. It was a great spine release and could stretch you even deeper while hanging.

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

I began teaching yoga one year ago. I have taken so many classes, it was time for me to share what I learned.

3. What makes your classes unique?

My class is unique because no one(that I know of) is doing what I am offering. I am offering yoga, in a flowy and airy way. It is a way to get people who can not focus in yoga to be able to focus because we are moving your body in a way you do not normally. It is a total balance of masculine and feminine energies. We have ridged and circular movement.

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

Music is very important as I am a sound healer so I know the healing frequencies music carries.

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

Trilogy Sanctuary Event Page

My next event is on November 1st and I will be combining Aerial Yoga and Dance. Combining athleticism and creative expression, aerial dance yoga provides a fun and full body workout. This class will specialize in merging dance and aerial yoga, making it an amazing way to get into your body. This will be an all level class. We will focus on incorporating elements of yoga and dance into our art in the air and on the ground.

Instagram

Facebook

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

I dipped my toe into yoga as a teen, but I truly stepped into the space with all my heart 6 years ago, after I shifted from a path of self-destruction and addiction to a path of healing and recovery. I found solace in the yoga room and found that the more I moved my body and tapped into my breath, the quieter my thoughts became, and the more I was able to sink into the present moment. This practice led me down a path of healing and self-discovery that I believe truly saved my life. The physical body is a vehicle through which we can transcend the trappings of the ego-mind and elevate to our highest self. Yoga practice, in all its forms, is VITAL to my well being and happiness.

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

I felt the calling to dive deeper into the practice in 2015 when I found myself at a place in my life where I was seeking more purpose. I enrolled in Teacher Training at Corepower Yoga in Encinitas, CA, and was TERRIFIED. My ego was trying to trick me into thinking that everyone else in the program would be better, more flexible, stronger, more spiritual… I could go on. What a gift it was to meet everyone on the first evening and realize that we were all feeling the exact same way. This is how a community is built. Yoga is a connection, yoga is love, and yoga is freedom from the illusion that we are all alone. This is why I choose to teach, and to lead others through their own path to becoming yoga teachers. The connections made, the trust built, and the feeling of community and family are what life is all about.

3. What makes your classes unique?

What I hope to offer to my students is a safe space to truly let the armor go. So often, we walk around all day long feeling like we need to shield ourselves from judgment, to put up a wall and protect our truest selves. We often push down emotions in order to function in our society, which is why I believe it is so important to provide a space where my students can release the tension, the emotion, and the stored up energy that we collect throughout our lives. Through music and movement, along with words of encouragement, inspiration, and sharing my own story, I hope to allow my students to fully be themselves in the studio, free from judgment. I teach challenging physical postures in layers to allow every level of student to feel successful and leave uplifted rather than depleted.

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

Music is my partner in this teaching journey. The power of sound to create an experience is incredible. I look for music that will let my students drop into the present moment, feeling the rhythm in their bodies through the pairing of sequence and sound.

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

I just moved to Oahu, Hawai’i, and am currently teaching at all three Corepower Yoga studios on the island! Come to take the class!

You can follow me on Instagram at @clairebearsd. Follow me and stay tuned for upcoming events on Oahu!

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

Below is the Facebook Live Interview Featuring Claire Alexander, check it out!

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

I was introduced to yoga at the age of 9 and has been in my field. I later adopted the practice to help with mobility and balance for surfing. Today yoga is a place for me to stay connected with my body. Through asana I can feel into my subtle body and listen to what I need for physical nourishment, and through the meditation practices I maintain an open connection to my higher self. I include ayurvedic principles into my everyday life which enhance the experience of living and breathing in todays world.  

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

I began teaching in 2015. Moving into the role of a leader, teacher, mentor and guide has been nothing other than scary, different, challenging and deeply fulfilling. It was a calling from within that led me to begin teaching and the perspective of always being a student that grounds me into the position. I value the role of the mentor, and someone to be an anchor for support and guidance, who is actively doing the work themselves to show up for the greater community.

3. What makes your classes unique?

I teach from my personal experience with yoga and meditation, and how to relate it to the everyday life situation. To my knowledge I am currently the only me, so unless I have this all wrong I am the only one doing me!

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

It is a powerful tool to help bring the practitioner into a peak state very rapidly. I use it as a support system to the experience of the yoga practice and the type of experience I intend to facilitate for the practitioner.

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

I will be guiding a group of committed yogis who are ready to upgrade their life off the mat. We use simple practices from ayurveda that help deepen the hard work done on the yoga mat. It is the other side of the yoga lifestyle coin for restoring wholeness, balance and connection between your self and the cosmos.

