(Must be a first-time member). Offer expires July 31st, 2008.
Meet the Yoga Fix Studio Instructors
Each of our teachers brings something unique to the studio. While yoga is a practice of discipline, a series of postures and breathing exercises each teacher infuses their class with their own experience and style. Our staff is comprised of talented instructors, constantly striving to increase their depth of yoga knowledge to provide you the best possible classes.
Julia teaches Hot Yoga. Although, Julia is newer to yoga – 2 years practicing and teaching – she is a firm believer in the benefits of yoga; believing everyone can benefit from yoga. As she says, “Everyone should make yoga a priority. Make it part of your weekly routine and you won’t regret it!”
Julia has always enjoyed the benefits of exercise and stretching; and was looking for a way to combine those two activities and release stress. That’s when she discovered Bikram-style yoga and got hooked. “I find it is the most effective way to achieve the mind and body cathartic experience. It helps me breath; especially when I feel overwhelmed, it helps me relax so I can take a deep breath. And I feel more toned and stronger. I love doing yoga because it brings balance into my life.”
Take Julia’s class and you will feel her dedication to the practice of yoga and it’s stress-relieving benefits. You will be challenged to go deep in this hot yoga practice while relaxing to the calming music in the background.
Charlene teaches Cardio-Pilates and Hot Yoga. She is certified in Bikram having studied with Bikram Choudhury, one of the worlds most highly regarded hatha yoga gurus: as well as, Pilates Mat and Pilates Experimental certified. She has been an instructor at Yoga Fix for the past 6 years and “been doing yoga forever!”
Charlene started doing yoga by watching a yoga television program, she read avidly about yoga and finally took her first Bikram yoga class at Bally Health Club over 25 years ago. She has practiced with Lynn Moffitt and later Patricia Gray, doing Bikram off and on for many years. “I would study another form of yoga for a while and would always come back to Bikram.”
“Yoga has brought a calmness and order to my life. I love doing the same 26 poses in the same order – this allows me to go within myself and just relax and calm the mind.” Charlene has a small room in her home that is her “yoga retreat,” complete with two small space heaters.
Charlene has always been a teacher, first with children as a Kindergarten teacher and later with adults. “I love the interaction I have with people. From my students I get a certain energy that stays with me through out the day. I have a love and passion for teaching. I will always be teaching people to do something because I am a teacher.”
Charlene is not only a teacher, but a student, always expanding her classes in an effort to bring a new energy and enthusiasm into the yoga room. Her Cardio-Pilates is a fast-paced, upbeat workout sure to be as challenging as it is fun.
Nancy teaches Warm Yoga. She began to practice and study yoga in 1969 while she was working on her B.A. degree in studio art at UMKC and working in the visual arts library of the university’s art department. “My boss asked me to attend yoga classes with her. Our teacher Mildred Jensen was a popular yoga instructor in the Kansas City area. Her hatha yoga classes were based on the teachings of Swami Sivananda, born in India in 1887. Our practice was built around these principles: relaxation, asanas, breathing, diet, and positive thinking and meditation. I loved the way I felt after my first class and have continued my practice of yoga ever since.”
Nancy believes yoga influences the mind, body and spirit in a very positive way. “I think that my yoga practice helped me survive the stresses of undergraduate and graduate school, and then the ‘real’ world after.”
Nearly ten years ago Nancy took her first Bikram yoga class with Kate Reece. “I love the way this sequence of postures has made me feel. Balance, strength and flexibility have all improved beyond my expectations. For three years I practiced the hot classes once a day, every day. While being treated for precancerous sun damage on my face, the hot classes became too uncomfortable. About that time Kate asked if I’d be interested in teaching a gentle class for pregnant women and those who liked the hot classes but not the extreme heat, and I said ‘yes!’”
Nancy began teaching at Yoga Fix in 2001, sharing her love of yoga with her students and watching their own practices improve and evolve. Nancy herself is an avid student continuing a home practice and constant study of yoga texts along with class instruction in various styles of Hatha yoga to improve her own yoga practice and share with her students. Nancy says her “own yoga mentor (guru) is John Carter. He’s a frequent student of Yoga Fix, a certified Bikram yoga instructor and one of the most knowledgeable yogis I’ve ever known.”
Nancy’s Warm Yoga class has evolved in to a meditative style that is sure to give you every bit as rigorous of a workout as any of our other yoga classes yet leave you feeling more relaxed and energized.
Kate teaches Hot Yoga. She is a certified, master-trained, Bikram hatha yoga instructor. She studied intensively with Bikram Choudhury, one of the worlds most highly regarded hatha yoga gurus.
