ABOUT AMANDA

In Amanda's words:

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The yoga practice invites me to get more free. Since I started practicing in 2014, I have learned to inhabit my body more regularly, listen to my body's signals, question my beliefs and thought patterns, move slower and with the rhythms of my system, turn towards the hard things with grace, and trust that this body - this piece of nature that I inhabit - knows how to regulate and heal itself. I find that my job is to support my body and nervous system as best as I can in order to promote healing, integration and processing. I have become more understanding, forgiving, and gentle through these wise practices. The more I practice, the more I acknowledge and revere the "I don't know" space. I am of those who speak to not knowing, and who allow themselves to be ever-changing in this life.

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Yoga is a practice that has invited me into my body and brings me into more conscious alignment with myself. It is not just a physical practice (although that is a fabulous place to start), but a wholistic practice that allows us to explore who we are and who we want to be in this life. Yoga encourages and supports commitment to the self, body, mind and spirit. The practice invites us into a deeper sense of body awareness, embodiment, self awareness and connection to our nature. Yoga invites us to get to know ourselves through our body, breath and observation of our thoughts and behaviors. The practice asks us to observe ourselves and our actions, and invites us to make small and consistent changes to step into greater alignment with ourselves, our values, and our nature. Yoga gives me the opportunity to sit with myself inside of myself, to move and inhabit my body, and watch and question my thoughts and beliefs supporting the principles of nature that everything is always changing. It has been a catalyst for much of my healing work, and most of my personal transformations. Yoga (in all of its forms) is the most important practice I have, and it brings me more into myself every time I show up to practice. It is a constantly evolving practice.

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I completed over 375 hours of formal yoga teacher training in NYC through Laughing Lotus before the studio closed in 2020. Since 2020, I have continued my studies with deep dives into meditative spaces with Ally Bogard. Teachers who have had a strong influence on my practice and teaching include Ali Cramer, Ally Bogard, Kenny Frisby, Sheri Celentano, Deb Langley, Cathy Dirkx, Mary Dana Abbott and Felipe Gonzalez. My trainings and depth of study have focused on Vinyasa Yoga; meditation; Yoga Nidra; restorative Yoga; inversion practices including arm balances, headstands, forearm-stands and handstands; alignment and anatomy; smart and sustainable sequencing for longevity; and breath work practices (pranayama). I am first and foremost a student, and I like to bring what I am learning in trainings and my own exploration of the embodiment of yoga to the practices that I teach. 

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I am also a rock climbing enthusiast and outdoor adventurer. While studying engineering at Cornell University, I got involved with the Cornell Outdoor Education program, where I taught rock climbing. While I found yoga first, I taught climbing during my undergraduate years and then completed my yoga teacher training after graduation. Climbing has been a complement to my yoga practice, both physically and mentally. There is nothing quite like an outdoor climbing trip where I connect deeply with nature, my friends, and myself while I am removed from technology. There is a profound meditative quality to outdoor climbing. Immersing myself in nature and using my body to climb the natural world requires full embodiment and presence. In that way, climbing feels like an extension of the yoga practice - yoga is everywhere. Connection with nature is my source space and it tethers me to what really matters. Whether I am climbing a rock face, hiking in a forest, dancing with my bare feet in the grass, practicing asana under a blue sky, or planting myself on the beach for a sunrise with the ocean waves as my soundtrack, I find that touchpoint to nature to be necessary to contrast the disconnection from source that modern life tends to facilitate.