Bios
TEACHERS
Alyona MindlinMy class is breath centered dynamic sweaty vinyasa flow with emphasis on grace, playfulness and alignment. For me, yoga is a practice of using the breath as a tool to unify mind, body, heart and spirit to experience the full authentic self. I found my way on to the mat, nine years ago after a decade of ballet practice. The joy, compassion and grounded sense of self I was gifted is what I aim to share with my students. My teachings come from lifelong experiments in movement, personal practice and the many incredible teachers I have met and continue to meet along the way. Deep gratitude to all of the teachers at Kula Yoga Project for sharing the art of sequencing, and freedom, Josko at Kundalini Yoga East for introducing me to the discipline of Kundalini, and Manuel for showing me how to walk in beauty. I feel blessed to join the greenhouse holistic community and look forward to seeing you in class.
Amanda CapobiancoAmanda is a devoted practitioner and teacher of Hatha Yoga. Four years ago she became certified by the Laughing Lotus School of New York in Hatha Vinyasa Flow and has since continued an on going study of the various aspects and limbs of yogic practice and philosophy. Amanda's intention as a teacher is to create a contemplative and permissive space where students can learn and practice tools that engender awareness, compassion, gratitude, and balance in a place and time often marked with chaos, stress and disorder. Her teachings are grounded in the belief that through an awareness of our breath and our bodies, our selves and each other, our inner and outer environments we learn to release and forgive, becoming ever more present and therefore capable of creating change and growth in ourselves and the world. Namaste.
Amanda ZapantaFor the past nine years, Amanda has immersed herself in daily yoga practice. She has studied with various known teachers such as Ramanada Patel, Dharma Mitra, Cindy Lee, Shanon Gannon and David Life. She also has her 200 hr advance training with Leslie Kaminoff in 'Breath Centered Yoga' a therapeutic approach to yoga, using the breath as a starting point to understand the anatomy of the body in depth. But don't be mistaken these classes are on the more challenging side of the yoga world and are not for the faint hearted, working a lot with inversions, arm and abdomen strengthening within a unique flow sequence of postures.
Amanda's experience as a professional dancer and licensed Thai Body-worker is often reflected in her balanced teaching style. Her classes are fun, lively and energetic, though also focused on anatomical alignment, healing and spiritual awareness. Looking for some serenity while still getting a good workout? Come and flow with the breath and take Amanda's class.
Andrea LanzettiAndrea Lanzetti has been dancing since the age of 6. She went on to study dance at DeSales University where she earned her degree in May 2010. She discovered Pilates while at college and found it to be extremely beneficial for strengthening her body and dance technique. She moved to NYC in the fall of 2010 and began dancing professionally with several modern dance companies. Andrea received her Pilates mat certification through LindaFit in 2012 and fell in love with teaching mat classes. Her class is designed to help the individual find their own personal balance of strength, flexibility, breath, and body awareness. Her teaching style stems from the classical Pilates method, the way Joe Pilates intended, while adding modern variations to please the needs of the client. No matter your level of experience, your session with Andrea will provide you with a challenge while offering your mind and your body a balanced experience. She hopes to help others discover their love for movement and fitness through their sessions with her.
Attiss NgoválI've had the honor and pleasure of training with true masters. I studied Ashtanga Yoga under Larry Schultz, Pilates and Circus Arts with Reed Taylor, and Kung Fu with Matt Lucas, and I've been developing and refining my practice to incorporate all of these disciplines. My system is dynamic. It will challenge your breath and your balance. It will make you stronger and exhilarate you. I want to provide my students with a recipe for transformation, a fun and exciting way to get into your body and out of your head.
