About Me

Hello there.

I'm a yoga teacher. I'm K. (as in Kay, I go by my initial.)

I first began practicing yoga in 1995 as a first-year college student at Oklahoma State University. It was held in a dance studio with a wall of mirrors. My instructor had studied in India to learn Hatha yoga. (This was before Yoga Alliance certifications or before vinyasa became a workout class.) I thought yoga was for hippies, but I was interested in trying anything once. 

I loved it right away. I wasn't sure why. It was hard. I looked at the clock a lot during class and parsed out my focus into fifteen minute increments. But, afterwards... I could not deny that something had shifted. I felt more centered. 

Since then I've taken many yoga classes as something to supplement other athletic endeavors. I'd do yoga once a week while I trained for marathons or triathlons. (I'm a sucker for structured challenges; thus the two week yoga teacher training prep that I designed for myself or the 100 day ride streak that I did on the Peloton.)

Then in 2015, after I finished a life goal of completing an Ironman, I signed up for a once a week yoga class after work. I kept at it for the next five years, adding in an additional class at my neighborhood studios every week. The feeling of centeredness that had always been a part of my practice began to expand. I focused on alignment and then, my breath. The rewards of practicing continued to expand. I grew more curious. 

My regular teachers began ask me if I wanted to teach. This would happen whenever the studio I practiced at began their annual training, but I never thought I was ready. 

Yoga classes that I took in the city often seemed to be about doing poses perfectly. They were often instructed by dancers who already came to the practice with noticable abs and incredible flexibility. Despite many examples to the contrary, I continued to think that I was not a fit for teaching yoga.  

In 2020, during the pandemic, I turned to restorative yoga almost every night to calm my mind from the news which brought up more questions than anyone could answer.  I had a Peloton subscription and did their restorative yoga programming every night. In this practice, without the intense effort of the postures, I began to focus more on my breath and the self-regulation that it could bring. 

In 2021, I began a daily yoga practice and even led my first yoga class while on vacation in the Canary Islands (with an encouraging teacher named Constanze as my wingwoman.) We did all of my favorite poses and a mountain meditation, but I knew I had a lot to learn about cueing postures alongside the breath and sequencing/timing a class. 

I signed up for my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training at One Yoga in Koh Phaghan, Thailand, a 28 day immersive course. I didn't feel ready, but had gotten used to the feeling of not being ready. In order to build my confidence, I bought books and began reading. As a high school English teacher for over 20 years, it shouldn't surprise anyone that my go-to advice for any trouble is "get thee to the library!" 

My Two Week Prep for Yoga Teacher Training was born of this study. I provide it here for free as a service. I was what I was looking for when I signed up for my 200 hour YTT and I hope that it is helpful to you. 

Looking to learn more about yoga philosophy or lead workshops with your yoga students in yoga philosophy, check out my three week guide here. 

I completed my 200 hour yoga teacher training in Vinyasa and Hatha yoga at One Yoga, Thailand. Here's more about my experience.  

I've taught yoga philosophy at Swami's Yoga Retreat in Australia. Here's more about my experience. 

I've completed my 300 hour yoga teaching training at My Vinyasa Practice. Here's more about that. 

Namaste--

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