©Sonya S. Photography
I am an experienced yoga instructor as well as the Owner of and Studio Director at Life Yoga in Kingston, Ontario. I am a passionate advocate for body positivity, even sitting as a member of the Leadership Team with the Yoga and Body Image Coalition. I foster connection through my online yoga studio and community and while leading accessible movement classes, hosting yoga and meditation retreats, and leading yoga teacher trainings all over the world.
Here's the full story ...
I started this journey when I was 17 years old, after I underwent major brain surgery to remove a tumour. At that time, I was a tiny, 90 pound, straight-A student working 40 hours per week as a Manager at a retail sports store while competing in tap, ballet, jazz, and musical theatre dancing. Seemingly overnight, I was very weak and very sick and my life became a daily practice in fulfilling basic needs. When I was well enough to focus beyond survival, I found myself in the body of a 200+lb. person that I did not know or understand. My life was dramatically different: I had to ask for, and accept, help for nearly everything; I developed long- and short-term memory loss; I could only take one course per semester and planned for my fifth year of high school instead of for graduation; I had to step down from my job; and I was not able to continue dancing with my team of five years. I struggled against the reality that my life had been dramatically altered for a number of years, which were mostly spent bouncing between denial, unfocused and insincere action and passive aggressiveness while I waited for things to return to "normal".
In University, my passion for kinesthetic movement reignited through yoga. I came home to myself and became eager to delve deeper into this practice. I discovered that the truest parts of me had not been altered by this trauma and that I was not lost, just hiding. This understanding brought me back to life. On and off the mat I was - and continue to be - transformed through the inquiry of yoga in ways I could never have anticipated.
After completing my post-secondary education in Health Studies and Education from Queen's University in 2009, I went on to graduate from 200-Hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training with Mona Warner in Kingston, Ontario. Over the years, I have been honoured to study with such inspirational teachers as Bo Forbes (Restorative Yoga for Emotional Balance), Tiina Veer (Yoga for Round Bodies), Nadine Saxton (Craniosacral Therapy) and Monica Voss (Pre- and Post-Natal Yoga).
In October, 2010, I met Jennifer Leeder, who owned Life Yoga and was looking for a yoga teacher for children in her studio. I was grateful for the opportunity to work with Jen and, more so, I felt blessed to call her a friend. Jen succumbed to her lifelong struggle with mental illness in early 2011 and, once again, my life was transformed overnight. After two tragic months of closure in January and February, with the encouragement and blessing from Jen's incredible family and closest friends, I re-opened Life Yoga in March, 2011 and found myself catapulted into my dream life as a yoga studio owner much sooner than ever expected.
As I developed into this yogic lifestyle as a bigger bodied woman, I found that a lot of teachers did not know how to accommodate for thighs that touch or a belly that is always in the way. In 2012, I took a leap and began teaching Yoga for Bigger Bodied People, which was passionately embraced by the community. This encouraged me to organize weekend retreats for this dynamic group. These classes play a part in a self-love movement where plus-sized people can lovingly and methodically reclaim their bodies because our worth is not measured by our waistlines.
In the fall of 2015, I was honoured to be invited into the Yoga & Body Image Coalition as a Community Partner for my work and advocacy in the field of yoga as a bigger bodied people. The YBIC is a collection of yoga teachers, practitioners, experts, educators, activist, writers, artists, non-profit organizers, and advocates. We promote optimal well-being and healthy body relationships through a consistent yoga practice, including physical asana, meditation, and beyond. We are committed to creating safe spaces for bodies of all types, devoid of body shaming, while offering a comprehensive body image education for yoga teachers, community and media outlets. I went on to become an active member of their leadership team in 2017 and continue to enthusastically represent this brand.
Also in the fall of 2015, I checked a big one off my bucket list and completed my Therapeutic Yoga Intensive training with Susi Hately and began to immerse myself more fully into the world of yoga therapy. This has gifted me with a framework for all of my education and experience where I can create a personalized approach to help clients move out of pain, improve flexibility, enhance strength, and develop the ability to relax on and off the yoga mat.
In 2016, I was blessed to have the opportunity to immerse myself with the thoughtful and resonant Elena Brower at her Art of Attention Teacher Enhancement Module with my dear friend Kristie. Kristie introduced me to Elena's work after participating in her training in 2014, I purchased her Art of Attention book and, later, yoga healing cards. I was hooked from this magical book and begun to follow Elena with fervour. The foundation of the first retreat that I facilitated at Northern Edge Algonquin was created with inspiration from her transformative collection of beautiful, self-reflective practices. These few days with Elena in April, 2016, helped me engage in the process of creation on and off the mat and more clearly define my voice, my listening, my art, my meditation, and my leadership.
Also in 2016, I became certified as an "Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher" with the Yoga Alliance after teaching well over 1,000 hours of yoga. As a result, I was able to begin working with a local yoga school co-facilitating 200hr. and 500hr. Yoga Alliance certified yoga teacher training programs. The experience was incredibly affirming and inspired me to launch Yoga Teacher Training Kingston in the fall of 2017. Navigating students through the waters from practitioner to teacher has been an incredibly affirming and fulfilling experience as I funnel all of my experience and trainings into lessons for the next generation of yoga teachers.
