We have a wonderful group of new Curvy Yoga teachers this month! I am excited to share them all with you! To see a full list of our Curvy Yoga Certified teachers, please click here.
Leigh Orner-Carnese
Location: Phillipsburg, New Jersey
Tell us a little about your relationship with yoga — both your practice and your teaching. My yoga practice has developed from a love hate relationship to a love LOVE relationship! Once I realized “Wait, you mean I can move my belly?” a whole new world of yoga opened up for me. I love using props and I always use them in my classes. Spreading the joy and profound benefits of yoga with my students is my calling.
Why do you want to bring Curvy Yoga to your community? I know what it is like to struggle through an open level class. You don’t know sanskrit, you can barely breathe and that old elementary school gym class feeling is creeping back into your stomach. Everybody deserves to feel good and everyBODY deserves to practice yoga safely and with a teacher who will “get” you.
What can folks expect when they take a class from you? What can you expect in my class? No judgement! Smiles, laughter, lots of breath, gentle asana (poses), and a teacher who wants you to be there!
What has been your favorite part of the certification process? My favorite part of the process has been putting Anna’s teachings into practice! Having that moment of “Wow, that totally makes sense in my body!” has been such an amazing eye opener. Curvy Yoga should be part of all yoga teacher trainings!
How can people get in touch with you? I can be reached via Facebook, on Twitter @choochooshimmy or via email!
Coleen Quinn-Cooil
Location: Nashville, TN
Tell us a little about your relationship with yoga — both your practice and your teaching. Coleen has been in the practice of pharmacy for 36 years, she is board certified in oncology. In an attempt to deal with the stress of healthcare, and after years of encouragement from her daughter, she began her yoga practice in 2009. She received her 200 RYT from Yoga Works in 2011. She completed her Curvy Yoga Certification in 2014 with Anna Guest-Jelley. Coleen believes that yoga should be for every BODY. Her class helps aspiring yogis move in a safe environment no matter what shape, size, or age they are.
Why do you want to bring Curvy Yoga to your community? To make yoga accessible to everyone.
What can folks expect when they take a class from you? To have fun and open up!
What has been your favorite part of the certification process? Increasing my own body awareness.
How can people get in touch with you? Coleen can be reached via email!
Cheryl Breuer
Location: Madison, WI
Tell us a little about your relationship with yoga — both your practice and your teaching. My yoga practice began after 12 years of training in the martial arts. I am a first-degree black belt in The Blend, a well-rounded martial arts program that teaches several forms of martial arts including Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai, boxing, and Escrima (Kali). I studied under Master Lawrence Pearson and second-degree black belt Clarissa Pearson of Perfect Moves Martial Arts in Madison, Wisconsin. I started practicing yoga as a complement to my martial arts training, and found that it helped me increase my strength, flexibility, and focus. I also noticed more intangible changes. I was more relaxed, easygoing, and happier after yoga classes. I liked the way yoga made me feel, so I kept going. When the studio where I practice announced it was starting a teacher training program, I felt a flutter of excitement in my belly. I had never thought about teaching yoga before, but in that moment I knew it was something I needed to do.
Why do you want to bring Curvy Yoga to your community? Because it’s needed! I talk to people all the time who feel yoga isn’t for them, most often because they don’t fit the stereotype of what they think a “typical” yogi looks like. They worry about being judged or shamed in a yoga class, or not being able to keep up. Curvy Yoga celebrates the idea that all bodies are yoga bodies, and offers people a space to practice yoga that is free from body shaming, diet talk and judgment.
What can folks expect when they take a class from you? My yoga-teaching philosophy is best illustrated using the words of writer and performer Glenn Marla, “There is no wrong way to have a body.” I believe that all bodies are good exactly as they are, and that all people can practice (end enjoy) yoga. In my classes I help people find happiness by teaching them to let go of negative self-talk and practice greater compassion toward themselves and others. My classes are body-positive, light-hearted and always tailored to the needs and abilities of my students. I especially enjoy seeing beginners connect with the practice of yoga.
What has been your favorite part of the certification process? Connecting with other yoga teachers who share my passion for body-positivity.
