About Me

I have been teaching yoga since 2009, having studied under an eclectic collection of wonderful teachers including Daniel Aaron (Radiantly Alive), Alanna Kaivalya (Jivamukti), Ana Forrest (Forrest Yoga), Michael Gannon (Ashtanga Vinyasa), John and Lucy Scott (Ashtanga Vinyasa) since discovering yoga in my early twenties.

My first real foray into yoga was a period of independent travel around India for 6 months.  I studied in ashrams, and with dozens of different teachers, staying with some for a month or more, visiting others just on my way through a city.  This was pretty indicative of my attitude to yoga for the first few years of my practice.  I knew there was something in it, but hadn’t quite figured out what, or committed myself to it in any real way.  I referred to myself as a ‘Yoga Tart’, practicing several days a week with different teachers and a multitude of different styles.

My first Yoga Teacher Training was therefore a multidisciplinary one-drawing on elements of many different styles, with a strong emphasis on Vinyasa Flow style practices, meditation, breathwork and philosophy.  There was also a large component on raw nutrition. I now offer this knowledge as Lifestyle support for yoga students.

I continued to practice many different styles until 2010, when I deliberately set out to study Ashtanga Vinyasa.  It’s been my passion ever since, my daily practice and a method that has taught me so very much more than just how to guide my body through a sequence of poses.  I have now completed another teacher training with John and Lucy Scott, teaching me how best to share Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga effectively with others.

I now teach Ashtanga Vinyasa along with other forms of Hatha yoga for therapeutic purposes. Whatever the intention of the student there is always something to be explored and discovered through practice.

Being able to modify and adapt the practice so that it can best benefit the practitioner is really important to me.  I have a condition called Marfanoid Hypermobility Syndrome: and although it is essentially a benign condition, it does mean that I have had to learn to practice through challenges on a physical level, I am highly prone to injuries unless I practice with due care and attention. 

 

This practice, and the Mysore style method, have taught me to take responsibility for healing my body instead of harming it, or taking it for granted: to strengthen and support it.  It has required me to learn to listen to my body, and has therefore taught me far greater empathy with other’s bodies too.  It has helped to shape my intention and understanding in practice. 

 

It is with this knowledge of how the Ashtanga practice can transform the body and mind in such a powerful way that I humbly share this method.