Gizella Donald, ERYT, Studio Director & Founder, yoga mayu of San Francisco
Gizella began her studies and practice in 1990 at the Sivananda Yoga Center in San Francisco. Since then she has practiced in different classical Yoga traditions as well as the more physical Ashtanga and Iyengar styles. Gizella integrated this wealth of experience into a process towards true and lasting transformation. In her classes, she emphasizes correct alignment of the body in yoga postures to minimize the potential for injuries and to maximize optimal energy flow. She teaches an energetic, challenging yet playful class, and excels in modifying poses so that they can be accessible to all levels of students. She inspires her students to extend the practice of yoga by encouraging them to bring the love of yoga into their everyday life.
Sara Levine, Studio Manager
To Sara, yoga is like coming home. When she first began practicing she realized that when on her mat, she felt completely free. Yoga did not judge her, demand from her, or make her feel small & unworthy (unlike so many other things in her life). It simply asked that she live fully in this one moment. Fully in her body, her mind, her breath and her heart. Rather than draining her, it fills her up. Sara teaches yoga for the privilege and the joy of witnessing people experience this relief as they step onto their own mats. Life is not perfect, and enlightenment is not knocking on our front door. Sara's hope is that through yoga, we can begin to embrace sadness, anger, elation, fear, doubt and love as the essence of this great big life we are living. Come to her class to release the congestion in your body, to gain strength, endurance & balance, to breath more deeply and freely, to become playful again and to sweat out all that junk. Find gratitude in your life, as Sara finds gratitude in her students, her teachers and her practice. Sara holds a BS in Health & Human Development and has completed two 200-hour teacher trainings along with an additional 200 hours of intensives with her teachers Elise Lorimer, Janet Stone, Seane Corn and many more. She is a Certified Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance. www.shantibeanyoga.com and www.beanyourself.com
Sally Clark
Sally has been teaching since 2005, when she was certified by the Living Yoga Program in Austin, TX. Originally drawn to yoga for its centering and heart-opening benefits, she came to rely on the practice for relief from chronic migraines and now savors yoga as a way of living and experiencing the world. Inviting to all levels, her classes are challenging yet not intimidating. She draws inspiration from her love of music, often times striking a chord with her students through the joy of song and movement (see http://sallyoga.posterous.com/ for class playlists!). Sally spends her days at the international design and innovation consultancy IDEO, loves to play outdoors, walks really fast, and plays the drums. On and off the mat, she strives to take each moment with awareness and a sense of humor.
Olivia Eng
Olivia finds her greatest passions in dancing, music, yoga, photography, world traveling, and the beauty of a conversation without having to say a word. As a dancer she continually explores ways to gather, release, explore and join the physical and spiritual together. She has found this to be present and possible in the ancient practice of yoga. She began her journey of yoga many years ago studying at Yoga Works (Costa Mesa) and later focusing on the art of Yoga Therapy (Ananda Seva Mission). Olivia´s goal is to bring Yoga to those who cannot easily access it regardless of economic reasons, physical condition, or simply never having had the opportunity to experience the adventure of yoga. She gives thanks to all of those who have continually taught and inspired her from around the globe. Ultimately, she believes that life should be a journey of adventure and love. "No Hay atajos para alcanzar algo que valga la pena.....There are no shortcuts to any place worth going"
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Leigh Ferrara
Originally an east coaster, Leigh has been active all her life; from tearing through the woods as a tenacious 10-year-old to playing college athletics to long-distance running, she has never stopped moving. She first came to yoga hoping it would help her sit still. It did, indeed, and she's been on the mat ever since. Having practiced yoga for nearly 10 years, she finds that the perfect confluence of movement and stillness in a vinyasa practice keeps her consistently grounded in this very harried world. Leigh's classes offer fluid and challenging sequencing designed to open the body, build strength, and, most important, calm the mind. With a strong focus on alignment, core engagement, and moving with the breath, she helps practitioners work to attain the ultimate benefits from their practice. Leigh received her 200-hour Yoga Alliance certification here in San Francisco at the Yoga Tree and has also trained with amazing teachers such as Seane Corn and Sarah Powers.
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Roy Gan
A classically trained dancer from Singapore, with over a decade of experience in dance, teaching and choreography, a non-practicing lawyer and a graduate of Yoga Garden SF 200-hour Advanced Studies program, Roy's approach is about embracing and fully engaging in the human experience in all of its physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects. Through mindful practice, he supports people in meeting themselves unconditionally and provides a safe and non-judgmental space and openness for them to discover their true inherent greatness. His physical style of teaching places a strong emphasis on alignment, breath, with a creative and challenging sequencing drawn from his experience in dance and choreography. His approach is imbued with openness, vulnerability, humor and honesty. In Roy's understanding, movement and active poses are not specific to any one particular form or body. The invitation is to be fully expressed in one's own unique physicality and constitution. Self-expression knows no bounds, limitation, question or distinction. http://www.roygan.com
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Jody Hahn
Jody took her first yoga class in 2001 in Los Angeles, inspired by a friend who had demonstrated a handstand. She remembers that first class well - the physical challenge and the focus required, mixed with a exciting feeling of clarity. She did not do a handstand that day but she was hooked on yoga, and two years later graduated from The Center for Yoga Teacher Training Program in LA. She has been teaching ever since.
Her classes are infused with the philosophy that we are, all of us, engaged in a process at all times which can be illustrated by finishing any statement with "yet": "I can't do this (yet)"... "I'm not flexible (yet)." If one can be involved in the process and not focused on the outcome, then both the process and the outcome may be surprising and rewarding. We are explorers - discovering poses, discovering mental clarity, discovering how we deal with challenges and, maybe, discovering some spiritual awareness. Oh, yeah - and it helps to keep a sense of humor about all of it.