She is rigorously trained in yoga form, science, and therapy. She also holds a degree in health psychology and related biosciences with over 8 years of study and experience in mind-body medicine, anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and nutrition. She is published in several scientific journals as well as in articles on the subject of science as related to yoga.
Kate has been a student of yoga for over 20 years. She is the former owner of Yoga Fix, having established the studio with her husband Joe Reece, and has been teaching for over ten years. Her background in yoga as well as personal struggles with injury and disease have lead her to be one of the countries foremost experts in adapting postures for specific needs. These include but are not limited to:
chronic back problems - degenerate, bulging and herniated discs of the spine
knee injuries and surgeries
pregnancy and postpartum
“I have seen miraculous results in the health improvement and increased athletic performance in myself and hundreds of Hot Yoga students and am dedicated to sharing this with the rest of the world”.
Lauren teaches Hot Yoga. She has a dance degree from the University of Missouri Kansas City. She is certified in Pilates Mat and Equipment through Team Pilates.
Lauren began doing Hot Yoga at Yoga Fix when a fellow teacher and friend brought her to a 6:20 am class “to gain new insight on life.” If you knew Lauren, you would know that was quite a feat to get her to a 6:20 am class. As Lauren puts it, “I must have been crazy to get up that early.”
Lauren continued from that class to become an instructor at the studio. She says she came in “with a pretty good range of motion, but it has increased her flexibility so much! As a dancer yoga has taught me how to use my breath in movement, how to center my mind and how to focus on the here and now.”
“I love yoga because of how quickly you can start seeing results in your body. This is a full mind and body exercise that EVERYONE can do. I love teaching and watching people improve. It’s great to hear from students who tell me the pain the came in with is gone and that they have more energy throughout their day.”
Lauren gets excited to see her students make the big and little progresses that come with doing yoga. Experience Lauren’s class and see for yourself the enthusiasm that comes shining through.
Heidi teaches Yoga Flow. She is a YogaFit-trained Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT).
Heidi began practicing yoga a decade ago to relieve stress from her corporate job. She found yoga not only helped her to build strength and flexibility but also enabled her to quiet her mind and relieve stress. After nine years of performing a variety of roles at a Fortune 50 company, including managing and coaching young business professionals, Heidi was led to move her teaching to the yoga mat.
Heidi’s teaching style focuses intently on serving her students’ needs – whether modifying poses for a beginner recovering from an injury or assisting an advanced student in finding a deeper challenge from a familiar pose. “I want to create a friendly and comfortable environment for everyone to enjoy the many benefits of yoga. You don’t have to start out extremely flexible or enlightened to enjoy my classes. Yoga offers benefits for all us no matter what level we are at. I hope that my casual and friendly attitude enables everyone to feel welcome and successful.”
Come see for yourself how Heidi’s passion to spread yoga to everyone allows the most novice beginner and the seasoned yogi alike to enjoy this yoga flow class.
Christa has been a long-time friend of Joe Reece and began doing yoga when Joe first returned from Bikram training and was teaching in the old Westport Ballet Studio. She intended to just “try” it out, but found she fell in love with hot yoga and has been practicing and teaching ever since.
Christa says for her, “yoga lessons her anxious mind, has changed her body to be longer and leaner, which for a 5’3” person is great! Yoga has taught me so many tools that I use in everyday life.”
Always having been a people person Christa loves talking to and meeting new people and sharing her enthusiasm for yoga. “When I find something I love; I get very excited about it and want to share it with everyone – yoga has been that way for me. I love that I will be able to do yoga for my whole life. I even started my Mom doing yoga. Now she’s been doing yoga for 7 years. My Mom had a frozen vertebrae that left her severely injured and unable to do other sports. She was in severe pain and the doctors were talking about surgery. So, she tried yoga and about a year later the pain was gone and she found she had naturally healed; the vertebrae elongated and the pressure on the neck released. This is just one story. I have seen many people come to the studio with similar stories and have healing experiences. In fact, my Mom’s doctor now says ‘never give up yoga and do you think I’m too old to start yoga?’ Noooo! As John Carter would say, ‘you can have one foot in the grave and one foot on a banana peel and still do yoga.’ John started his yoga practice at the age of 70 and went to yoga training at 78 years of age. At 85 years old he’s still going strong and practicing yoga. How many other forms of exercise can you do; be in your 80’s and still be in the prime of your practice? That’s why I love and teach yoga.”
In an effort to staff the most qualified teachers available at all times, we are always accepting resumes. When there is no immediate need for teachers we keep all submissions on file.