Brynne BillingsleyBrynne has been teaching Pilates in New York City for 8 years, 4 of which have been under the tutelage of renowned Pilates expert, Erika Bloom. She received her teacher training and mat certification from Kelly Kane at the Kane School for Core Integration and a 600-hour Pilates Machine Certification from Lawson Harris at Half Moon Pilates. Brynne believes in the importance of continuing her education as an instructor and has completed courses in anatomy and biomechanics including muscular imbalances, scapular stability, scoliosis, the sacro-iliac joint, and the psoas muscle. She enjoys working with a variety of clients and personalizes each session based on the individual's needs and fitness goals. In addition to teaching Pilates, Brynne is also a professional dancer and yoga practitioner and uses her experience with various movement techniques to inform her teaching method. Her teaching style is upbeat and challenging, yet thoughtful and centering with an emphasis on alignment and personal awareness. She is also a certified Thai Yoga Bodyworker and incorporates this therapeutic knowledge into her Pilates classes.
Brynne has been recognized on numerous accounts as both an artist and a teacher. She has been invited to teach both dance and pilates at many residencies and universities throughout the United States and Europe. As a dancer, she has had the unique experience of body-doubling for Bjork in her music video, Wanderlust, and with her dance company Misnomer Dance Theater was featured as "one of the top ten dance performances" by the New York Times. She is currently working on her own evening length dance production which will premier in NYC in the spring of 2011.
Carlos RodriguezAs a native New Yorker, Carlos has practiced martial arts, Capoeira, and dance, and has been an avid runner for many years. It was practicing yoga, though, that truly changed his life. Many years ago, when Carlos first started his Yoga journey, he instantly has a profound connection and awakening with his body and heart. He found a stability and comfort in the notion of combining physical activity with the art of meditation and self-realization.
The practice of yoga on and off the mat opened Carlos's heart and mind, allowing him to find that internal flexibility of the mind. Spiritually touched by the intense power of yoga, Carlos realized his life's purpose was to help others realize their own potential to experience empowering breakthroughs.
Carlos is living proof of the profound effects and changes that can be created through yoga. With intense dedication, Carlos now spreads the gift of yoga enthusiastically with his style of Yoga, Caponyasa™; a combination of elements of modern dance with Capoeira technique in a Vinyasa form.
Carlos is committed to helping others realize their dreams and the potential that lives within them.
Coco KarolCoco has been studying yoga and meditation for 10 years. As a professional dancer and artist in New York, she is deeply interested the potential of movement and breath to connect us to the deepest rhythms in ourselves and in the world around us. She completed her 200-HR teacher training with Greenhouse Holistic, and is excited to continue and deepen her practice and her knowledge through the Sukhavati Training this coming year. Coco's classes seek to inspire joy through play and creative flow, with a foundation in alignment, philosophy, and physiology. An eager student of life, Coco is always seeking ways of bringing yoga off the mat, and making the world more applicable on it.
Dana PerryIn addition to her love of music and acting, Dana found a new passion soon after moving to NYC in 2003 when she discovered yoga. (or yoga discovered her, as they say). After several years of practice, and wishing to give back to the community what so many wonderful teachers have given her, she received her yoga certification from Nosara Yoga Institute in Costa Rica.
She humbly bows to her teachers Don and Amba for creating an inspiring and compassionate environment, and an interdisciplinary approach to yoga that has provided a strong foundation onto which she continues this journey of self discovery today. Since her training, Dana has been deepening her practice by studying with the plethora of beautiful teachers enlightening this crazy city. No doubt the study of Yoga and Buddhism has transformed Dana's world. She hopes to continue on this blissful journey and offer much love, patience and inspiration to her students. LOKAH SAMASTAH SUKINOH BHAVANTU.
Emily HaydockEmily Haydock first fell in love with the transformative power of Yoga in 2001 in her hometown of Boston. Since then, she has practiced Yoga while attending college in New York, studying abroad in France, teaching English in Japan, and volunteering in India. Having received her 200-hour Yoga Alliance certification through Greenhouse Holistic in June 2011, Emily is delighted to be able to share her playfully philosophical blend of Vinyasa and Hatha style asana practice with the Greenhouse community.
