Why yoga?

Anybody who knows me, knows that I don’t do still. My lifestyle is frenetic and I thrive on being busy. But we all need a little balance in our lives, and in 2014 I found that balance in yoga.
When I went along to my first class at a local yoga studio it was all I hoped for and so much more. It was mindful, stretchy, relaxing and fun, but it was also a strong practice and I came away feeling absolutely amazing. Even after that first class I was hooked and ready to learn more. 
Very quickly yoga gave me exactly what I had been looking for: the benefits to my health and wellbeing have been more than I ever imagined possible from one simple change in lifestyle – the addition of a regular yoga practice.
I have learned to leave my busy brain behind while I am on my mat, and I can take this peace with me to other areas of my life. I feel better able to cope with situations (and people!) that used to rile me...don’t get me wrong, they still exist. But now if I need to I can find my inner yogi and let them go. Mostly.
Yoga keeps me physically fit too. Improved overall strength and posture mean that the aches and pains I had been putting down to my age are generally a thing of the past. But more than that yoga has given me the confidence to love my body, to accept and appreciate it just as it is.
Yoga isn’t a cure-all, but it has given me the tools to manage and add balance to my lifestyle. I feel amazing, empowered, like nothing is beyond my reach. I have genuinely never felt better about myself, physically or mentally, and this brings with it a peace of its own.
So that is why I do yoga.
And why do I teach?
Life’s events have taught me to grab opportunities, to follow your dreams and indulge your passions, and to push yourself to achieve new goals.
With my children flying the nest and striking out on their own, I decided that I needed to revisit my goals, my 5-year plan. Whichever way I looked at it, I wanted to do something that I enjoyed, that would fulfil me, and sit well with all that I believed in. But I didn’t know what that was.
And then fate intervened – my local yoga studio was running an IYN approved 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training programme. And that was it.
I wanted to share my passion, and enable others to find the peace and joy that I had found in my yoga practice, so here I am.

And so to the studio

The more I taught, the more I realised that I wanted to spend more time doing what I loved, and to create a permanent space from which to share my practice. I wanted to create an oasis of calm, an escape from the noise and chaos of the outside world. A safe space. A hideaway.

And so The Den was born and in February 2019, I opened The Den Yoga Studio on the top floor of the Bridgeman Physiotherapy Centre.

Just after we celebrated the first anniversary, in March 2020 life took a complicated turn and The Den moved online, with live and pre-recorded classes, so that I could continue to guide people in their practice from the comfort and safety of their own homes.

Fast forward 14 long and difficult months, and finally, in May 2021, I reopened the studio doors.

More time passed, and the opportunity presented itself to relocate to our current home on Westbridge Mews - all ground floor, our own dedicated space, with room to grow to become a Wellness Centre!

An exciting journey? Oh my goodness, yes.

A pleasure to share my passion? More than anything.

Ready for whatever lies ahead? With the peace and strength from my practice - bring it on!

Namaste