How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Zoe Freedman.

1. Why do you practice yoga?

I practice for so many reasons! Firstly, because it feels delicious in my body. I love to cultivate more space, shift stagnation, and allow each part of my physical being to stretch and strengthen.

I also love finding a meditative flow with my breath, clearing my mind, and creating mental space for genius ideas to sprout. It’s time away from technology as well, which is an added bonus!

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of our teaching when you first started?

I spent two years convinced I didn’t have anything unique to offer my students, and that took a lot of patience and commitment to break through.

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

First and foremost, connecting with incredible humans. Secondly, assisting my students in feeling more comfortable in their bodies. We only get one… life is too short to stay stiff and uncomfortable!

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, etc… it would be: Lavender.

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

My yoga inspiration is anyone who shows up for themselves again and again, no matter what life throws their way. Those who commit to seeking enlightenment and inner peace, through all eight limbs of yoga. There are too many incredible yogis doing this to name! Many of my students are such yogis, who inspire me every day.

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One?

I teach Vinyasa Flow levels 1 & 2 on Tuesdays at 4:30 pm!

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Lauren Christie.

1. Why do you practice yoga?

I practice yoga to cultivate presence, to sense myself more clearly, and to shift my perspective. I practice so I can take what I learn out into the world. And I practice asana (the physical movements of yoga) so I can delight in having a moving, breathing body!

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of teaching when you first started?

Getting out of my head, and accepting that I won’t always get it right.

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

Seeing when things “click” for people. I like seeing people get excited about moving in a new way, and sensing that people are building self-confidence within the practice.

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, etc… it would be: This is so hard! Yoga is so many things. For me right now, yoga would be like the flavor “umami.” It’s difficult to grasp and define, yet deeply satisfying when you experience it, and necessary for a well-rounded palate.

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

My yoga inspiration is the world around me. I learn a lot from witnessing the qualities of trees, grass, sky, birds, ocean, etc. The people in my life inspire me too: my students, my fellow teachers, my partner, my family, my friends, the person in front of me in line at the grocery store…

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One?

I teach Flow 1&2 on Thursdays at 7:30pm. 🙂

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Lauren Dickson.

1. Why do you practice yoga? 

I practice yoga for so many reasons – from self-exploration to stress management in my daily life. I love that yoga increases my mindfulness and awareness of myself and the world around me.

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of your teaching when you first started?

Not always being able to offer one “right” or “best” way to practice when a student had a specific problem. It was hard to balance the organic and natural openness I feel a good teacher should have, while still being okay with being a student myself.

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

Seeing students find moments of ease and peace within their practice!

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, etc…it would be: Annie Leibovitz, a portrait photographer. I love that she captures the present moment exactly as it is and celebrates it for what it is.

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

Working (and practicing) towards living a balanced life, mentally and physically.

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One?

You can find me in the Nook and subbing at our downtown location, plus I teach offsite corporate classes. 🙂

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Lynne Officer.

1. Why do you practice yoga? 

Yoga helps my body and my heart reset. It amazes me how just a few intentional breaths can make me feel more grounded, connected to myself, and free of the story line going on in my head.

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of your teaching when you first started?

The most intimidating thing was trying to get the words and cues in my head to come out of my mouth. I also felt super nervous when an experienced yogi or another yoga teacher was in class. This nervousness still comes up for me almost 10 years in.

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

It gives me a lot of joy when new people come back. I know how hard it can be to get a yoga practice going in the beginning. I think people are really courageous to show up again and again. 🙂

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, 

etc…it would be: Whoomp There It Is by Tag Team.

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

I feel really inspired by the poem The Guest House by Jelaluddin Rumi. It’s been really powerful to think of everything as temporary and something to honor, dark and light.

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One? 

I teach the Monday evening 5:30 pm Vinyasa Flow Level 1 & 2 class.

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

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How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Hannah Rae Block.

1. Why do you practice yoga?

I found the practice of yoga when I first moved to San Diego in 2012 and it became an integral part of my recovery from my eating disorder. For me, the practice cultivated balance and bridged the gap between my body, mind, and spirit. My intention when I practice and teach is to let it flow through me, I want to be carried by the wave, letting go of control and feeling every moment of it.

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of your teaching when you first started?

The most intimidating aspect of my teaching when I first started was standing in front of a community and offering a part of myself through my teaching.

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

I find the most joy as a yoga teacher in the moments of genuine connection and alignment. There is a synchronicity, a space of understanding, a progression, to be a part of that, to be a witness to it, fills me immensely.

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, etc… it would be: I like yoga =)

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

To pinpoint one inspiration is hard. I am inspired in so many ways. At the core, my inspiration comes from the desire to share the healing and transformation that I have experienced through yoga with others. The practice is so expansive, there is never an end point, I will never arrive. That is inspiring.