Personal Instagram

Higher Self Instagram

Website

DTO was recently featured on Alec Hurley’s Podcast! Click on the image below to check it out!

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

It is to live better both in mind and body.

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

I did yoga for the first time about ten years ago. But I was young, so I did not know there was any effect. However, when I went to yoga in India six years ago, I felt very comfortable after finishing. I started studying from there.

3. What makes your classes unique?

I am teaching Ashtanga Yoga and Vinyasa Flow.

In a class with a lot of momentum, I use up-tempo music. I also enjoy posing as a challenge. Shaba asana after a hard class is extraordinary as well as a massage after. When it’s time to rest, I use the candle and aroma to relax the mind and body.

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

If I can relax further by listening from the ear, I feel happy and I think that music has a delicate effect on the body as well.

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

My next event is a teacher course in Milan (19 Oct-10 Nov)

I also have a workshop coming up in December in Japan

You can also see updates on my Instagram, Facebook, and my Website!

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

When I was 4 years old I was diagnosed with Scoliosis. I wore a back brace for nearly 3 years before asking my parents about other options and luckily there was a spine stapling procedure that was new in the field of spine curvature correction. So, at 7 years old, I told my parents that I wanted it done. I flew out to Philadelphia where 6 staples were placed internally alongside my spine. Ever since then, I have had freedom in movement, and this is where I found dance and fell in love. But still, something was off. I was still in pain, especially in the winter months, that is until I found yoga. Yoga has not only rid me of physical pain but emotional pain too. After practicing, yoga connects me to Earth and its inhabitants on a deeply spiritual level. Yoga has, is, and continues to be, the reason I am here. I am here to learn the medicine and share it with others. And I continue to be humbled to share my journey and heal others in the process.

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

I recently received my RYT-200 hour from Shawna Schenk in early August. My dad, a native of San Diego, forwarded me the link to her training back in January, and ever since then, I saved up from working retail. I didn’t know if I was ready to be a teacher, but I knew that I wanted to learn more about the practice and become more knowledgeable. Little did I know that her training would drastically change the direction of my life. Now, having left my retail job, I teach dance and yoga to young women. Through my YouTube channel, I also plan to teach movement and breath work so I can share the message with the masses. I have always felt in my soul that I was meant to help others, whether it be from a leadership position or a peer position.

3. What makes your classes unique?

My classes are unique because of my ethnicity and sexuality. Growing up in the Bay Area, I have seen firsthand, how disadvantaged people, particularly the youth are affected by their identity. I am Jewish, and therefore represent a people who have been persecuted against. I also identify as queer and therefore represent the LGBTQ community. In my classes I am open about my fluid and intersectional identity and therefore know how to hold space for people, particularly those whose lives are difficult outside the studio. I hold space for every walk of life and being only 20 years old, the youth can relate and feel comfortable in the space because I am somewhat of a peer to them.

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

Music sets the tone for the kind of class I am teaching. Whether it be a fast-paced Vinyasa or a slow meditative Hatha. Having danced for over 10 years, I have seen first hand how music can affect the space, the teacher, and the students. I use music as an incredible tool to hold space and set the tone for the class. Music holds a very important role in the studio because without it the silence between questions would assuringly make the space uncomfortable to some who are new to yoga. By incorporating all kinds of music, my students are able to fully invest in the practice and let go of all other wandering thoughts before stepping onto the mat.

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

Being a full-time Communications student, my education is my number one priority and takes up much of my time. Alongside school, I intern for the UCSF Women’s Health Center and have recently stepped into the role of Treasurer for the Meditation Club on campus. So, unfortunately outside of the studio once a week, I am not teaching publicly, unless I am doing private lessons.

But, you can follow me on:

Instagram

Facebook

Snapchat- julespearl

Youtube

LinkedIn

Yoga Alliance

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

My yoga practice is an ongoing journey as I peel away my shadow to reveal the light within myself and tap more into my authentic and divine nature.  Yoga originally started for me as a physical practice and a way of coping with anxiety and stress at university. There was a shift in my practice about 2 years ago where I fully experienced the mind, body, soul connection through activating my breath with movement. It was during this practice where I was practicing alone at home and I really fully recognized my own power. From that developed a level of self-love for my mind and body that I had never felt before. Since then life has become more about healing, listening and opening my heart and feeling into life’s experiences. Yoga changed my entire world for the better. I want to help inspire others to develop a deep connection and love for their own minds and bodies and to come back to themselves. The mental and physical benefits of yoga are incredible. I am able to live my life with a calm, relaxed mind. Whenever I am challenged through life experiences (which of course is inevitable) is where I can truly put the philosophy of yoga, mindfulness, and relaxation into practice off of my mat.