How can people get in touch with you? Cheryl can be found on on her website, Facebook, Twitter and via email! PHOTO CREDIT: Photo by Katie Killebrew Photography
Melanie St-Jean
Location: Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
Tell us a little about your relationship with yoga — both your practice and your teaching. I started yoga 3 years ago, when I begin having neck issues. I was at a point I had to stop most of sports I was practicing (spinning, cross-country skiing, volleyball). Yoga helped me a lot and I found a true meaningful connection with myself and the divine in me when I practice. Through yoga,, I am connecting to the person I am, to my passions and interests. As of teaching, I will start in the next months: so happy to share this wonderful activity with others and hope it’s helping them as well to release stress and connect with their mind, soul and body.
Why do you want to bring Curvy Yoga to your community? Yoga is for everyone. Sometimes Curvy people don’t feel welcome to do yoga or don’t think it’s for them. I want to bring a yoga course in my community where people can learn to love themselves as they are right now. Give a safe environment where they connect with their body and soul, where they can just be who they are.
What can folks expect when they take a class from you? Welcoming atmosphere, feeling of happiness from my big smile on my face, lots of options to modify poses and encouragement to respect and love your body.
What has been your favorite part of the certification process? The Curvy Certification gave me strenght, courage and tools for becoming a Curvy Yoga teacher. I felt that I am in the right place and that I have a role to play in the yoga world.
How can people get in touch with you? Melanie can be found on Facebook and via email!
Jen Weaver
Location: Omaha, NB
Tell us a little about your relationship with yoga — both your practice and your teaching. I I took up running to lose weight. But, because running is a sport, injury is always a possibility. After running hundreds and hundreds of miles, and filling my closet with 5K, 10K, and half marathon tshirts, I ended up with a stress fracture in my knee. I’d read about yoga helping sports recovery, so I signed up for a class. If I hadn’t been so desperate to find something to help me get back to running, I never would have given it a try. I thought there was no way my bigger body was going to do some of the poses I had seen in magazines! A few years later, I enrolled in yoga instructor training. I knew deep down inside I wasn’t the only person who had questions and doubts about yoga. I knew there were other people who, like me, would benefit from it on so many levels.
Why do you want to bring Curvy Yoga to your community? We’re all individuals…separate, unique people. Going to yoga isn’t like going to an amusement park, where there’s a sign at the front of the line saying “you must be this tall to ride this ride.” It’s not that black and white. I’ve had countless conversations with people who genuinely want to take a yoga class, but are afraid…. and just as many conversations with those who have tried, but never went back. They say they felt out of place and different from everyone else in the room because of the size of their bodies. Their stories broke my heart. To those with rounder bodies who think they aren’t right for yoga, I encourage you to give it a try. The question isn’t whether you’re right for yoga, it’s whether yoga is right for YOU. And only YOU can make that call.
What can folks expect when they take a class from you? My goal is to help make yoga an option for those who never thought it possible, and to provide a space where students feel comfortable practicing yoga using modifications, props, and intelligent choices based on their own bodies. Not everyone falls in love with yoga, but I want to create an environment where they feel comfortable giving it a try. Short, tall, young, old, big, or small…..we all have our limitations. We’re all essentially the same. Muscles stretch and provide strength, tendons and ligaments hold us together. But we also all have hurdles and obstacles to work around. Extra flesh might get in the way during forward folds…but there are ways to adjust. If you can’t support all of your weight on your wrists…..then don’t do it. Need to take a break during class, take one. It’s your body, it’s your time, it’s your yoga practice. My ultimate goal is to have you, as a student, leave my class feeling better than when you walked in the door. Physically, mentally, or both.
What has been your favorite part of the certification process? As teachers, we are not only responsible for providing a great class and an environment to stretch and strengthen; but also to create a community and a space where our students can feel comfortable, safe, and happy. This responsibility isn’t something I take lightly. The information, tips and ideas I received from this certification will be something I can take with me into ANY class I teach.
How can people get in touch with you? Jen can be found online on her website, on Facebook and via email!
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