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One?

I teach a Level 1 and 2 Gentle Flow on Tuesday nights at 7:30pm.

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

From apple picking in Australia to owning an award-winning family run yoga studio in downtown San Diego, Locale magazine interviewed Yoga One co-founders Amy and Michael Caldwell. Go here to read the full article or keep reading below:

Q: What sets Yoga One apart from the competition? 

MC/AC: We don’t think of other studios or yoga offerings as competition. The more people practicing yoga, the better. However, we do take pride in being a family run studio and treating our teachers and students as family. Award-winning Yoga One has been helping San Diego residents and visitors enjoy healthier and happier lives since 2002. We offer depth of knowledge, integrity and heart.

Q: How did you personally get started in practicing yoga?

MC/AC: Our yoga practice began in an organic apple orchard in Australia in 1997. We had both just quit our careers in the Hollywood music business and set out to explore different cultures and lifestyles. While backpacking around Australia, we picked apples to earn extra money and one night, sore from a 10 hour workday, we did a few poses from a book we were reading. We immediately felt better. Over the next three years of traveling around the world and visiting 15 countries, we got more and more committed to deepening our practice. By the time we arrived in India, we were practicing up to four hours a day with some of the country’s top yoga masters.

Q: What advice would you give to a beginner yogi?

MC/AC: Enjoy the journey. Yoga is like a tool kit that can help enhance your life. You can’t use all the tools effectively at once immediately so take your time to understand the basics and build from there. Find good teachers that you resonate with. And if you want to do the advanced version in any pose, simply lift the corners of your mouth.

Q: What’s an inspiring story that you’ve been able to witness as a yoga instructor?

MC/AC: We just received this email from a student who graduated from our Yoga One Teacher Training course at SDSU:

‘Wow, it’s been six months since I graduated. What prompted this email was an abundant feeling of gratitude. I successfully accomplished my first semester as a teacher at University of San Diego. It went so well, they resigned me for the same curriculum section in the spring and extended an offer to three additional group fitness classes! After a successful semester substituting at SDSU, I’ve also received an offer for my very own group fitness section over the winter break and the upcoming spring semester. I cannot thank you enough for the enriching experience I’ve had both as a student of your training and as a teacher in the community.

The by-product of the Yoga One Teacher Training has been tremendous. The insight to my own personal practice alone has gained so much depth…being a teacher, the smiles, gratitudes, blessings, the positivity I’ve witnessed are sooooo fulfilling, and it wouldn’t have been done without you.’

Q: How does it feel to be listed as one of the top yoga studio in downtown San Diego?

MC/AC: Humbling, but after all, we are named Yoga One!

How do yoga teachers feel about their practice? What inspires them to keep teaching and keep practicing yoga? Get to know your Yoga One teachers outside the studio and off the mat. This month’s interview is with Heather Fenwick.

 

1. Why do you practice yoga?

I practice yoga these days more for the mental and emotional benefits. I love combining the idea of sthira and sukha (effort and ease) while sitting in a traffic jam, or during a difficult conversation.

2. What was the most intimidating aspect of our teaching when you first started?

My first teacher training didn’t include any actual practice teaching, so putting together the words and phrases was a great challenge for me. It wasn’t until later that I was even able to observe a classroom properly so that I could give appropriate feedback! (I can’t blame my teacher trainers though, as that program was jam-packed with useful information!)

3. What gives you the most joy as a yoga instructor?

Teaching yoga is often the best part of my day! I spend a lot of time thinking about how we can make the world a better place, and while I would love to wave a magic wand so that every single person is driven primarily by empathy and compassion, I realize that teaching yoga takes a close second. When we feel good, when we can observe our strengths and our faults, when we can approach pleasure and suffering with equanimity, then we can spread joy, acceptance, and altruism out into the world around us.

4. If yoga were a food, car, smell, planet, song, artist, flavor, etc… it would be: Jim James’s voice of My Morning Jacket. I melt into bliss as my heart cracks open and spills forth.

5. What’s your yoga inspiration?

Every single moment is my yoga inspiration. We are here to perfect the art of living, but not necessarily to live “perfectly.” When I’m in line at the grocery store and catch myself planning out my next 8 steps in my list of things to do – I try to take a single conscious breath, look around me and notice what is true in the Here and Now.

For me, living my yoga is when I can hold my head high in times of disappointment or “failure,” and if I can take success with humility and acknowledge that we are all interconnected.

6. What classes do you teach at Yoga One?

I teach Wednesdays Level 1-2 Flow at noon, as well as offsite corporate classes.

You can find our full class schedule here. Om!

by Monique Minahan

We are the space that holds the light
   however bright it may be.
We are the space that holds the darkness
   however dark it may get.
We are the space that holds the energy
   however charged and wild.
We are the space that holds the silence
   however long and still.

