I took my first yoga class at age 14 at Inner Fire Yoga. Not a lot of memories from that period of my life are quite as vivid as my memory of that first class. I immediately realized how much I appreciated and craved the heated safe space.

As someone with a pattern of anxiety, and biting off more than I can chew, yoga has helped me immensely with slowing down, grounding myself, and overall time management. Being able to carve time out of my day to make it to class has become an incentive for me to make sure I get other tasks and obligations done in a timely fashion.

Yoga has brought value to my life in ways I didn’t realize at first. As a retired college athlete, I have missed having a time and space that I could take seriously and pour energy into. I don’t view myself as a particularly serious person, but I really appreciate the studio, teachers and community for holding space for an intentioned practice. I didn’t identify as a good student when I was in school, so it makes me feel a little warm and fuzzy to know I have a classroom setting where I can be proud of my work and feel motivated to stay consistent. Some value I was expecting and hoping to find through yoga were boosted energy and better sleep – it has delivered…especially after an Original Hot 90 class. Whew!

Outside of yoga, I find joy in cooking new recipes, exploring new hiking trails, swimming, spending time with my people, and snuggling with my dog, Amos. I am also always seeking a book or TV series to become engrossed in. I’m not great at finishing a book or series unless I am extremely into it. I admire people who can finish books that they admittedly aren’t enjoying halfway through – bonus points if they reread books. I have never done that.