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

I recently just completed my first yoga teacher training course. I wanted to transition into a leadership position because I want to create space for others and guide them through strengthening their own practice and connection with themselves. I’m nervous to put myself out there and be seen but I also feel incredibly ready to soar!

3. What makes your classes unique?

I would say the flow dynamic and sequencing is what makes my classes unique. I am creative with my transitions in a vinyasa class, my goal is for people to really find their own flow by feeling into their body, softening into it and connecting with their breath. At the end of the day, our body can be our greatest guide and teacher, but we need to listen to it and tune into that.

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

I LOVE flowing to music. Music actually helped me to strengthen my own home practice. I would put on some tunes that my body felt safe to release and move to and then I would guide myself through my own flow sequence of intuitive movements. Music really helped me to turn off my mind and feel into my body and to let my body take the lead through each asana. Practicing in this way almost always leaves me feeling elevated.

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

I don’t have any upcoming events (YET). You can find me online on Instagram at @zenblissyogini and on Facebook!

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview? Fill out your unique responses here.

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

Yoga gave me a connection to myself at a time in my life when I was deeply shut down. I started my practice in the midst of a blizzard during a long Canadian winter. What started as a means to warm up quickly evolved into a healing practice. Gradually, I began to make better choices for myself and started to feel hopeful that my life could turn around. I grew stronger and more inspired class by class. I believe it was yoga that gave me the courage to leave my career, my country and put all my trust into love. I continue to practice to feel that deep connection to myself; my spirit and my body united as one. But I also practice yoga to connect with a beautiful community of soul-searchers and freedom-seekers.

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

I began teaching yoga in 2017. I’d left Canada and was waiting on my residency status to be approved here in the USA. I knew I wanted a radical change of career, and yoga had been gently calling me for years. It was a way for me to give back some of the gifts that yoga had given me, in a time that I so greatly needed connection.

3. What makes your classes unique?

I teach with yin vibe and a focus on holding space. I encourage my students to make their time on their mat exactly what they need it to be. I’ll often teach to a theme or intention, but I love it when I see individual processes unfolding in bodies, minds, and hearts. Each student is unique and I aim to lead in an accessible way, where the yoga is the real teacher.

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

Music is the heartbeat of the room! I find so much healing in music myself, and I love to incorporate meaningful lyrics, chants and smooth beats into each class. It brings the studio into a state of unity.

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

I am coaching Power Yoga Teacher Training at CorePower Yoga in Poway starting in October!! I’m so excited to dive deep into the realms of yoga with eager students once again. There is always so much more to learn!

You can find me on Instagram @lindsaygaugler and at CorePower Yoga.

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

Yoga has transformed my life.  I started channeling Yoga in my early twenties a form I call NinChi-Nina’s(Grace) Energy Flow. It’s a form of energy healing, combined with Intuitiveness stretching/strength and flexibility poses.  I now practice Acro Yoga, one of my greatest passions & I can honestly say it has completely transformed my life. I’m more aware of my body, mind, and spirit than ever. It grounds me and helps me stay in flow states.  

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

I first started by teaching friends & family.  Inspired by how wonderful it made me feel, I wanted to share it with the world.  I now host transformational festival retreats that include Acro & Yoga. I’m about to start teaching NinChi @theurbanhealingcenter.  I’m excited to share what I’ve discovered through meditation. My daughter Ayana has recently been channeling her own yoga poses as well and wants to start teaching kids with me.  She is inspiring me to fully step into my leadership more and more every day.

3. What makes your classes unique?

They have completely channeled messages from the higher self(source).  The “original yoga” with no loss of translation since it’s direct from the universe.

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

Music is a wonderful way to heighten the frequency of any space instantly.  I’ve seen magic happen when the right playlist is on it literally speaks to your soul.  You can have a conversation with “God” (your higher self).

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

My next event is a divine feminine awakening retreat.  You can follow me on Facebook @ninachristine or on Instagram @nina.christine.peridot

Also in February 2019, I’ll be creating my next transformational festival retreat in Greece featuring San Diego’s best talent.  Acrobatic performance art, Conscious Music & inspiration!

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.

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

To be short and simple, yoga and my yoga community saved my life.

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

I first began teaching in February of this year.

pc: @lizorsiniphoto

3. What makes your classes unique?

I want all my students to feel love when they leave. Whether it be for yoga, themselves, the people in the room or who/whatever, feeling love is the goal!

pc: @lizorsiniphoto

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

It is so essential to me to create the right environment through music.

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

You can follow me online at my Instagram handle @FindingLise and that’s the best way to see what I’m up to.

Photo Credits: @lizorsiniphoto

Attention Yogis and Yoginis: Are you interested in doing a 5Q Interview?  Fill out your unique responses here.