We are the space that holds the laughter
   giggles, belly laughs and laugh/cry combos.
We are the space that holds the grief
   heartbreaks, heartaches and heart roars.
We are the space that holds the beginning
   the wondering, the exploring, the innocence.
We are the space that holds the ending
   the fragility, the no mores and the emptiness.

We are the space that holds life
   in our bellies, in our hearts and in our eyes.
We are the space that holds death
   of our partners, of our children and of our dreams.
We are the space that holds the question
   who am I?
We are the space that holds the answer
   when it comes, in its own time, when we least expect.

We are the space all our experiences flow through, the space our being rests in, grows in, lives and dies in.

Honor that space. Hold that space. Enter that space daily through your breath or through yoga or through a hug, a cry, a laugh, a word or a pause. Create the doorway into yourself and then walk through it and witness the magnificence that is called being human.

Monique Minahan
Contributing Writer

Mo is a writer and yoga teacher who believes in peace over happiness and love over fear. She likes to set her sights high and then take small steps to get there. You’ll find her walking the dirt path behind her house with her little fluffy dog, practicing walking her talk by keeping her head high and her heart open. 

Read more from Monique on her blog, mindfulmo.com

JAN 16th – MAR 15th, 2015

(Special Offer Below!)

Let Yoga One help you to be your best Self so that you can share your gifts more fully with others. 

Join us for the Winter Yoga One Teacher Training and benefit from 8 weekends of doing what you love, deepen your practice and knowledge of yoga while developing the tools and skills to share it with others…on and off the yoga mat.

Reserve your space soon, space is limited. To help you get started, we’d like to offer you a complimentary Jade Yoga Mat when you turn in your deposit by December 15th (online via this link or by calling 619.972.8185) Email Michael to register or if you have any questions.

We are also offering a Summer 17 Day Intensive: August 5th – 23rd 2015

by Olivia Cecchettini

“The Book of Awakening:  Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have”

by Mark Nepo

Summary: Mark Nepo is a writer, poet, and spiritual pioneer of our time. In The Book of Awakening, he shares insight from his own journey after being diagnosed with cancer and provides daily inspiration for being present to and grateful for the life you have. This book is a daily ritual that has given me direction in times of struggle, grounded me in times of flight and brings me joy everyday. I believe that only by staying connected to our spirits and to the things that truly matter can we begin to live the lives we have always wanted. It takes less than 5 minutes a day to read a small section and this book can make a lasting impact on your life.

Why I love It: I love this book because it speaks to my soul. That is my true answer. My hope is that it touches you in some way as well. I read it (almost) every morning, and I’m not a morning person! Having something real and grounding that I connect with to engage my mind and heart first thing is so important to me.

Recommended For: Everyone. What I’m realizing as I type this is that what’s most important here is the ritual. Yes, this book does it for me (and I really hope you check it out!) but more importantly, I want you to find something YOU connect with. Make time to check in with your guide and with yourself as often as possible. Maybe everyday, maybe not, pick it up when you need it and it will speak to you. Xo, Ciao!

“A year’s supply of inspiration every day and the perfect gift for your friends.” – Oprah Winfrey “Mark Nepo has written a beautiful book about life, informed by the shadows of death.” – Marianne Williamson

Olivia Cecchettini
Contributing Writer

Olivia is a yoga teacher based out of San Diego. With a love for people, life, spirituality, reading, and, of course, yoga she spends her days connecting with students and nature. Getting outside whenever she can to enjoy all the beauty this life has to offer.

Yoga One teacher Jennifer Tipton wrote a beautiful reflection on the life and practice of one of her yoga mentors, B.K.S. Iyengar for YogiTimes. Read the whole article here.

Jennifer teaches Yoga for Backs on Tuesdays at 7:30pm and Rooftop Mixed Level Flow at Hotel Solamar on Sundays at 9am. See our full schedule here.

The Iyengar style of yoga is known for its extensive use of props (blocks, blankets, straps, and more) and a focus on precise physical alignment.

Jennifer writes, “Through the longer holds in our yoga postures we can learn how to experience a calmer mental state and therefore allow energy to effectively channel throughout the entire body. Yoga practice has evolved through the years and as a society we have come to enjoy faster paced and more rigorous styles to match our fast-paced and hectic lives.

“Iyengar yoga teaches us to slow down and live in the present moment. Even if we only incorporate a few poses with longer holds and perhaps the use of props we can go deeper and experience the benefits that are so present in Iyengar’s teachings.

“Every Tuesday night I teach my “Yoga for Backs” class and more often than not I will incorporate a restorative bridge posture into the practice. It really is one of my favorite yoga poses and always has been.”