Erin BenezeErin is certified in equipment and mat Pilates through Long Beach Dance Conditioning under Marie Jose Blom. In addition to teaching in studios and homes throughout Los Angeles, she was the resident Pilates instructor for the Cirque Du Soleil show Iris. Since moving to NYC she has had the pleasure of teaching at Progressive Pilates Williamsburg and now, Greenhouse Holistic. Erin's teaching is deeply influenced by her life-long passion, dance, and her personal practice of yoga, Gyrokinesis and Feldenkrais.
Gabrielle Epstein-CasperA native of London, Gabrielle's interest in yoga began with her move to Toronto, where she studied Flow Yoga with Kyla Kukla, and spent a year at the Toronto School of Iyengar. Since coming to New York 12 years ago. Gabrielle has practiced at Jivamukti, and completed several teacher trainings at the Integral Yoga Center. She is now a Certified Integral Yoga Instructor for Hatha 1, 2, 3, pre- & post-natal, and chair yoga. Gabrielle continues to pursue her own practice with various teachers and workshops in New York (e.g. Rodney Yee, Allison West). To further enhance her teaching, Gabrielle has also completed Irene Dowd's "Communication with Touch" course. In addition, Gab is a certified Shiatsu therapist, having completed advanced training at the Ohashi Institute. She currently teaches yoga privately and at several yoga centers in Brooklyn.
For Gabrielle, yoga is a never-ending exploration of how we move through life, allowing us to use the form and energy of the external body to travel within. Yoga wokrs with opposites, bringing right and left, male and female into balance. With practice, we come to find a consistency, a calm, a focus in the movements, which can then move us on all levels - evoking greater peace of body, mind, emotion, and spirit.
Most recently, in addition to her yoga teaching, Gabrielle is a practicing holistic therapist, intregrating mind and body through therapeutic talk, yoga and energy work. Perhaps the biggest teaching in Gabrielle's life so far has come from being a mother to her 5 yr. old Ben and 2 yr. old Theo, who keep her in the present.
Jenny CampbellJenny Campbell was introduced to yoga over a decade ago through her modern dance background and it was love at first breath. Since those first inspired breaths she has studied a variety of styles of yoga including Ashtanga yoga, Vinyasa Flow, Restorative and Prenatal Yoga. She completed her initial 200 hour teacher training in Columbus, Ohio at It’s Yoga under the direction of Laurel Hodory after receiving her BFA in dance performance from the Ohio State University in 2006. Her second, most recent 200 hour training is from the Shala in New York City, culminating in June 2013. She is so grateful for the guidance of her teachers, Barbara Verrochi and Kristin Leigh, leading her through Mysore practice as well as the support and knowledge they have shared to help her grow as a teacher and student. Her classes are a challenging, sweaty vinyasa with precise breath and lots of mindful hands on adjustments. She feels so grateful and honored to be part of the Greenhouse community! www.privateyogawithjenny.com
John SchneiderJohn Schneider has been practicing Ashtanga Yoga since 1998 and has recieved a level 2 authorization to teach from R. Sharath Jois at the Krishna Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore India.
Julianna TakacsA student and teacher of yoga for over a decade, Julianna classes bring deep, steady awareness to breath as a foundation for practice. She fluidly integrates yogic philosophy, chanting, meditation and acute knowledge of the body into carefully articulated guidance and support. Her influences include Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Prana and her formal study of Sufism in the tradition of Hazrat Inayat Khan since 2002. Julianna has studied extensively with her teacher, Ruth Lauer-Manenti, as well as Jeff Migdow, Robyn Ross, Sharath Jois and Saraswathi Rangaswamy. Julianna is co-leader of the Greenhouse Yoga Teacher Training and teaches classes, workshops and retreats on yoga and meditation locally and internationally. www.juliannayoga.com
Kaitlin HinesKaitlin Hines has a background in Middle Eastern belly dance, contemporary/modern, jazz, African and a variety of folk dance techniques. A graduate of Hampshire College, with a degree in Creative Writing and Dance, she has been in NYC for 7 years. She has had the pleasure of performing as a soloist at various cabaret venues, including Mehanata, Tagine Dining Gallery, Katra Lounge, and the Grisly Pear. Kaitlin has danced as a company member with the Casbah Dance Experience, Nadia Moussa Dance Company, Dunyana Dance Ensemble, Shelley Poovey/BIGGRITS, Malleable Dance Theater, A.H. Dance Company, and the Elea Gorana Dance Collective, among others. Currently, Kaitlin is a member of The Dalia Carella Dance Collective and Sublime Dance Company. She teaches belly dance technique regularly, and has presented her own dance work at Hampshire College (MA), Connecticut College (CT), and at Greenspace (LIC, Queens). She is pleased to be part of the staff at Greenhouse Holistic. For more information visit: katraqs.weebly.com
Katelin SissonA natural athlete, Katelin grew up in Rhode Island, where physical activity was as much a part of her daily life as the ocean breeze. She ran and lifted weights and believed in the discipline of a strict exercise regime. But she began to feel something was missing, and when she found her way to Jivamukti in the fall of 2005, she realized what it was: she developed an overwhelming curiosity about the role the mind played in the physical aspect of her existence. Jivamukti deepened her understanding of the mind-body relationship and instilled an understanding of yoga not as an intermittent practice but as a lifestyle that encourages and fosters happiness and freedom for all beings.