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Caroline Kelley
Caroline has been teaching yoga since 2000. She originally certified with The British Wheel of Yoga, followed by six months of extensive studies in Mysore India and most recently completed Richard Freeman's month long teachers intensive. She considers Richard to be her most influential teacher and has had the good fortune of practicing daily at his studio in Boulder. Her roots are embedded in the Iyengar and Ashtanga tradition, but her approach is not limited to this. She believes a fruitful yoga practice is one approached with patience and intelligence. In every class Caroline emphasizes the role of the breath. The breath helps to fuel and cleanse the body as well as center the mind. In the stillness of a pose she will often invite you to drop into moments of meditation. You will find Caroline's classes to be appropriately challenging, informative and restorative. The sequence of each class is intended to balance the internal sun (ha) and moon (tha) energy. Caroline is also a certified massage therapist and her extensive knowledge of anatomy and kinesiology enable her to offer safe and progressive classes for everyone.
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Barbie Levasseur
Barbie loves inversions, arm balances, and singing at the top of her lungs. After spending a number of years teaching fitness and participating in classical hatha, vinyasa, and bikram yoga classes, Barbie studied with Shakti Mhi and began teaching yoga in 2007. She has since studied with Dina Amsterdam, Janet Stone, Jane Austin, and Les Leventhal to deepen her practice and develop her teaching. The spiritual nature of Barbie's yoga teacher trainings is complemented by her academic background in Kinesiology and Cognitive Science, making her uniquely qualified to host yoga classes that promote harmony of the body, mind, and spirit. She promotes joy and presence in her classes by making them challenging but achievable; entertaining but uncomplicated; and accessible without losing touch with tradition. If you would like to know more about Barbie, please visit her website at www.barbielev.com
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Christopher Love, MA, ERYT
Christopher Love, MA, RYT is a spiritual coach, teacher, yogi and musician who brings over 20 years of experience to his practice and teaching. He has a master's degree in Community Counseling from the University of Cincinnati, and certifications in yoga and bodywork. As a spiritual coach he assists others to embody principles of integrity and consciousness through a practice of meditation, self-inquiry, and compassion. He also works as a trained breath coach, harnessing the power of pranayama to release old energetic patterns in the mind/body through the constant of the breath.
Christopher Love has been practicing and teaching yoga in the bay area for 14 years. His own personal evolution has included immersion in the Ashtanga, Iyengar, Anusara, and Kripalu traditions. The result is a unique, seasoned style that weaves devotion and meditation with strong, sweeping vinyasa ("moving on the breath") to raise awareness toward clear alignment, posture and presence. Classes are All-Levels - students should find this work challenging, yet accessible. As a bhakti yogi Christopher brings a life-long love of music to his singing and chanting. Having nearly been a professional musician at a younger age, he later rediscovered this gift at the heart of yoga. He now shares his music and co-leads regular kirtans throughout San Francisco. http://www.lovechristopher.com
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Julie Potter
Julie Potter, RYT 500, trained at Yoga Works in New York City, receiving her 200-hour yoga certification studying with senior teachers Jodie Rufty and Chrissy Carter, and her 300-hour professional training and certification, apprenticing with senior teacher Jeanmarie Paolillo. Julie’s classes integrate the alignment-based, anatomical training of Iyengar yoga with the meditative, breath-based flow of Ashtanga yoga through intelligent sequencing. Additionally, Julie is a Relax and Renew restorative yoga teacher, training with Judith Hanson Lasater, and is a student of Ramanand Patel. As a teacher, Julie strives to inspire compassionate and holistic living in a playful environment, guiding students through a conscious practice of asana. A Pittsburgh native, Julie studied dance, arts administration and journalism at Butler University, and enjoys incorporating her movement background to share the transformative practice of yoga. Visit JuliePotterYoga.com.
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Kimberly Sin
Kim teaches an approachable, yet invigorating style of Vinyasa that safely challenges the body and soothes the soul. Drawing from a dance background, Kim loves to teach full mind and body awareness by infusing simple alignment principles into her classes. Her studies of Vinyasa and Ashtanga yoga with Jason Crandell, Jorgen Christianson, and James Brown have driven her practice and enabled her to experience the impossible becoming possible. She strives to share this phenomenon with her students -- encouraging them to commit to the breath and practice, and in result, everything else will come. In Kim's class, students breathe through skillful sequencing, experiment with new poses, and discover a more clear understanding of themselves.
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Megan Windeler
Megan's practice and teaching is rooted in the heartfelt belief that Yoga is simply a good thing. Her practice began by accident nearly twenty years ago during the deep dark freeze of a Chicago winter. After stumbling blindly into an Iyengar Yoga class in hopes of eluding the freeze, it was revealed to her that 'living is much easier if you breathe whilst doing it.' Over a decade and half on she is still trying to figure that one out, but, she practices it every day and has found life easier.
Megan completed the Teacher Training at The Yoga Tree in San Francisco in 2005, has studied pre-natal yoga with Jane Austin and anatomy with Ellen Heed and is inspired greatly and continues to learn from the teachings of Sri Dharma Mitra, Judith Hanson Lasater, Dr. Timothy McCall, and her dear friend Les Leventhal. But the teachers she is most grateful for are her son and her students. Megan's classes are filled with love and humor, sometimes silence and now and again a little Led Zeppelin. Come one, come all, do some yoga, find some ease. For more information: http://www.megaredfishyoga.com
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