Through this training, I met my dear friend Hannah Bock, a yoga teacher and marketer from Gananoque, Ontario. Hannah and I first bonded over our shared passions for yoga and business and, in time, our skills and interests led us to launch an online business of yoga course that was warmly welcomed by the yoga teacher community. Inspired by the success of this course, Hannah and I created YogaBusiness.Pro, an online hub for support and resources for yoga professionals. We have since gone on to evolve this course to an in-person masterclass that we present as weekend-long modules at yoga teacher trainings in Canada and the northern United States. Our goal is to help yoga teachers and studio owners create clarity about the industry and build a profitable and sustainable yoga career that they'll love.
In the summer of 2016, I met my sister in body positivity Dianne Bondy. Dianne is a writer, motivator, educator, yoga teacher, and creator of Yogasteya.com and Yoga for All Teacher Training. I have had the privilege of studying with Dianne, receiving my 300hr. Yoga Teacher Training from her, then partnering with her to teach and (soon-to-come) create online classes for all bodies at Yogasteya.com. I am honoured to be associated this leading voice in the self-love movement. Empowered by these experiences, I have begun to step fully into my work in the world of functional movement for all bodies.
After a couple of years dedicating my personal practice to a Susi Hatley-esque therapeutic yoga practice, I had regained a strong and stable foundation and full range-of-movement in all of my joints. At just this moment, Kathryn Bruni Young appeared to me with her brilliance and inspired me to begin to incorporate strength in to a mindful practice. We met while co-facilitating a yoga teacher training and I felt my whole being say "YES!" - my brain was on fire, my body felt strong and competent, and I felt energetically and emotionally ready to take on whatever life throws my way. This inspired me to begin studying weekly with her in her Teacher Training program. Despite the two hour drive each way (yes, she is that good), I look forward to these weekly play sessions so much and this journey has blown my teaching out of the water! Instead of propping and adjusting yoga poses to make a practice accessible, I have discovered and am continually creating a method of movement that really requires no alternative and yet it is attainable for every ability and body. This experience inspired me to create my Integrated Awareness, Empowered Movement weekend workshops and offer them all over Canada and, soon, internationally.
Through the practice, I have regained my sense of self. Each step on my path has unfolded beautifully as I have evolved. When given the opportunity to act, I have done so authentically, bearing my my most vulnerable self and, in return, I have been met with love and support. I am grateful for my history, grateful for where I am in this moment, and grateful for my future ... however it unfolds.
I started this journey when I was 17 years old, after I underwent major brain surgery to remove a tumour. At that time, I was a tiny, 90 pound, straight-A student working 40 hours per week as a Manager at a retail sports store while competing in tap, ballet, jazz, and musical theatre dancing. Seemingly overnight, I was very weak and very sick and my life became a daily practice in fulfilling basic needs. When I was well enough to focus beyond survival, I found myself in the body of a 200+lb. person that I did not know or understand. My life was dramatically different: I had to ask for, and accept, help for nearly everything; I developed long- and short-term memory loss; I could only take one course per semester and planned for my fifth year of high school instead of for graduation; I had to step down from my job; and I was not able to continue dancing with my team of five years. I struggled against the reality that my life had been dramatically altered for a number of years, which were mostly spent bouncing between denial, unfocused and insincere action and passive aggressiveness while I waited for things to return to "normal".
In University, my passion for kinesthetic movement reignited through yoga. I came home to myself and became eager to delve deeper into this practice. I discovered that the truest parts of me had not been altered by this trauma and that I was not lost, just hiding. This understanding brought me back to life. On and off the mat I was - and continue to be - transformed through the inquiry of yoga in ways I could never have anticipated.
After completing my post-secondary education in Health Studies and Education from Queen's University in 2009, I went on to graduate from 200-Hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training with Mona Warner in Kingston, Ontario. Over the years, I have been honoured to study with such inspirational teachers as Bo Forbes (Restorative Yoga for Emotional Balance), Tiina Veer (Yoga for Round Bodies), Nadine Saxton (Craniosacral Therapy) and Monica Voss (Pre- and Post-Natal Yoga).
In October, 2010, I met Jennifer Leeder, who owned Life Yoga and was looking for a yoga teacher for children in her studio. I was grateful for the opportunity to work with Jen and, more so, I felt blessed to call her a friend. Jen succumbed to her lifelong struggle with mental illness in early 2011 and, once again, my life was transformed overnight. After two tragic months of closure in January and February, with the encouragement and blessing from Jen's incredible family and closest friends, I re-opened Life Yoga in March, 2011 and found myself catapulted into my dream life as a yoga studio owner much sooner than ever expected.