Katelin completed the Jivamukti 350-hour teacher training in May 2008, which was taught by her Holy Teachers, Sharon Gannon and David Life, the founders of Jivamukti Yoga. And then she went on to complete her 800-hour apprenticeship under the guidance of her beloved mentor Rima Rabbath. It was through her work assisting Rima that she learned how to be a student. It is in the humility of being a student that the teachings of yoga become accessible.
Kelley VoegelinKelley is inspired to share the connection between the breath, the mind, and the body with her students. She received her 200 hour certification at Greenhouse Holistic from Leigh Evans & Summer Quashie, also completing an 85 hour certification in Prenatal Yoga from Sacred Shape with Summer Quashie & James Bae. Kelley earned her 300 hour RYT under Yoga Sukhavati, an advanced training focusing on Ayurveda, Chinese Medicine, & Tibetan Buddhist Philosophy. She remains ever grateful for all of her teachers’ compassion, knowledge, and love. Kelley hopes to in turn share all that she has learned both on and off the mat, as well as to provide a space where students are challenged and encouraged to find gratitude, awareness, and balance. Kelley also devotes time to her art, love of nature, and passion for travel.
Kendra PotterWe are alive! Often in our daily lives, we are so busy thinking about living, we forget that we are living right now. Kendra's classes focus on the present moment. It's called a practice because it's just that: a preparation for the rest of our lives. The skills we develop will begin to creep into every other part of our world. The practice of Hatha Yoga using pranayama (breath), asana (postures), mantra, and guided meditation help us to realize the mind/body connection, and in turn, our innate Oneness. Kendra has been practicing yoga since 1999, and teaching since 2005. Her training emphasizes the journey rather than the destination, a focus on life in this world, but above it. She received her teacher training at Divine Motion Yoga with honored teachers Tracee Stanley and Everett Newell in July 2005 and an additional training in 2009 here at Greenhouse Holistic with Summer Quashie, Leigh Evans, and Paul Manza. Kendra has also been in the presence of some of the great spiritual leaders and teachers of our time including Amma, Gurmukh, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama, as well as sever other less famous but equally profound beings. She is eternally grateful to each of her students, from whom she has learned so much. Blessings. www.kendramyoga.com
Laurel DesmaraisLaurel is a Polestar educated Pilates teacher who emphasizes addressing client specific goals in reaching optimal body function. Laurel’s work is influenced by her experience as a dancer and certified Vinyassa Yoga teacher. “Our body is the vessel through which we experience the world, by having a better kinetic understanding of how it functions, we can experience smoother sailing.” Laurel has been teaching yoga and Pilates throughout the city of New York in studio and in-home settings. She has been a substitute teacher at Dance New Amsterdam for Max Stone as well as guest taught contemporary movement classes in Sweden. Her choreography has been performed both in Sweden and New York. Laurel has had the opportunity to work with various populations including dancers, athletes, pre-natal and post-physical therapy clients. As a dancer choreographer in New York, she has found the support of Mind-Body techniques crucial in keeping her body strong and healthy. Through teaching she hopes to inspire deeper body awareness and create an environment supportive of personal growth.
