I first tried yoga because I wanted to get rid of my muffin top and I wasn’t much of a gym person.
When I tried my first class at YogaCentric, a vinyasa yoga studio in Clifton, NJ, I didn’t know what I was doing. I couldn’t touch my toes in forward fold. I was intimidated by all the yogis who could easily pop up into headstand. I was pretty sure I was being punked when everyone effortlessly tipped over — NBD — into crow pose.
But there was something about the way I felt after that very first class that kept me coming back. And when a fantastic teacher had me go up into headstand for the first time, I was hooked.
I soon realized there was a lot more to yoga than being able to touch my toes and looking damn sexy in a pair of leggings. I felt more balanced. My chronic anxiety and depression had less of a stranglehold on me. Put simply, yoga kept me sane.
Not only that, but yoga brought me into a community of warm, open, and supportive people who became like a second family. Yoga does that.
Now, as a teacher, I am a balance of contradictions. I wear a Bad Yogi sweatshirt and love me some supported backbends and inversions. At the same time, I love to move, love to feel my strength building as I move through poses, love to discover what my body is capable of. Somewhere in the middle is the sweet spot of my practice. A place where I listen to my body more than I listen to my teachers.
And I try to help my students do the same.
In addition, my practice is informed by the work I do as a journalist with a focus on sexuality. Thanks to the research I’ve done on sexual health, consent, and sexuality education, I try to bring a trauma-informed approach to my teachings.
I teach primarily at YogaCentric, but I am also available for one-on-one yoga sessions. Contact me if you’re interested in setting something up.