As I developed into this yogic lifestyle as a bigger bodied woman, I found that a lot of teachers did not know how to accommodate for thighs that touch or a belly that is always in the way. In 2012, I took a leap and began teaching Yoga for Bigger Bodied People, which was passionately embraced by the community. This encouraged me to organize weekend retreats for this dynamic group. These classes play a part in a self-love movement where plus-sized people can lovingly and methodically reclaim their bodies because our worth is not measured by our waistlines.
In the fall of 2015, I was honoured to be invited into the Yoga & Body Image Coalition as a Community Partner for my work and advocacy in the field of yoga as a bigger bodied people. The YBIC is a collection of yoga teachers, practitioners, experts, educators, activist, writers, artists, non-profit organizers, and advocates. We promote optimal well-being and healthy body relationships through a consistent yoga practice, including physical asana, meditation, and beyond. We are committed to creating safe spaces for bodies of all types, devoid of body shaming, while offering a comprehensive body image education for yoga teachers, community and media outlets. I went on to become an active member of their leadership team in 2017 and continue to enthusastically represent this brand.
Also in the fall of 2015, I checked a big one off my bucket list and completed my Therapeutic Yoga Intensive training with Susi Hately and began to immerse myself more fully into the world of yoga therapy. This has gifted me with a framework for all of my education and experience where I can create a personalized approach to help clients move out of pain, improve flexibility, enhance strength, and develop the ability to relax on and off the yoga mat.
In 2016, I was blessed to have the opportunity to immerse myself with the thoughtful and resonant Elena Brower at her Art of Attention Teacher Enhancement Module with my dear friend Kristie. Kristie introduced me to Elena's work after participating in her training in 2014, I purchased her Art of Attention book and, later, yoga healing cards. I was hooked from this magical book and begun to follow Elena with fervour. The foundation of the first retreat that I facilitated at Northern Edge Algonquin was created with inspiration from her transformative collection of beautiful, self-reflective practices. These few days with Elena in April, 2016, helped me engage in the process of creation on and off the mat and more clearly define my voice, my listening, my art, my meditation, and my leadership.
Also in 2016, I became certified as an "Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher" with the Yoga Alliance after teaching well over 1,000 hours of yoga. As a result, I was able to begin working with a local yoga school co-facilitating 200hr. and 500hr. Yoga Alliance certified yoga teacher training programs. The experience was incredibly affirming and inspired me to launch Yoga Teacher Training Kingston in the fall of 2017. Navigating students through the waters from practitioner to teacher has been an incredibly affirming and fulfilling experience as I funnel all of my experience and trainings into lessons for the next generation of yoga teachers.
Through this training, I met my dear friend Hannah Bock, a yoga teacher and marketer from Gananoque, Ontario. Hannah and I first bonded over our shared passions for yoga and business and, in time, our skills and interests led us to launch an online business of yoga course that was warmly welcomed by the yoga teacher community. Inspired by the success of this course, Hannah and I created YogaBusiness.Pro, an online hub for support and resources for yoga professionals. We have since gone on to evolve this course to an in-person masterclass that we present as weekend-long modules at yoga teacher trainings in Canada and the northern United States. Our goal is to help yoga teachers and studio owners create clarity about the industry and build a profitable and sustainable yoga career that they'll love.
In the summer of 2016, I met my sister in body positivity Dianne Bondy. Dianne is a writer, motivator, educator, yoga teacher, and creator of Yogasteya.com and Yoga for All Teacher Training. I have had the privilege of studying with Dianne, receiving my 300hr. Yoga Teacher Training from her, then partnering with her to teach and (soon-to-come) create online classes for all bodies at Yogasteya.com. I am honoured to be associated this leading voice in the self-love movement. Empowered by these experiences, I have begun to step fully into my work in the world of functional movement for all bodies.
After a couple of years dedicating my personal practice to a Susi Hatley-esque therapeutic yoga practice, I had regained a strong and stable foundation and full range-of-movement in all of my joints. At just this moment, Kathryn Bruni Young appeared to me with her brilliance and inspired me to begin to incorporate strength in to a mindful practice. We met while co-facilitating a yoga teacher training and I felt my whole being say "YES!" - my brain was on fire, my body felt strong and competent, and I felt energetically and emotionally ready to take on whatever life throws my way. This inspired me to begin studying weekly with her in her Teacher Training program. Despite the two hour drive each way (yes, she is that good), I look forward to these weekly play sessions so much and this journey has blown my teaching out of the water! Instead of propping and adjusting yoga poses to make a practice accessible, I have discovered and am continually creating a method of movement that really requires no alternative and yet it is attainable for every ability and body. This experience inspired me to create my Integrated Awareness, Empowered Movement weekend workshops and offer them all over Canada and, soon, internationally.
Through the practice, I have regained my sense of self. Each step on my path has unfolded beautifully as I have evolved. When given the opportunity to act, I have done so authentically, bearing my my most vulnerable self and, in return, I have been met with love and support. I am grateful for my history, grateful for where I am in this moment, and grateful for my future ... however it unfolds.