Lauren FecarottaLauren has been practicing yoga and meditation for the past 12 years. Her classes incorporate creative sequences of traditional asanas and emphasize alignment, opening, and synchronicity between breath and body. She believes that yoga teaches us to move from the heart with more grace, mindfulness and ease and enjoys helping students find this lightness within themselves. She also leads community cleanses at studios throughout New York City. Her eight day Kali Yoga Detox program, rooted in the principles of Ayurveda, teaches students to use their own bodies and naturally available medicines to eradicate physical and emotional sludge. For more information, visit www.kaliyogadetox.com
Leigh EvansLeigh Evans is a yoga teacher and dancer dedicated to awakening creativity and aliveness in the body. Leigh has been teaching yoga for 17 years. Her emphasis is on developing mindfulness through the yoga practice, inviting you to witness the shifting sensations of the body and attune to the inner unfolding of each asana. Since 1985, Leigh has practiced Hatha Yoga in the Iyengar, Ashtanga, and Viniyoga traditions in the U.S. and India. She is grateful for the guidance of her teachers, Dharma Mitra, Sarah Powers, Rodney Yee, Lisa Walford, Barbara Benagh, Mary Paffard, and Ramanand Patel. Leigh loves the practice of yoga for the peacefulness and clarity of mind that comes from the breath flowing freely in the body. Leigh is the Director of the Greenhouse Holistic Teacher Training Program.
Please visit: http://www.leighevansyoga.com
Luke SimonLuke completed Hatha Yoga training at Sivananda Yoga Center in Kerala, India in 2006 and graduated from Laughing Lotus Yoga School in New York in Spring of 2009. His class uses the tools of chanting, philosophy, along with the physical asana practice to bring harmony and exuberance. Visit his website www.future-saints.com.
Melissa McKayMelissa McKay is the former director/owner of Kusala Yoga in Greenpoint. With over 15 years of practice, she has a deep appreciation for the various traditions including but not limited to Iyengar, Ashtanga and Vinyasa. Part of her personal practice includes mindfulness meditation (Vipassana) which she studied in Burma under renowned meditation master Sayadaw U Pandita and continues to practicie in the U.S. with her beloved teacher Sayadaw U Khippa Pano of Vietnam. Melissa also attends intensive meditation retreats annually and imparts this to her students through a Vinyasa class infused with mindfulness and Metta (benevolence towards all beings without discrimination). She takes great joy in the exploration, strengthening and healing of the body, but her classes are equally an exploration of the heart and mind. In the January 2010, Melissa's class was featured in Time Out New York.
Mika OakesMika is inspired by the essence of classical Hatha yoga, dynamic and intelligent Vinyasa flow sequencing and through the various teachers who have lit up her path along the way. She incorporates elements of her own practice into her classes while adding an eclectic range of music and offering a balanced blend of the mind/body connection through breath, anatomical alignment and core integration.
Mika has studied and completed her 500 hour certification with Sri Dharma Mittra, began her studies at Sonic Yoga in NYC and has completed the 75 hour advanced Kula flow certification with the ever inspiring Schuyler Grant. On this transformational quest, Mika has learned a great deal about herself and feels blessed to be a continuous student on this journey. She is both grateful and humbled to have the opportunity to spread the knowledge and love of yoga to others. Mika is passionate about the holistic approach to treating physical and emotional ailments through yoga and her massage work, and aims to heighten her students and clients’ awareness, as well as her own.
Molly DavidsonMolly is an advanced registered yoga teacher (E-RYT 500), dancer, meditator, chanter, and writer. A dancer since her teen years, she has studied the body extensively, and has studied yoga for the past 9 years. Molly teaches classes and workshops throughout New York City, and writes articles on the subject of being a modern yogi.
Inspired by her personal healing process and study, Molly shares spiritual tools wherever they are needed- in studios, gyms, corporations, high schools, shelters, and also one-on-one. She acts as a mentor and guide to new teachers through teacher trainings and apprenticeships.
Molly received a degree in Dance Performance from the University of California, Irvine, mentored by visionary choreographers Donald McKayle and Loretta Livingston. Subsequently, she completed 500 hours of training at Laughing Lotus Yoga Center under the mentorship of Dana Flynn and Alison Cramer. Further study has included travel, and trainings with Balance Integration Corporation and Lineage Project. Molly studied mantra with well-known kirtan artist Sistasree, and continues to study with master teachers Raghunath and Yogi Charu, and at NYC’s Bhakti Center and Shambhala center.
Molly’s yoga classes are designed to quiet, awaken, and evolve the being. They are spiritual but grounded, with huge emphasis on mindfulness and expansion of consciousness. You will also be moving- they are dynamic and have a dynamic soundscape. Each class includes a few ideas, yogic philosophy, inspired music, just enough sweat and flow, then breathing/, resting, and chanting.
Nancy AllenNancy Allen has been teaching restorative yoga since 2004 and believes in it as a practical way to get the body to a deep place of healing. Nancy is also a licensed acupuncturist and brings the wisdom of Eastern medicine to the practice of asana. Her restorative classes include thoughtful poses and breath work, healing touch, and restorative poses free of teacher chatter.
For more information, see nancyallenacupuncture.com.
Nicole Lynne HooleyYoga is a path that unites us in experience, without words but with pure meaning. Nicole's background in Philosophy and Environmentalism is a strong theme in her classes. Her love for the earth is interwoven with firm foundations as she guides her students into each of the sacred geometrical shapes. Through earthly visualizations, joyful affirmations and chakra awakening, Nicole strives to empower her students and shed light on the importance of self love, playfulness and inner healing. Through a balanced practice she aims to inspire optimal health in both body and mind. Nicole is a certified Prenatal, Restorative and Vinyasa Yoga teacher currently studying at the 500 HR level. www.nicolelynneyoga.com
Ola WideraOla's classes are inspired by Anusara Yoga, and the healing principles within its methodology.
By cultivating an awareness of body alignment and an understanding of the Anusara philosophy of kinesiology, Ola brings each student toward their optimal potential of flexibility and strength, and helps them to identify, reference and holistically address their injuries. Ola's classes are playful and challenging but also great for students trying to work through physical injuries.
Paul ManzaI am very excited to be at Greenhouse Holistic and finally make my Brooklyn teaching debut. I am so grateful to have some very generous and gifted teachers in my life right now, Barbara and Christin at the Shala, and the wonderful teachers at the New York Iyengar Institute. My classes incorporate the tools I have learned over the years to prepare practitioners for pranayama, meditation and a life that is more vibrant, fluid and easeful.
Please visit: www.iheartheartland.com
Seth LiebermanIn Seth's experience as a classically trained musician, he has discovered how discipline and technique are not goals in and of themselves but rather instruments to support creative expression in the present moment. He is therefore excited and inspired by the details of proper anatomical alignment and how they combine with breath, movement, and spirit to reveal moments of harmony, balance, freedom, and a sense of connectedness to all things. Seth received an alignment based vinyasa certification from Greenhouse Holistic under the instruction and guidance of Leigh Evans, Summer Quashie and Paul Manza. He continues to explore yoga practice, meditation, and philosophy as well as play, compose, improvise, study, and share music.
Steven PrestianniSteven Prestianni aka Anandabhairava, began studying under the guidance of Sadguru Sri Mahayogi Paramahamsa, founder of the Mahayogi Yoga Mission, in 1996. He also had a definitive meeting with Sri Swami Satchidananda, founder of the Integral Yoga Institute, in 1988. Both schools profess the knowledge of Raja Yoga ( the eight-limbed Royal Path), utilizing a classical form of hatha for the third limb, asana (postures). He instructs classes as he learned from Mahayogi, holding each posture for an extended period of time, focusing on the exact alinement for each individual dependent upon their present physical capabilities, focusing on a specific rhythmic breathing pattern, and focusing attentively with the eyes for each posture, to acutely increase ones ability to concentrate. Every posture is then alternated with repose in savasana, the corpse, or rest pose. The two hour class concludes with approximately 10 minutes of pranayama (breath retention, or control) and a 15 minute seated silent meditation. Though the class is intense, it operates as a one room school house, open to all levels of practitioners, from first time beginners, to those physically challenged, to those highly advanced. Each will receive modifications appropriate to their level of practice.
His teaching credentials include 4 years for the Mahayogi Yoga Mission, 2 years at the Kearny Correctional Facility with incarcerated women, 3 years for the Multiple Sclorosis Society with wheel-chair bound, chair ability, and mat capable members, 2 years at the Earth School with primary school children, 1 year with AHRP for those mentally-handicapped, including training the staff at AHRP to work independent of his person, 10 years and running with a community class run by donation at the Sixth Street Community Center in the Lower East Side, and 2 years and running at Greenhouse Holistic. He also teaches privately from his own home in the Lower East Side.
Tobias FieldsTobias Fields has been teaching yoga for over ten years and has taught in Europe, South America, Africa, the Caribbean as well as in Madagascar. His influences as a yogi include Astanga, Jivamukti, Vinyasa, Anusara and Contact Yoga, and most recently he received his certification in Iyengar Yoga. His teaching combines insights from his ever-evolving personal practice, his diverse background, and his commitment to be present and responsive to the constellation of each class, into an experience which is both challenging and fun.The many benefits of practicing with Tobias resonate long after class is over.
Val ShafferI was introduced to Iyengar yoga in December of 1986, while residing in my home town in southern Indiana. Since I was a musician, my mother thought that yoga would help me improve my musical endeavors (Which it did!). My first teacher was Jack Busch, who although not certified, was teaching right out of "Light on Yoga," BKS Iyengar's classic text. Jack taught at a health club that my mother had a membership at, and once I took the first class I was hooked. When I moved from home in 1990, I continued to practice in earnest, mostly on my own, again referring to Iyengar's "Light on Yoga." I attended a few workshops/retreats during these years, but it wasn't until I decided to pursue teaching (while living in Los Angeles) that I sought a regular teacher. In the latter part of 2000, I started taking classes with Karin O'Bannon, who was then the senior teacher at the Iyengar Institute of Los Angeles. In 2001, I was accepted into the 3 year teachers training program at the intitute. (I graduated in December of 2003, and also apprenticed with Karin for over 2 years during this period.) I began teaching in 2002, and by January 2004 became a full time teacher in the Los Angeles area. Currently, I am certified at the Intermediate Junior 1 level of Iyengar certification. I have studied with the Iyengars in Pune, India, and also with Carrie Owerko, Anna DeLury, Paul Cabanis, Diane Gysbers, Manouso Manos, Faeq Biria, and Stephanie Quirk, among others. In August of 2008, I moved to NYC, and currently divide my time between teaching yoga, and playing music as a jazz bassist.
Zelina Blagden"Why I teach yoga...I enjoy sharing and creating within the realm of expansive consciousness with others. I am consistently awed by the shifting power of the yoga practice.
I began my yoga practice in 1996 at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in NYC, after injuring myself due to scoliosis. I have been teaching and practicing yoga ever since. I received my intensive certifications from Alison West and David Swensen and I have studied with many others fantastic masters. I have taught yoga in California , New Mexico and Connecticut. I went on a year and a half tour with Rufus Wainwright as his yoga teacher , trainer and assistant. Then I landed at Greenhouse! Greenhouse holistic has given me an anchor to explore and root down into an expanse of yogic traditions. It is a good view from here, as we witness the yoga world change and grow all around the country. My style of teaching is vinyasa based and a bit "old school". It is based on exploration and love of the subtle levels of inspiration and healing, such as the those gifted by the natural world......like this cute dog that just came and sat beside me....."
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